The DOI matches its Crossref record; 202 of the 203 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 1 of the 24 sources its claims cite were checked for support.
Appealing to fear: A meta-analysis of fear appeal effectiveness and theories
Open accessAbstract
Fear appeals are a polarizing issue, with proponents confident in their efficacy and opponents confident that they backfire. We present the results of a comprehensive meta-analysis investigating fear appeals' effectiveness for influencing attitudes, intentions, and behaviors. We tested predictions from a large number of theories, the majority of which have never been tested meta-analytically until now. Studies were included if they contained a treatment group exposed to a fear appeal, a valid comparison group, a manipulation of depicted fear, a measure of attitudes, intentions, or behaviors concerning the targeted risk or recommended solution, and adequate statistics to calculate effect sizes. The meta-analysis included 127 articles (9% unpublished) yielding 248 independent samples (NTotal = 27,372) collected from diverse populations. Results showed a positive effect of fear appeals on attitudes, intentions, and behaviors, with the average effect on a composite index being random-effects d = 0.29. Moderation analyses based on prominent fear appeal theories showed that the effectiveness of fear appeals increased when the message included efficacy statements, depicted high susceptibility and severity, recommended one-time only (vs. repeated) behaviors, and targeted audiences that included a larger percentage of female message recipients. Overall, we conclude that (a) fear appeals are effective at positively influencing attitude, intentions, and behaviors; (b) there are very few circumstances under which they are not effective; and (c) there are no identified circumstances under which they backfire and lead to undesirable outcomes.
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“these results are presented in Appendix A and are consistent with the results based on the combined measure.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Coding of Outcomes (Effect Size Calculation)
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In the paper
“The average weighted effect size comparing outcomes for treatment to comparison groups was d = 0.29 with a 95% CI of [0.22, 0.35].”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Average Effect Size and Between-Effects Variability
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In the paper
“The results support this hypothesis: Fear appeals were more effective when they included efficacy statements (95% CI: [0.31, 0.55]) than when they did not (95% CI: [0.13, 0.29]).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
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In the paper
“Moderation analyses based on prominent fear appeal theories showed that the effectiveness of fear appeals increased when the message included efficacy statements, depicted high susceptibility and severity, recommended one-time only (vs. repeated) behaviors, and targeted audiences that included a larger percentage of female message recipients.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Abstract
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In the paper
“Moderation analyses based on prominent fear appeal theories showed that the effectiveness of fear appeals increased when the message included efficacy statements, depicted high susceptibility and severity, recommended one-time only (vs. repeated) behaviors, and targeted audiences that included a larger percentage of female message recipients.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Abstract
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In the paper
“Further, the current meta-analysis used a substantially larger meta-analytic database than prior analyses, thus providing us with more precision to test relevant hypotheses.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > A Message-Behavior-Audience Framework of Fear Appeals
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In the paper
“Moderation analyses based on prominent fear appeal theories showed that the effectiveness of fear appeals increased when the message included efficacy statements, depicted high susceptibility and severity, recommended one-time only (vs. repeated) behaviors, and targeted audiences that included a larger percentage of female message recipients.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Abstract
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In the paper
“In the entire database (k = 248), 21 samples included more than two experimental groups exposed to varying levels of depicted fear.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Coding of Potential Moderators
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesA result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Moderation analyses based on prominent fear appeal theories showed that the effectiveness of fear appeals increased when the message included efficacy statements, depicted high susceptibility and severity, recommended one-time only (vs. repeated) behaviors, and targeted audiences that included a larger percentage of female message recipients.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Abstract
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In the paper
“There was also significant heterogeneity among effect sizes Q(247) = 1,287, I2 = 85.11, p < .0001.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Average Effect Size and Between-Effects Variability
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- Probably not a substantial claim. 25
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- The quote only partly states this claim. 1
The sources with a verdict support this claim; the rest weren’t checked yet, have no full text we could read, or their verdicts aren’t rated yet.
