Uncertainty orientation and persuasion: Individual differences in the effects of personal relevance on social judgments.

Abstract

In two studies we investigated the effects of personal relevance on attitude change as a function of one's uncertainty orientation. We predicted that, unlike uncertainty-oriented persons, high personal relevance would make certainty-oriented persons less careful or systematic in their processing of message arguments and more dependent on heuristics, or persuasion cues, than would low personal relevance. Results from both studies, within and across 2-week time periods, supported predictions. In Study 1, high personal relevance led to higher persuasiveness of two-sided communications and lower persuasiveness of one-sided communications than low personal relevance for uncertainty-oriented persons, but the reverse occurred for certainty-oriented persons. In Study 2, high personal relevance led to higher persuasive impact of strong arguments and lower impact for source expertise than did low personal relevance for uncertainty-oriented persons, but, again, the reverse occurred for certainty-oriented persons. We discuss implications for current theories. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)