We may learn that certain behaviors we engage in are potentially harmful and have now become fearful; yet, we still engage in the harmful behaviors (Tannenbaum et al., 2015). Further, individual differences have been considered to determine who is most likely to experience fear during and after message consumption. Additionally, researchers have investigated the effects of fear in other message contexts, from news media to user-generated digital content. Coping information Advancing psychology to benefit society and improve lives. Fear, information and control during a pandemic. Multiple book chapters also provide nice overviews of the existing research on the emotion of fear. Yet, little attention has been paid to this issue. Get the help you need from a therapist near youa FREE service from Psychology Today. The fear-arousal appeal. On the other hand, proponents argue that fear appeals positively affect attitudes, intentions, and behaviors, with one meta-analysis reporting an average effect size of d = 0.29 (Tannenbaum et al., 2015 ). A campaign with gruesome photos of a person dying of lung cancer to combat smoking might make people think twice . There is also the possibility that arousing fear could result in a defensive response or risk denial; particularly, among those who are most susceptible to the threat (Ruiter, Kessels, Peters, & Kok, 2014). These included two perceptions related to the potential threat: severity of the threat and susceptibility to it. Disclaimer. For example, Nabi (1999) proposed the cognitive-functional model (CFM) to advance the literature on negative emotional appeals generally, including specific predictions regarding the role of fear in mediated persuasion. Though the four cognitions identified in the PMT proved important to persuasive outcomes in response to fear appeals, the specific relationships among them as asserted by the theory were not fully supported by empirical evidence. How to Stop Your Mind When It Spins Out of Control. For example. Since the 1950s, social scientists have studied the potential effects of fear-arousing messages on audiences. Pediatr Neurol. One trait variable that has been studied for its contribution to fear arousal is trait anxiety, or the dispositional tendency toward experiencing anxiety and worry across situations. Presenting a fear appeal more than doubles the probability of change relative to not presenting anything or presenting a low-fear appeal, said Albarracin. How 'fear appeals' and disinformation may be manipulating the public on COVID Communication by public health officials during a pandemic may involve an organized strategy that includes some. Fear appeals are a form of persuasive communication. Although this approach suggests that patient anxieties may be reduced through the presentation of efficacy-related information, which is consistent with fear-appeal messaging, there are large gaps in this area of research that would benefit from additional attention. Censorship and Suppression of Covid-19 Heterodoxy: Tactics and Counter-Tactics. PMC Health persuasion through emoji: How emoji interacted with information source to predict health behaviors in COVID-19 situation. Another individual difference that may influence reactions to fear appeals is monitoring versus blunting responses to information (S. M. Miller, 1987). The protection motivation theory (Maddux & Rogers, 1983; Rogers, 1975) elaborated on the danger-control branch of the PPM, explicating four different cognitive reactions to fear appeals. You will explore the application of fear appeals in health promotion messaging through the examination of a health promotion public service announcement or ad campaign. Give an example or create your own public health message using the fear appeal. There is growing evidence in multiple media contexts, including health messages (e.g., Dunlop, Wakefield, & Kashima, 2010) that the emotionality of media messages, regardless of valence, is associated with their diffusing through social networks. Register for the early bird rate. Although these are presented in chronological order here, it is important to note that the evolution of fear appeal theorizing reflects a combination of attempts to build on previous theory alongside overarching changes in psychological research that shifted from motivation-based approaches to more cognitively oriented approaches starting in the 1970s (for a review, see Nabi, 2007). Witte and Allen (2000), in their meta-analysis, did not find a significant relationship between trait anxiety and post-message attitudes, intentions, or behaviors. There are multiple explanations for this need to share, including the need to verbalize experiences to help make sense of them, to help validate the self or confirm that people are still themselves despite this event, and to allow groups to develop collective social knowledge of emotional experiences. In essence, different types of audiences with different predispositions are likely to respond differently to fear appeals. For example, we may learn that taking too much over-the-counter pain medication can cause liver damage; nevertheless, we continue to take more than we should when the pain is great. | Most directly relevant, Goodall, Sabo, Cline, and Egbert (2012) conducted a content analysis of print and electronic news coverage of the H1N1 virus from a fear appeal perspective, looking for the appearance of threat and efficacy information within the news coverage. As the United States faces out-of-control spikes from Covid-19, with people refusing to take recommended, often even mandated, precautions, our public health announcements from governments,. So can . "One is seats, one is . official website and that any information you provide is encrypted Albarracin also recommended against using only fear-based appeals. The third component recommended behavior is important because it gives instruction on what to do to avert or reduce the risk of