In the paper
“based on a well-established body of literature in persuasion demonstrating that aspects of a message’s source can influence the persuasiveness of the message (Briñol & Petty, 2009; Kumkale et al., 2010; Pornpitakpan, 2004; Wilson & Sherrell, 1993), the source of a fear appeal communication should be an important moderator for fear appeal effectiveness.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Briñol & Petty, 2009 source
- Supportedcites Kumkale et al., 2010 source
The Discussion’s ‘Identification, Selection, and Integration of Attitude-Relevant Information’ section states that a message’s source can influence attitudes. The ‘Applied Implications’ section further reports that using a credible source can aid persuasion, particularly when recipients are forming attitudes. (LLM, conf=0.94)
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Pornpitakpan, 2004 source
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In the paper
“As can be seen in Table 4, none of these methodological factors moderated fear appeal effectiveness – within each factor, 95% CIs for each factor level overlap for all levels of all factors.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Moderator Tests
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In the paper
“The majority of samples (k = 170) included only one type of dependent measure (attitudes, intentions, or behaviors), but some samples included two types (k = 61) or all three (k = 17).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Coding of Outcomes (Effect Size Calculation)
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In the paper
“Based on the 71 samples that included such manipulation checks, fear appeals were generally successful at inducing experienced fear, such that treatment groups reported more fear than comparison groups, d = 1.00 (95% CI: [0.83, 1.18]), Q(70) = 697, I2 = 90.67, p < .0001.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Average Effect Size and Between-Effects Variability
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In the paper
“Of the 430 reports considered for inclusion in this meta-analysis, 127 met our inclusion criteria (9% unpublished), providing 248 statistically independent samples with a total N of 27,372 participants in the treatment and comparison groups combined.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Review and Inclusion Criteria
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- Rests on an assumption: The 248 samples included in the meta-analysis are statistically independent.
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In the paper
“The moderate depicted fear groups (total N = 1,626) were not included in other analyses”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Coding of Potential Moderators
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedn = 1,626Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
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In the paper
“Many fear appeals explicitly mention death (89 of the 248 studies in our meta-analysis)”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > The Recommended Behavior > Mentioning death, self-esteem relevance, and time delays
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In the paper
“Results showed a positive effect of fear appeals on attitudes, intentions, and behaviors, with the average effect on a composite index being random-effects d¯ = 0.29.”
- Also stated in: § Abstract · plain
“Overall, we conclude that (a) fear appeals are effective at positively influencing attitude, intentions, and behaviors”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Abstract
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
- Also stated in: § Abstract · plain
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The meta-analysis included 127 papers (9% unpublished) yielding 248 independent samples (NTotal = 27,372) collected from diverse populations.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Abstract
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
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In the paper
“The combined effect size was d = −0.05 with a 95% CI of [−0.34, 0.24] and Q(20) = 154 (I2 = 92.89, p < .0001).”
- Also stated in: § Tests of message content hypotheses · plain
“Therefore, outcomes did not differ for groups exposed to moderate versus high depicted fear.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
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- Also stated in: § Tests of message content hypotheses · plain
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In the paper
“Cronbach’s alpha for the composite measure was .87, indicating that the three types of measures are highly internally consistent.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Coding of Outcomes (Effect Size Calculation)
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In the paper
“the number of samples with multiple attitude, intention, and behavior measures was respectively k = 18, k = 24, and k = 12”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Coding of Outcomes (Effect Size Calculation)
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
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In the paper
“Separate meta-regressions for each of these three variables revealed that none were related to fear appeal effectiveness: b = −0.0029 (SE = 0.0022, p = .18, 95% CI: [−0.0072, 0.0013]), b = −0.0046 (SE = 0.0039, p = .23, 95% CI: [−0.0122, 0.0030]), and b = 0.0000 (SE = 0.0002, p = .91, 95% CI: [−0.0003, 0.0003]), respectively for publication year, average age of sample, and sample size.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Moderator Tests
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In the paper
“However, it is worth noting that fear appeals were effective for both types of recommended behaviors, and they were simply more effective for one-time behaviors.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of the recommended behavior hypotheses
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In the paper
“The results did not support these predictions, as fear appeals were equally effective when they mentioned death and recommended a self-esteem hindering behavior (95% CI: [−0.41, 0.18]), did not mention death and recommended a self-esteem hindering behavior (95% CI: [0.00, 0.96]), mentioned death and recommended a self-esteem enhancing behavior (95% CI: [0.11, 0.67]), or did not mention death and”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of the recommended behavior hypotheses
