A Psychophysiological Perspective of the Stress-Buffering And

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A Psychophysiological Perspective of the Stress-Buffering and Persuasive Impact of Positive Communication Style Zhenfeng Ma, University of Ontario Insitute of Technology, Canada Laurette Dube, McGill University, Canada

Consumers’ search for health information is often prompted by a personal encounter with health threat and plagued by stress experience. Based on a psychoneuroendocrine (PNE) model of stress, we examined the stress-buffering and persuasive impact of positive vs. neutral communication style on consumers facing health threat. We found that compared with the neutral communication style, the positive style alleviated consumers’ psychological and physiological stress reactivity. Further, the positive communication style induced superior persuasive outcome by alleviating the negative impact of negative emotions and physiological arousal on persuasion.

[to cite]: Zhenfeng Ma and Laurette Dube (2008) ,"A Psychophysiological Perspective of the Stress-Buffering and Persuasive Impact of Positive Communication Style", in NA - Advances in Consumer Research Volume 35, eds. Angela Y. Lee and Dilip Soman, Duluth, MN : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 754-755.

[url]: http://www.acrwebsite.org/volumes/13385/volumes/v35/NA-35

[copyright notice]: This work is copyrighted by The Association for Consumer Research. For permission to copy or use this work in whole or in part, please contact the Copyright Clearance Center at http://www.copyright.com/. A Psychophysiological Perspective of the Stress-buffering and Persuasive Impact of Positive Communication Style Zhenfeng Ma, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Canada Laurette Dubé, McGill University, Canada

EXTENDED ABSTRACT Stress was manipulated using a guided mental imagery task Consumers’ search for health information is often prompted which pertains to health-related scenarios: osteoporosis prevention by their personal encounter with health threat. At the time when (the no-stress condition) and a mammogram screening procedure consumers resort to health information, they are often under consid- (the stress condition). In the stress condition, participants were led erable stress. Thus, health communicators must strive to alleviate to imagine, with the aid of computed-mediated instructions and stress while at the same time maximize persuasive impact. In this audio-visual cues, detecting a suspicious lump in the breast, going study we look at the stress-buffering and persuasive impact of through a mammogram screening procedure and finally reaching positive communication style, via the use of positive peripheral the point of waiting for screening results. In the no-stress condition, pictures, on consumers facing health threat. Different from prior participants imagined several low-risk scenarios such as paying a studies, we used a psychoneuroendcrine (PNE) model of stress, routine visit to the physical therapist and engaging in mild exercise. which views stress as an integrated process that involves affective, Communication style was manipulated through a consumer autonomic and endocrine changes. The PNE approach allows us not health information website, which offers information and recom- only to examine the role of positive communication style in allevi- mendations on various healthy lifestyle behaviors. The positive ating both psychological and physiological stress reactivity but also communication style was operationalized by embedding non-con- to uncover the psychophysiological mechanisms underlying the tent-related background color pictures of natural scenery on the persuasive effect of positive communication style. periphery of the webpage. These pictures had been pre-tested to Studies from positive psychology suggest that for individuals elicit positive affect relative to neutral stimuli. In the neutral under stress, positive stimuli have the potential to alleviate psycho- communication style condition, the same information was pre- logical and physiological stress reactivity. Based on the PNE model sented without using peripheral pictures. Except for the presence/ of stress, we hypothesize that for consumers who have undergone absence of pictures, the information and recommendations in both a health threat, health communication presented in a positive style conditions were identical in all other aspects. by using positive peripheral pictures will reduce psychological Psychological responses were measured using the short form distress, and autonomic and endocrine reactivity than health com- of the Profile of Mood States (POMS-SF). Following standard munication presented in a neutral manner (H1). scoring procedure we calculated an index of negative mood and an Research evidence suggests that people under stress index of positive mood. Autonomic responses were measured using concurrently engage in two modes of coping, that is, approach and a computer-based physiological data acquisition system. Two avoidance. Approach coping represents a cognitive and emotional measures of autonomic response were derived: skin conductance orientation toward threat or threat-related information, whereas level (SCL) and heart rate variability (HRV). Endocrine response avoidance coping represents an orientation away from threat or was indexed by salivary cortisol. Persuasive impact was measured related information. Research has shown that positive stimuli and in terms of attitude toward the health communication. its ensuing positive affect can broaden one’s thoughts and actions The analysis shows that compared with health information repertoire and facilitate cognitive processing of potentially communicated in a neutral style, information presented in a positive threatening information. We thus hypothesize that for consumers style alleviated psychological, autonomic and endocrine stress facing health threat, positive communication style will lead to reactivity. Thus H1 was supported. Moreover, for stressed consum- better persuasive outcome than neutral communication style (H2). ers the positive communication style also induced superior accep- We further hypothesize that the impact of positive communication tance of the persuasive messages, thereby supporting H2. A further style on consumers under stress will be mediated by changes in look at the PNE mechanisms suggests that for stressed consumers, affective and physiological responses. Specifically, when the positive communication style increased the persuasive impact communication is presented in a neutral style, the unmitigated relative to the neutral style by changing the nature of the effect of psychophysiological responses will have negative impacts on PNE responses on persuasion. Specifically, for stressed consumers persuasion. However, when the same information is presented in a the PNE reactivity had negative effects on persuasion when the positive style via positive peripheral pictures, the negative impact information is presented in a neutral style, but a positive impact on of psychophysiological reactivity will be attenuated (H3). persuasion when the same information is presented in a positive Hypotheses were tested through a 2 (stress condition: stress vs. style. These findings supported H3. no stress) x 2 (communication style: positive vs. neutral) between- Although the stress-buffering influence of positive stimuli is subject design. Eighty healthy women from the local community not new to researchers, it is the first time that we observed such an participated in the study. Participants first preformed a mental influence in a communication context. Perhaps more importantly, imagery task, which was used to manipulate stress, and then a web- our findings shed light on the underlying psychophysiological browsing task, which was used to manipulate communication style. mechanisms of the persuasive impact of positive peripheral cues. In both tasks, autonomic responses were continuously measured. Our findings show that affective, autonomic and endocrine changes Mood and endocrine responses were measured three times: before during exposure to communication each uniquely mediated the the imagery task, between the imagery and the web-browsing tasks, persuasive impact of positive communication style. These findings and after the web-browsing task. Finally, the persuasive impact of suggest that an exclusive focus on psychological aspect of stress health communication was measured using a self-administered experience, as is typical of current literature, may have neglected questionnaire. important mechanisms underlying attitudinal change under stress.

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