harm. fear appeal has been used when the message producer intended to inform the public about the severe consequences that unhealthy behavior or a disease may induce, thus expressing a causal . Additionally, Tannenbaum et al. Further, current understanding of the role of individual differences as well as fears impact in contexts beyond direct persuasive messages, like news, entertainment, patient-provider dynamics, and social media, is likewise limited. Fear appeals motivate attitude, intention, and behaviour changesespecially fear appeals accompanied by high-efficacy messages. They looked at 127 research articles representing 248 independent samples and over 27,000 individuals from experiments conducted between 1962 and 2014. We will refer to this as depicted fear to For example. International Journal of Psychology, 49, 6370. Before Despite the wealth of research on the effects of fear-based messages, numerous limitations have been pointed out in the existing literature. However, this approach offers a limited understanding of the experience of fear throughout message exposure. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0039729. Nat Med. 2022 Nov 22;10:991292. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.991292. All close relationships can elicit strong positive and negative emotions the parties have of one another. This may be because, unlike with public service announcements, audiences do not expect news stories to highlight a significant problem and then offer a clear and effective solution. Monitors, however, responded to both message types similarly. Fear appeal is a term used in psychology, sociology and marketing. Once evoked, fear manifests itself physically in multiple ways, including changes in facial expressions (e.g., wide-open eyes and raised eyelids) and the body (e.g., increased heart rate) (hman, 2008). Throughout the history of the study of fear appeals, any message that evoked negative emotion would often be categorized as a fear appeal. Thus, it may be that fear appeals that emphasize efficacy over threat may be more successful for this demographic, though future research is needed to address this question directly. Indeed, the Tannenbaum et al. However, the resources listed below are helpful places to start exploring these topics as they are addressed in the academic literature. Fear-arousal appeals might be effective for a person with little or no schooling. Many studies on the effectiveness of fear appeals have been conducted. The fear-as-acquired drive model (often referred to as the drive model) argues that stimuli that evoke fear result in a drive to avoid the unpleasant emotional state (Hovland, Janis, & Kelly, 1953). Importantly, Witte and Allen (2000) did not find support for the EPPMs predicted threat by efficacy interaction. WASHINGTON Fear-based appeals appear to be effective at influencing attitudes and behaviors, especially among women, according to a comprehensive review of over 50 years of research on the topic, published by the American Psychological Association. She noted that the studies analyzed did not necessarily compare people who were afraid to people who were unafraid, but instead compared groups that were exposed to more or less fear-inducing content. Reviewed by Lybi Ma. Fear appeals are messages that try to persuade people about the potential harm that may happen to them if they do not accept the messages' recommendations (Tannenbaum et al., 2015). So, if an audience member appraises a message as representing an imminent threat to her own well-being, she will likely experience fear. "These appeals are effective at changing attitudes, intentions and behaviors. Dolores Albarracin can be contacted by email or by phone at (217) 224-7019. Schweinhart A, Arambur C, Bauer R, Simons-Rudolph A, Atwood K, Luseno WK. As such, each theory or model does not always present a direct response to its immediate predecessor. As such, the emotional flow perspective suggests that the emotional shift from fear to hope may help to explain the conditions under which fear appeals are more likely to be effective. (2015) calculated an average weighted effect size comparing groups exposed to moderate fear versus those exposed to high depicted fear. More elaborate strategies, such as training people on the skills they will need to succeed in changing behavior, will likely be more effective in most contexts. crisis communication; emergency; global health; health communications; risk. Thus, the model proved unhelpful for both predicting responses to fear appeals as well as to fear appeal message design. It is to this literature we now turn. We encourage public health professionals to reevaluate their desire to use fear appeals in COVID-19 health communication and recommend that evidence-based health communication be utilized to address the needs of a specific community, help people understand what they are being asked to do, explain step-by-step how to complete preventative . Given that theories of motivation were losing favor to those that focused on cognition in the field of psychology in the 1970s, it is unsurprising that the next major advance in fear appeal theorizing focused on the cognitive elements associated with fear appeal effectiveness. Individuals base their first appraisal on assessment of Fear is a negatively valenced discrete emotional state that is an inherent part of the human experience. Yet fears associated motivation for protection from the threat may still lead to message processing, depending on the audiences expectations regarding the remainder of the message content. Beginning with the very young, testing the influence of fear-based messages on children is a difficult area of empirical inquiry given the ethical implications of potential psychological trauma. As with previous models, though EPPM offers an appealing explanation for when fear appeals may be more or less persuasive, research has not supported all of the