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Enlisting the Influence of Others: Alternative Strategies for Persuasive Media Campaigns
Author(s) -
Morton ThomasA.,
Duck Julie M.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
journal of applied social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1559-1816
pISSN - 0021-9029
DOI - 10.1111/j.0021-9029.2006.00008.x
Subject(s) - psychology , perception , social psychology , affect (linguistics) , media coverage , quality (philosophy) , developmental psychology , risk perception , media campaign , advertising , philosophy , communication , epistemology , neuroscience , sociology , media studies , business
This study investigated an Australian antidrug campaign that targeted adolescents directly and indirectly via recruiting parents into drug prevention. Eighty‐six parent–child dyads completed surveys measuring campaign evaluations, discussions about drugs, and beliefs about risks to self (own child) and to the average young Australian. Adolescents were optimistic about risks, and media impact was evident only in perceptions of risk to others. Parents were less optimistic, and perceptions of campaign quality predicted perceived risk to own child and discussion about drugs. However, this was moderated by negative affect associated with the campaign. There was some evidence that discussions influenced adolescents' perceptions of personal risk. This demonstrates the importance of individual responses and communication processes in determining the impact of persuasive media messages.