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In the paper
“The 95% CIs confirmed this prediction and indicated that fear appeals high on both moderators had positive effects for attitudes (95% CI: [0.05, 0.38]), intentions (95% CI: [0.23, 0.47]), and behaviors (95% CI: [0.24, 0.63]).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
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In the paper
“When fear appeals mentioned death, they were equally effective for outcomes that occurred the same day (95% CI: [0.04, 0.27]), between one and fourteen days after fear appeal exposure (95% CI: [0.21, 1.37]), or more than fourteen days later (95% CI: [0.19, 0.51]).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of the recommended behavior hypotheses
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“The paucity of existing research addressing source characteristics and subjective experience led us to not include these as aspects of the current review framework, but they would be welcome additions in the future.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
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In the paper
“As mentioned, organizing the existing literature under this framework highlights the relative dearth of research addressing the behavior and audience aspects of the model relative to the message aspect.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
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In the paper
“Although most empirical studies simply do not measure participants’ subjective states, such measures could be very informative to test a variety of interesting questions.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
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In the paper
“Similarly, when fear appeals did not mention death, they were equally effective for outcomes that occurred the same day (95% CI: [0.25, 0.44]), between one and fourteen days after fear appeal exposure (95% CI: [−0.29, 0.33]), or more than fourteen days later (95% CI: [0.03, 0.88]).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of the recommended behavior hypotheses
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In the paper
“The 95% CIs indicated that fear appeals that were only high in depicted susceptibility had positive effects for intentions (95% CI: [0.15, 0.59]) and behaviors (95% CI: [0.01, 0.88]) but not attitudes (95% CI: [−0.51, 1.47]).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
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“A number of the hypotheses that we substantiated are relatively agnostic concerning mechanisms, and this is a serious gap in the current fear appeal literature.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
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In the paper
“Further, many fear appeals are delivered in the form of public service announcements, and thus there is relatively little variation across existing studies on this dimension.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
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In the paper
“The 95% CIs indicated that fear appeals that were only high in depicted severity had positive effects for attitudes (95% CI: [0.06, 0.37]) and intentions (95% CI: [0.20, 0.39]) but not behaviors (95% CI: [−0.08, 0.42])”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
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“Specifically, the bulk of prior research on fear appeals has investigated questions about the message’s content – indeed, of the prior meta-analyses on fear appeals, all of them addressed questions related to the message’s content while overlooking questions related to the recommended behavior and audience.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > A Message-Behavior-Audience Framework of Fear Appeals
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In the paper
“We also conducted moderated meta-regressions to analyze all moderator variables; the results were the same as the 95% CI analyses and are thus not presented here.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Moderator Tests
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In the paper
“We conducted all analyses using random- and fixed-effects analyses. As both types of analyses produced comparable results, we present the random-effects analyses.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results
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In the paper
“When a study included more than one potential comparison groups, we opted to compare the highest depicted fear condition with the lowest depicted fear condition, prioritizing them in the following order: No message comparison group, neutral message comparison group, and low depicted fear comparison group.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Review and Inclusion Criteria
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In the paper
“As most studies did not specifically measure this variable, we designed a conservative coding scheme to ensure we could include the maximum number of reports in this analysis while avoiding misclassifications.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Coding of Potential Moderators
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In the paper
“Specifically, to ensure that the test concerned high depicted fear versus moderate depicted fear, we only included studies with at least three levels of depicted fear.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
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In the paper
“Thus, the present research represents the first meta-analytic test for nine of the 16 hypotheses and the first meta-analytic test for any hypotheses related to the behavior and audience aspects of our framework.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > The Present Research
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In the paper
“Of the 16 fear appeal hypotheses discussed, only seven have been tested in prior meta-analyses, and all of them fall under the message aspect of our framework (Table 1).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > The Present Research
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In the paper
“This finding may have implications for practitioners using fear appeals - i.e., once a message depicts moderate fear, there is no value in depicting additional fear, but depicting additional fear will not lead to negative effects.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