EPPMs key predictions. Undoubtedly, most of us have been exposed to fear appeal campaigns regarding health issues, politics, and traffic and driving safety. An official website of the United States government. Differing motives in a particular situation shapes reactions and perceptions of the experience. I believe that most current approaches to anxiety fall short because they are predicated on the medical model, which views anxiety as an illness. Indeed, with developmental stages in mind, there is reason to believe that different message structures would be more appropriate for different age groups. More from Shoba Sreenivasan, Ph.D., and Linda E. Weinberger, Ph.D. Major life events can have significant consequences, yet the gnawing of persistent minor irritations may be more prevalent and harmful. However, the prediction that fear, but not anger, would be associated with less careful information processing when expectation of reassurance was high was not supported. Two years later, in their meta-analysis of 98 studies, Witte and Allen (2000) likewise found a moderately positive relationship between fear appeals and experienced fear (r = .30). There are many messages that convey important information about potential harm; however, if the . Would you like email updates of new search results? Although not specifically documented, the pervasiveness and endurance of cautionary tales in childrens literature suggest that such narratives are believed to be influential; and in light of the growing evidence of the persuasive influence of narratives on adults (Green, 2006; Green & Brock, 2000), there is reason to believe such stories do, indeed, have the desired influence on children. Exerting effort may be preferred to doing nothing at all. The EPPM represented a merger of the PPM and the PMT, but it also recognized the importance of the emotion of fear itself in understanding message effects. A fear appeal, then, can be defined as a message that intends to evoke fear in audiences by demonstrating the existence of a threat and then detailing ways to avoid that threat (Witte, 1994). Copy this link, or click below to email it to a friend. Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour, 11, 207-220. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trf.2007.11.001, Ruiter, R. A., Kessels, L. T, E., Peters, G. Y., & Kok, G. (2014). Mongeaus (1998) meta-analysis examined the influence of fear appeals on perceived fear, attitudes, and behaviors. Accessibility While these types of messages are commonly used in political, public health and commercial advertising campaigns (e.g., smoking will kill you, Candidate A will destroy the economy), their use is controversial as academics continue to debate their effectiveness. Whereas fear is typically the result of an imminent and identifiable threat, anxiety stems from anticipating a potential threat, sometimes of unclear origin (hman, 2008). We are in the "closing arguments phase" of the local election campaign, deputy political editor Sam Coates says. People cope with potentially threatening information in different ways. In order to fully support or reject tenets the original EPPM, additional research is needed. It further asserts that the ordering or shifts in emotional states in response to changing message content may be critical to understanding persuasive outcomes. More recently, scholars have adopted a more nuanced approach, noting that messages that include both threat components and efficacy components, and thus are well-categorized as fear appeals, can evoke other emotions in addition to fear and that these other emotions have unique influence on persuasive outcomes. Symbols such as dying people, coffins, gravestones or skulls may be used. The study of fear-based messages has a long and robust history. More than 92 million benzodiazepine prescriptions are yearly dispensed in the US, yet little is known about the experiences of those taking them. Additionally, social media provide opportunities not only for social sharing but also for information requests from others, which in turn could improve health outcomes. If news stories are processed as fear appeals, this composition suggests concern that health stories are not reaching their potential to positively influence the health behaviors of audiences. Currently, scholars are considering how emotions in addition to fear influence the effect of fear appeals (e.g., emotional flow) and possible moderators of fear appeal effects. Moreover, they may perceive themselves to be less able to avoid the harms associated with risky health behaviors (Cohn, Macfarlane, Yanez, & Imai, 1995). Understanding the personalities of the audience (e.g., the typical characteristics and traits of women in comparison to men, or of adolescents versus young or middle-aged people, or of those who are health conscious versus those who are not) will help in designing a campaign that is better directed toward the targeted individuals. The recently advanced emotional flow perspective (Nabi, 2015; Nabi & Green, 2015) builds on this recognition by arguing that messages, including fear appeals, evoke multiple emotions in sequence as the contents of the messages unfold. Conversely, the frequent use of fear appeals across a range of issues could possibly result in a chronic sense of heightened anxiety. However, trait anxiety has been linked to other outcomes of fear appeals. Visually, the EPPM is represented as a path model whereby the four message components in the external stimuli (i.e., self-efficacy, response efficacy, susceptibility, and severity) predict their related cognitive perceptions. eCollection 2023 Mar. Although these meta-analyses seem to converge on a small but significant relationship between fear and persuasion-related outcomes, the mechanisms of fear appeal effects are still not entirely clear.
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how is fear appeal used in public health messaging