showing 16 related works from this author
Cognitive Structuring and Its Cognitive-Motivational Determinants as an Explanatory Framework of the Fear-Then-Relief Social Influence Strategy
2017
According to the fear-then-relief technique of social influence, people who experience anxiety whose source is abruptly withdrawn usually respond positively to various requests and commands addressed to them. This effect is usually explained by the fact that fear invokes a specific program of action, and that when the source of this emotion is suddenly and unexpectedly removed, the program is no longer operative, but the person has not yet invoked a new program. This specific state of disorientation makes compliance more likely. In this paper, an alternative explanation of the fear-then-relief effect is offered. It is assumed that the rapid change of emotions is associated with feelings of …
Fear-then-relief, mindlessness, and cognitive deficits
2002
The assumption that mindlessness underlies the effectiveness of the ‘fear-then-relief’ social influence technique has been verified in four studies. The first two experiments indicated that compliance of those experiment participants who were made to function on the thoughtful level under a ‘fear-thenrelief’ condition decreases to the level observed in the control group. The other two experiments were to analyze the cognitive functioning of people who at first experience fear and then a sudden and unexpected relief. The first of these experiments indicated that the amount of time needed to detect the expression of emotion on other persons’ faces is prolonged, and the second of these latter …
Mood, cognitive structuring and medication adherence
2018
A study with a placebo was conducted. Healthy university students were given a placebo and were told to make one pill every day for a week. Participants were informed that the medicine improved mood. The extent to which they conformed to this instruction was treated as an index of compliance. Our results show that for women, but not for men, positive mood and cognitive structuring or negative mood and lack of cognitive structuring significantly predicted participants' compliance. A new model of medication adherence, based on the role of the patient's mood and cognitive structuring processes in decision making is presented in the paper.
Cognitive structuring and placebo effect
2017
Abstract In much of the research concerning the placebo phenomenon, the idea that placebo effects may vary in strength depending on a patient's personal characteristics or traits has been investigated. Findings regarding possible personality differences in placebo response, however, are conflicting and non-systematic. In this article a new theoretical attempt to explain the placebo phenomenon is offered. The authors postulate that the power of the placebo effect is moderated by the extent of use of cognitive structuring, which in turn is influenced by the interaction between the individuals' level of need for cognitive closure and their ability to achieve this state. To test this assumption…
Unrealistic Optimism in the Time of Coronavirus Pandemic: May It Help to Kill, If So—Whom: Disease or the Person?
2020
Objective: The results of numerous empirical studies have showed the occurrence of so-called unrealistic optimism. Thus, we aimed to investigate whether in the situation of an imminent coronavirus pandemic, people would still perceive themselves as being less exposed to the disease than others. Methods: Survey studies were conducted to examine the level of unrealistic optimism. Participants (n = 171, 67.3% of women) in a subjective way judged the risk of their coronavirus infection and the likelihood that this would happen to an average student of the same sex from their class. The survey was conducted in three waves: prior to the announcement of the first case of coronavirus (2&ndash
The belief in an unjust world: An egotistic delusion
1996
The main hypothesis of Lerner's just world theory says that people are inclined to think that their physical and social environment is just and that individuals generally get what they deserve and deserve what they get. Contrary to Lerner's assumption, however, it is suggested in the article that in some situations, people may perceive the world as unjust because such a belief has a specific “ego-defensive” compoment for an individual. It is likely, for instance, that the belief in an unjust world, though in itself a legitimate block to success, may be aggrvated in conditions diagnostic for competence and hence can be used as a special form of self-handicapping strategy. This assumption has…
I like You Even Less at Christmas Dinner! Prejudice Level as a Function of an Approaching National or Religious Holiday
2019
In many conducted psychological studies, it has been demonstrated that attitudes towards minority groups can change under the influence of electoral campaigns, as well as terrorist attacks, or stre...
To Control or Not to Control
1998
To have control over an event means exercising authority and influence over it by directing and regulating it oneself. Obviously, events differ in their amenability to control. We cannot change the order of days in the week; our influence on our own health is greater but still limited. We may have almost total control over the amount of sugar and milk in our cup of coffee, but only if we prepare our breakfast ourselves. Regardless of the objective nature of the situation, however, people vary in their assessments of perceived control over particular events and their lives in general. Some feel they can do almost anything they set their minds to; others feel that events result mostly from th…
Emotional Seesaw, Compliance, and Mindlessness
2001
Research on emotion conducted so far has ignored situations where the subject experiences a certain emotion, but where the external stimulus that evoked and upholds this emotion suddenly disappears. This kind of situation, however, is relatively common in everyday life. This article attempts to recognize certain consequences of those conditions under which the stimuli justifying our experience of such emotional states as fear or joy suddenly disappear. Research done to date by the author and colleagues indicates increased compliance of the subject when addressed with various requests, commands, or suggestions in the situation termed here “emotional seesaw.” The classical “live” example tha…
Media intervention program for reducing unrealistic optimism bias: The link between unrealistic optimism, well-being, and health.