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In the paper
“Studies were included if they measured one or more of the following variables as an outcome in both the treatment and comparison groups: Attitudes, intentions, or behaviors.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Review and Inclusion Criteria
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In the paper
“whereas messages with high depicted susceptibility positively influenced intentions and behaviors but not attitudes.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > The Content of Fear Appeals > Depicted susceptibility and severity
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites de Hoog et al., 2007
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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- Not matched
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In the paper
“Therefore, fear appeals have a significant and positive effect on outcomes. That is, relative to participants in comparison groups, participants in treatment groups (i.e., those exposed to relatively high levels of depicted fear) had attitudes, intentions, and behaviors that were more in line with the position advocated by the fear appeal.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Average Effect Size and Between-Effects Variability
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In the paper
“However, to our knowledge, this is the largest and most valid test of the linear and curvilinear hypotheses to date.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
Strength:hedged· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“The rank correlation was r = −.02, p = .67. Thus, there is no evidence of retrieval or inclusion bias.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Distribution of Effect Sizes
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Begg & Mazumdar, 1994 source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“As can be seen in the figure, the distribution appears quite symmetric with smaller variability toward the top of the plot.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Distribution of Effect Sizes
Load-bearingStrength:hedged· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one. The quote only partly states this claim.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The results clearly support the weak efficacy hypothesis and disconfirm the strong efficacy hypothesis. Thus, fear appeals are effective with or without efficacy statements, but the inclusion of efficacy statements is associated with increased effectiveness.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“The linear and curvilinear models have been tested in prior meta-analyses, and the linear model has consistently been supported by existing data, whereas the curvilinear model has not (e.g., Witte & Allen, 2000).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > The Content of Fear Appeals > Amount of depicted fear
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Witte & Allen, 2000 source
Load-bearingStrength:boosted· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“This decision allowed for a more stringent test of TMT hypotheses, and provided an even distribution of death versus non-death conditions, which avoids the potential confound of death messages always being about more severe topics than non-death messages.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Coding of Potential Moderators
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Studies were included if they contained an experimental research design in which a treatment group was exposed to a message designed to induce fear (i.e., a fear appeal).Studies were included if they contained a comparison group.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Review and Inclusion Criteria
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. It may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“Specifically, messages with high depicted severity positively influenced attitudes, intentions, and behaviors”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > The Content of Fear Appeals > Depicted susceptibility and severity
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites de Hoog et al., 2007
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
- Not matched
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Overall, all results should be interpreted as the effect of exposure to messages designed to depict relatively high levels of fear compared to conditions designed to depict relatively lower levels of fear (including no fear).5”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Review and Inclusion Criteria
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
In the paper
“As can be seen from Figure 3, the effect sizes followed a straight line and generally fell within the 95% confidence interval of the normality line, and thus there is no evidence of retrieval or inclusion bias.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Distribution of Effect Sizes
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Wang & Bushman, 1999
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Studies were excluded if they did not contain appropriate statistics (e.g., F ratios, means and standard deviations, frequencies, or exact p values) for calculating an effect size representing the difference of outcomes for treatment versus comparison groups.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Review and Inclusion Criteria
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Further, the distribution of effect sizes appears to be roughly continuous and normal, which indicates a lack of inclusion bias.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Distribution of Effect Sizes
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“Although some meta-analytic examinations have found positive effects of fear appeals on some outcomes (Witte & Allen, 2000), others have found null effects (de Hoog et al., 2007) or even negative effects (Peters et al., 2012).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Witte & Allen, 2000 source
- Not matchedcites de Hoog et al., 2007
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites Peters et al., 2012
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Agreement for all variables was good: Categorical variables had average κ = .93 (SD = .06, minimum = .80), and continuous variables had average r = .92 (SD = .12, minimum = .73).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Coding of Potential Moderators
