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Affective cues in persuasion: An assessment of causal mediation

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Abstract

This experiment examined the mediating role of affective cues in persuasion. College students were exposed to advertisements that contained or did not contain affective cues in the form of humor, and that contained or did not contain information about the advertised product. As intended the affective cues were found to influence attitudes toward the advertisement (Aad), while the productrelevant information was found to influence attitudes toward the advertised product (Ab). By manipulating Aad and Ab independently, it was possible to test for the causal mediation of one attitude on the other. The results showed that Ab had a significant mediating (p<.05) effect on Aad, but that Aad did not significantly mediate Ab.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of South Carolina, South Carolina, USA

    Thomas J. Madden

  2. University of Massachusetts, Massachusetts, USA

    Icek Ajzen

Authors
  1. Thomas J. Madden
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  2. Icek Ajzen
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Madden, T.J., Ajzen, I. Affective cues in persuasion: An assessment of causal mediation. Market Lett 2, 359–366 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00664222

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00664222

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