Effects of horrific fear appeals in public attitudes towards AIDS

Roger Bennett

Participants in an attitude change experiment completed questionnaires concerning AIDS. Certain groups were then exposed to a fear-neutral depiction of the AIDS problems, others to a frightening representation, and the remainder to a horrifically fearsome image.

Effects of horrific fear appeals on public attitudes towards AIDS

Roger Bennett

Participants in an attitude change experiment completed questionnaires concerning AIDS. Certain groups were then exposed to a fear-neutral depiction of the AIDS problem, others to a frightening representation, and the remainder to a horrifically fearsome image. Subjects again filled in the questionnaire one week and eight weeks later. Attitude changes were recorded with respect to respondents' personality type (determined via two well-known personality assessment instruments) and other characteristics. Individuals with future hedonistic and/or low self-esteem traits exhibited relatively strong responses to the horrific fear-inducing message. Prior knowledge of...

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