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Studies were included if they experimentally manipulated depicted fear across groups.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Methods > Review and Inclusion Criteria
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Second, drawing on our previous distinction between fear appeals and fear, the subjective experience of the message recipient should be an important aspect of fear appeal communications.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✗ Checkable: fails✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Finally, the lack of subjective fear measures makes it difficult for researchers interested in the effects of fear (rather than fear appeals) to investigate relevant hypotheses meta-analytically.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Limitations
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“based on a well-established body of literature in persuasion demonstrating that aspects of a message’s source can influence the persuasiveness of the message (Briñol & Petty, 2009; Kumkale et al., 2010; Pornpitakpan, 2004; Wilson & Sherrell, 1993), the source of a fear appeal communication should be an important moderator for fear appeal effectiveness.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
Strength:boosted· not yet calibratedCausal:correlational· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Rather, fear appeals consistently work, and through our meta-analysis we were able to identify various factors that can enhance their effectiveness to make them work even better.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“Although some of the theories investigated do discuss mechanism to some degree (e.g., EPPM; Witte, 1992), our updated review of the literature is consistent with conclusions from prior reviews that these mechanisms are often under-studied and are in need of additional research (e.g., Popova, 2012).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Popova, 2012 source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Specifically, to test hypotheses related to TMT, studies were coded as either containing the word death or not.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Limitations
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“However, meta-analyses are a correlational research design, and thus many of the moderator analyses we conducted should be interpreted with this in mind.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. It may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“However, some studies did not include full texts for fear appeal messages, and thus it is possible that some messages did contain the word death but were nonetheless coded as not containing this word (however, studies were only coded as containing the word death if a portion of the message’s text was available that showed this word).”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Limitations
Strength:hedged· not yet calibratedCausal:conditional· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The present meta-analysis only included experimental studies that compared treatment and comparison groups, and thus internal validity is good when considering the effects of relatively high versus low depicted fear.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Future Directions
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Thus, when testing all three hypotheses, fear appeals generally had positive effects on attitudes, intentions, and behaviors when they were high in depicted severity and/or susceptibility.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > Results > Tests of message content hypotheses
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“First, as discussed in the introduction, the present results concern fear appeals rather than fear. That is, our meta-analysis did not compare people who were subjectively afraid to people who were subjectively unafraid, but rather we compared groups that were exposed to more or less fear inducing content.”
§ Appealing to fear: A Meta-Analysis of Fear Appeal Effectiveness and Theories > General Discussion > Limitations
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
The paper relies on this without support.
The 248 samples included in the meta-analysis are statistically independent.
“providing 248 statistically independent samples”
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In the citing paper
“Results from a comprehensive meta-analysis by Tannenbaum et al. [35] showed that fear appeals are particularly effective at positively influencing attitudes, intentions, and behaviour under specific circumstances.”
From Misinformation lingers in memory: Failure of three pro-vaccination strategies (2017) · cites this paper as [35]
Citations
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BackgroundEffects of fear and specificity of recommendation upon attitudes and behavior.
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“I — Leventhal et al. (1965) 1: No prior vaccination .60 59 AI Y Y Y O PP N —”
BackgroundDefensive processing of personally relevant health messages
liberman, A., & Chaiken, S. (1992) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167292186002 · Cited by 619 · cited 2×
“…1995) and whether depicted susceptibility was manipulated to be higher in the treatment group relative to the comparison group (e.g., the treatment group received a message focusing on how coffee consumption will likely lead the message recipient to develop fibromyalgia ; Liberman & Chaiken, 1992).”
BackgroundResultMeta-analysis of screening and diagnostic tests.
Hasselblad, V., & Hedges, L. V. (1995) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.117.1.167 · Cited by 579 · cited 1×
“To produce d for any ORs, we divided the log of the OR by 1.81 (Haddock, Rindskopf, & Shadish, 1998; Hasselblad & Hedges, 1995).”
MethodInfluentialEffects of Fear Arousal on Attitude Change: Recent Developments in Theory and Experimental Research
Janis, I. L. (1967) · Advances in experimental social psychology · doi:10.1016/s0065-2601(08)60344-5 · Cited by 493 · cited 2×
“…in which message recipients disengage from the message, avoid further exposure to the message, and/or derogate the message because it is too frightening (Higbee, 1969; Hovland et al., 1953; Janis, 1967, 1968; Janis & Feshbach, 1953; Janis & Leventhal , 1968; McGuire, 1968, 1969; Millman, 1968).”
