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Polls and Elections : The Conditional Effects of Competing Messages during Presidential Nominating Conventions
Author(s) -
CERA JOSEPH,
WEINSCHENK AARON C.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
presidential studies quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.337
H-Index - 5
eISSN - 1741-5705
pISSN - 0360-4918
DOI - 10.1111/j.1741-5705.2012.03946.x
Subject(s) - convention , presidential system , political science , opposition (politics) , social psychology , public relations , psychology , law , politics
Past research demonstrates that presidential nominating conventions can exercise multiple effects on individual‐level opinion; consumption of convention speeches yields opinion more favorable to the convening candidate, while exposure to partisan messaging in the surrounding information environment can trigger a general partisan bias. In this article, we demonstrate that the persuasive power of speeches made by candidates during the second convention in a given election cycle can be attenuated by exposure to information from the initial convention. Such conditional effects persist even when individual partisan affiliation and preconvention opinion are controlled. Notably, positive impressions made by candidates appear to be more impactful than negative messaging aimed at candidates by their opposition.