2021
Unrealistic optimism is the tendency to perceive oneself as safer than others in situations that equally threaten everybody. By reducing fear, this bias boosts one's well-being; however, it is also a deterrent to one's health. Three experiments were run in a mixed-design on 1831 participants to eliminate unrealistic optimism (measured by two items-probability of COVID-19 infection for oneself and for others; within-subjects) toward the probability of COVID-19 infection via articles/videos. A between-subject factor was created by manipulation. Ostensibly, daily newspaper articles describing other people diligently following medical recommendations (experiment 1) and videos showing people who…
The mystery of the Polish soul. B. W. Johnson's effectà rebours
1996
Studies conducted in Poland replicated a not very-well known effect discovered by B. W. Johnson (1937). In his study students estimated their mood on several successive days each time comparing it to the mood they usually have. The results revealed a peculiar positive bias in that the students usually defined their mood as 'better than usual'. Johnson's study was replicated in Poland, where demonstration of optimism is not a cultural norm. The results suggest that Polish subjects 'usually define their mood as worse than usual'. The generalization and limitation of this negative bias is discussed in the light of the Pollyanna Principle and related empirical studies involving Polish subjects.
“Fear-Then-Relief” Procedure for Producing Compliance: Beware When the Danger Is Over
1998
Abstract This article presents the procedure and results of five experiments (four field studies and one laboratory experiment) designed to test the effectiveness of a new technique (“fear-then-relief”) for producing compliance. It has been shown that people who experience anxiety whose source is later abruptly eliminated usually respond positively to various requests addressed to them. The fear-then-relief phenomenon was found to be reliable and strong in both field studies and the laboratory experiment. A model based on the concept of limited capacity of cognitive resource, fear dynamic, and direction of attention concentration is offered as an explanation of the results obtained.
Let's Dialogue About Penny: Effectiveness of Dialogue Involvement and Legitimizing Paltry Contribution Techniques1
2005
Earlier research has shown (Cialdini & Schroeder, 1976) that the statement “Even a penny will help” added to a standard request for charity donation considerably increases the probability of carrying it out. The present study tested the effectiveness of this technique in various contexts in a set of 3 field experiments conducted on the streets of 2 Polish cities. The results proved, first, that success can be strengthened when combined with a dialogue in which a requester is involved prior to being asked for a donation. Second, it was shown that the dialogue itself produced more compliance than did a monologue. Third, it was demonstrated that dialogue related to the content of the requested…
Need for closure moderates the break in the message effect
2016
Abstract Cutting the message into smaller portions is a common practice in the media. Typically such messages consist of a headline followed by a story elaboration. In a series of studies Dolinski and Kofta (2001) have shown that such a break in the message increases the effect of the information provided in the headline over that of a story which actually contained information inconsistent with that headline. A possible explanation of this effect, based on the concept of the need for cognitive closure, is presented in the article. The experiment shows the break-in-the-message effect is found mainly for participants with high need for closure but not for those with low such need.
Research on Unrealistic Optimism among HoReCa Workers as a Possible Future Hotspot of Infections
2021
As we are facing a new surge of the highly infectious delta variant of COVID-19, there is an urgent need for research to reduce the harm before this next wave hits. In the present paper, we present data that is alarming. We have found that HoReCa (hotels, restaurants, and catering services) workers, who are highly exposed to many new social interactions in close contact, present an unrealistic optimism (UO) bias: they perceive themselves as less at risk to this virus in comparison to others. From the literature, we already know that individuals holding this view are less involved in preventive actions and present more risky behaviors. In the face of the delta variant, this leads to the conc…
Dialogue Involvement as a Social Influence Technique
2001
When a request is preceded by a casual dialogue, the approached person is more likely to comply than when the same request follows a monologue. This effect appeared to be strong and replicable in a series of field studies. Across experiments, the issues discussed in conversations between the confederates and the participants and the nature of the critical request varied, suggesting that the effect is generalized. In social situations, the two basic modes of communication (dialogue and monologue) are characteristic of different types of interactions. Dialogue is characteristic of encounters with one’s friends and acquaintances, whereas monologue is more prevalent in contacts with strangers.…