BackgroundThe Protection Motivation Model: A Normative Model of Fear Appeals
Tanner, J. F., Hunt, J. B., & Eppright, D. R. (1991) · Journal of Marketing · doi:10.2307/1252146 · Cited by 489 · cited 1×
“27 38 I Y Y Y R PP N SEE S 50 I — Tanner et al. (1991) .81 60 I N — —”
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Jennings, M. K., & Markus, G. B. (1984) · American Political Science Review · doi:10.2307/1955804 · Cited by 407
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“According to Robertson (1975; also see Rothman et al., 1999), persuasive messages should be more successful when they recommend one-time behaviors (e.g., getting vaccinated) compared with behaviors that must be repeated over an extended period of time (e.g., exercising).”
BackgroundRegulatory Fit and Persuasion: Basic Principles and Remaining Questions
Cesario, J., Higgins, E. T., & Scholer, A. A. (2007) · Social and Personality Psychology Compass · doi:10.1111/j.1751-9004.2007.00055.x · Cited by 371
The Extended Parallel Process Model: Illuminating the Gaps in Research
Popova, L. (2012) · Health Education & Behavior · doi:10.1177/1090198111418108 · Cited by 361
Haddock, C., Rindskopf, D., & Shadish, W. (1998) · Psychological Methods · doi:10.1037/1082-989x.3.3.339 · Cited by 349
The sleeper effect in persuasion: a meta-analytic review.
Kumkale, G. T., & Albarracín, D. (2004) · Psychological bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.130.1.143 · Cited by 343
Self-citationThe Multiple Affective Outcomes of AIDS PSAs
Dillard, J. P., Plotnick, C. A., GODBOLD, L. C., Freimuth, V. S., & Edgar, T. (1996) · Communication Research · doi:10.1177/009365096023001002 · Cited by 338 · cited 1×
“…the impact of message characteristics on fear appeal effectiveness: 1 The linear model of fear appeals (e.g., Witte & Allen, 2000), the curvilinear model of fear appeals (e.g., Hovland et al., 1953), the health belief model (Rosenstock , 1966; Becker, 1974; Becker et al., 1977, 1978;…”
BackgroundDahl, D. W., Frankenberger, K. D., & Manchanda, R. V. (2003) · Journal of Advertising Research · doi:10.1017/s0021849903030332 · Cited by 330 · cited 2×
“, 2009) or a primarily individualist culture (e.g., Western cultures like Australia, Canada, and the United States; Beck, 1984; Brouwers & Sorrentino, 1993; Dahl et al., 2003; Hill & Gardner, 1980; Jones & Owen, 2006; LaTour & Tanner, 2003; Lewis et al., 2010; Smart & Fejer, 1974).”
BackgroundGoldenberg, J. L., & Arndt, J. (2008) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/a0013326 · Cited by 320 · cited 7×
“Proximal defenses involve refuting information to avoid considering one's death, whereas distal defenses involve buffering one's self-esteem and pursuing long-term goals (e.g., a healthy lifestyle; Goldenberg & Arndt, 2008).”
BackgroundInfluentialIncreasing the Persuasiveness of Fear Appeals: The Effect of Arousal and Elaboration
Keller, P. A., & Block, L. (1996) · Journal of Consumer Research · doi:10.1086/209461 · Cited by 320
de Hoog, N., Stroebe, W., & de Wit, J. B. F. (2007) · Review of General Psychology · doi:10.1037/1089-2680.11.3.258 · Cited by 302 · cited 6×
“…of fear appeals (e.g., Hovland et al., 1953), the health belief model (Rosenstock , 1966; Becker, 1974; Becker et al., 1977, 1978; Rosenstock, 1974), the parallel process model (Leventhal, 1970), the extended parallel process model (Witte, 1992, 1998), and the stage model (de Hoog et al., 2007).”
BackgroundMethodResultInfluentialFifteen years of fear arousal: Research on threat appeals: 1953-1968.
