Week 4. Resistance processes III: Self-threat and cognitive dissonance Resistance strategies I

These flashcards cover a lot from lecture 4 from Resistance & Persuasion, but not all!

What is resistance in persuasion?

Resistance refers to motivational and cognitive processes that oppose persuasion attempts (Fransen et al., 2015).

What are the four main resistance strategies (Fransen et al., 2015)?

1. Avoidance

2. Contesting

3. Biased processing

4. Empowerment

What is empowering resistance?

Strengthening one’s existing attitudes and behaviors to resist persuasion (Fransen et al., 2015).

What is attitude bolstering?

Emphasizing reasons why your current behavior is acceptable or justified.

What is self-assertion?

Defending one’s autonomy and freedom of choice against persuasion.

What is social validation?

Using others’ behavior (norms) to justify your own behavior.

Why is empowering resistance so strong?

Because it is tied to:

• Identity

• Autonomy

• Social norm
  
  Not just lack of knowledge!

What is contesting resistance?

Actively challenging the message or source.

What is counterarguing?

Generating arguments against the persuasive message.

What is source derogation?

Discrediting the source of the message.

When does contesting often occur?

When messages:

• Threaten autonomy

• Feel controlling

• Come from untrusted sources

What is avoidance?

Ignoring or avoiding exposure to the message.

What is affective resistance?

Emotional reactions (e.g., irritation, anger) toward persuasion.

What is psychological reactance?

A motivational state to restore threatened freedom (Brehm, 1966).

When does reactance occur?

When people feel:

• Controlled

• Pressured

• Their freedom is restricted

What are outcomes of reactance?

• Rejecting the message

• Doing the opposite behavior

• Negative attitudes toward the source

What is self-persuasion?

People generate their own arguments for change (Aronson, 1999).

Why is self-persuasion effective?

• Reduces counterarguing

• Feels internally motivated

• Leads to long-term change

What is providing choices?

Giving people options instead of commands (Knowles & Linn, 2004).

Why does providing choices work?

• Increases autonomy

• Reduces reactance

• Makes behavior feel self-chosen

What is mild distraction?

Using humor or visuals to reduce resistance (Petty & Cacioppo, 1986).

Why does mild distraction work?

• Reduces cognitive capacity for counterarguing

• Increases message acceptance

What is perceived behavioral control?

Belief in ability to perform behavior (Ajzen, 1991 – TPB).

Why is self-efficacy important?

It bridges the intention–behavior gap.

Is resistance mainly caused by lack of knowledge?

No. It is often caused by autonomy, identity, and social norms

What is the most common resistance type in behavior change?

Empowering resistance

Best strategy for empowering resistance?

• Self-persuasion

• Providing choices

• Supporting autonomy

What is cognitive dissonance?

Uncomfortable feeling that we get when our beliefs are not in line with each other; certain beliefs are not in line with our behavior. (“I don’t want to harm myself, but I smoke”). 

Why do we want to resolve cognitive dissonance?

 We want our behavior and beliefs to be in line with each other (peace of mind)

What are the 4 ways to restore cognitive balance?

1. Avoidance: you avoid the information that causes the cognitive dissonance. 

2. Suppression: suppress any different beliefs from your conscious memory e.g., not thinking about it (smokers try to suppress these thoughts from their memory)

3. Denial: deny that these beliefs are true. You can deny that smoking is related to cancer. 

4. Cognitive reappraisal: you accept the information as truthful (“smoking causes cancer”), but to restore cognitive balance, you add another piece of information/cognitive element (you smoke, but “you work out so it’s OK”, because you also smoke)

What is the difference between reactance and dissonance?

Reactance = psychological response to autonomy/freedom threat, while dissonance is a psychological response to self-integrity threat.