Higbee, K. L. (1969) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/h0028430 · Cited by 294 · cited 2×
“…in which message recipients disengage from the message, avoid further exposure to the message, and/or derogate the message because it is too frightening (Higbee, 1969; Hovland et al., 1953; Janis, 1967, 1968; Janis & Feshbach, 1953; Janis & Leventhal , 1968; McGuire, 1968, 1969; Millman, 1968).”
BackgroundGreenberg, J., Arndt, J., Simon, L., Pyszczynski, T., & Solomon, S. (2000) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167200261009 · Cited by 276
Fear-Arousing Persuasive Messages
Boster, F. J., & Mongeau, P. (1984) · Annals of the International Communication Association · doi:10.1080/23808985.1984.11678581 · Cited by 271
Source factors in persuasion: A self-validation approach
Briñol, P., & Petty, R. E. (2009) · European Review of Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/10463280802643640 · Cited by 243
Wurtele, S. K., & Maddux, J. E. (1987) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/0278-6133.6.5.453 · Cited by 238 · cited 2×
“…that people have a built-in urge for physical activity and this basic human physical need will make it easy to begin a regular exercise program; Wurtele & Maddux, 1987), response-efficacy (e.g., emphasizing that exercise leads to higher levels of high-density lipoprotein and thus prevents…”
BackgroundEffects of fear and instructions on how to cope with danger.
Leventhal, H., Watts, J. C., & Pagano, F. (1967) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0021222 · Cited by 236 · cited 1×
“I L Leventhal et al. (1967) .53 106 I Y Y N R PP N —”
Compliance with a medical regimen for asthma: a test of the health belief model.
Becker, M. H., Radius, S. M., Rosenstock, I. M., Drachman, R. H., Schuberth, K. C., & Teets, K. C. (1978) · Europe PMC (PubMed Central) · Cited by 227
Sources of resistance to fear-arousing communications on smoking and lung cancer1
Leventhal, H., & Watts, J. C. (1966) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1966.tb01706.x · Cited by 213 · cited 1×
“S — I E Leventhal and Watts (1966) 1: Smokers Ϫ1.”
BackgroundFear‐Arousing and Empathy‐Arousing Appeals to Help: The Pathos of Persuasion
Shelton, M. L., & Rogers, R. W. (1981) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.1981.tb00829.x · Cited by 210
Lockwood, P., Marshall, T. C., & Sadler, P. (2005) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167204271598 · Cited by 209 · cited 2×
“According to regulatory fit theory, people can be promotion or prevention focused, placing greater value on either the pursuit of positive outcomes or on the avoidance of negative outcomes, respectively (Higgins et al., 2008; Kurman & Hui, 2011; Lockwood et al., 2005).”
BackgroundAn experimental study of psychological resistances to fear arousing communications.
Janis, I. L., & Terwilliger, R. F. (1962) · Journal of Abnormal & Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0047601 · Cited by 206
How Disgust Enhances the Effectiveness of Fear Appeals
Morales, A. C., Wu, E. C., & Fitzsimons, G. J. (2012) · Journal of Marketing Research · doi:10.1509/jmr.07.0364 · Cited by 176 · cited 3×
“S 67 I — Morales et al. (2012) 1: Study 1 (methamphetamine use) .42 104 I N N N R PP Y —”
BackgroundInfluentialPreventing the Spread of Genital Warts: Using Fear Appeals to Promote Self-Protective Behaviors
Witte, K., Berkowitz, J. M., Cameron, K. A., & McKeon, J. K. (1998) · Health Education & Behavior · doi:10.1177/109019819802500505 · Cited by 172
Culture Matters: National Value Cultures, Sources, and Consequences
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“Cultures differ along a variety of dimensions including socialization practices and values (Greenfield et al., 2003; Schwartz, 2009), and thus members of certain cultures may be socialized to place more emphasis on either prevention or promotion focused behavioral strategies.”
BackgroundDas, E. H. H. J., de Wit, J. B. F., & Stroebe, W. (2003) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167203029005009 · Cited by 163 · cited 2×
“I coded whether the recommended behaviors concerned one-time-only instances (e.g., signing up for a stress management training; Das et al., 2003) or would need to be enacted over an extended period of time (e.”
BackgroundThe Impact of Fear Appeals on Processing and Acceptance of Action Recommendations
de Hoog, N., Stroebe, W., & de Wit, J. B. F. (2004) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167204271321 · Cited by 163
Wong, N. C. H., & Cappella, J. N. (2009) · Journal of Applied Communication Research · doi:10.1080/00909880802593928 · Cited by 162
Kumkale, G. T., Albarracín, D., & Seignourel, P. J. (2010) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2010.00620.x · Cited by 160 · cited 1×
“First, based on a well-established body of literature in persuasion demonstrating that aspects of a message’s source can influence the persuasiveness of the message (Briñol & Petty, 2009; Kumkale et al., 2010; Pornpitakpan, 2004; Wilson & Sherrell, 1993), the source of a fear appeal communication should be an importan…”
BackgroundSelf-citationEffects of varying the recommendations in a fear-arousing communication.
Dabbs, J. M., & Leventhal, H. (1966) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0021190 · Cited by 157
Brouwers, M. C., & Sorrentino, R. M. (1993) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.65.1.102 · Cited by 152
Adolescent Processing of Social and Physical Threat Communications
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Handbook of Motivation and Cognition Across Cultures
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The processing of fear‐arousing communications: How biased processing leads to persuasion
de Hoog, N., Stroebe, W., & de Wit, J. B. F. (2008) · Social Influence · doi:10.1080/15534510802185836 · Cited by 148
Role of Negative Emotion in Communication about CO2 Risks
Meijnders, A. L., Midden, C. J. H., & Wilke, H. (2001) · Risk Analysis · doi:10.1111/0272-4332.215164 · Cited by 142 · cited 2×
“S 50 I — Meijnders et al. (2001b) 1: Weak arguments .46 40 A Y Y N O PP N —”
InfluentialEarl, A., & Albarracín, D. (2007) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/0278-6133.26.4.496 · Cited by 136 · cited 1×
“Further, both models predict that low levels of depicted fear will be relatively less motivating and less effective than moderate levels of fear.”
BackgroundSelf-citationLewis, I. M., Watson, B. C., & White, K. M. (2009) · Accident Analysis & Prevention · doi:10.1016/j.aap.2009.09.008 · Cited by 135 · cited 2×
“, 2009) or a primarily individualist culture (e.g., Western cultures like Australia, Canada, and the United States; Beck, 1984; Brouwers & Sorrentino, 1993; Dahl et al., 2003; Hill & Gardner, 1980; Jones & Owen, 2006; LaTour & Tanner, 2003; Lewis et al., 2010; Smart & Fejer, 1974).”
BackgroundExpectations of reassurance influence the nature of fear-stimulated attitude change
Gleicher, F., & Petty, R. E. (1992) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/0022-1031(92)90033-g · Cited by 134
Fear appeal messages affect accessibility of attitudes toward the threat and adaptive behaviors
Roskos‐Ewoldsen, D. R., Yu, J. H., & Rhodes, N. D. (2004) · Communication Monographs · doi:10.1080/0363452042000228559 · Cited by 133 · cited 1×
“…agreement with statements such as, " In the immediate future, I plan to find someone who will teach me to do an accurate breast self-examination " ; Roskos-Ewoldsen et al., 2004, p. 58) and questions with dichotomous response options (e.g., " In the future, I intend to stop spending time outside…”
BackgroundLewis, I. M., Watson, B. C., & White, K. M. (2008) · Transportation Research Part F Traffic Psychology and Behaviour · doi:10.1016/j.trf.2008.03.003 · Cited by 130 · cited 1×
“S — I E Lewis et al. (2008) 1: Male, low involvement .23 35 A N Y N R PP Y SEE L 0 I L 2: Male, high involvement .44 36 A N Y N R PP Y —”
BackgroundThe interest value and relevance of fear arousing communications.
Berkowitz, L. J., & Cottingham, D. R. (1960) · Journal of Abnormal & Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0045247 · Cited by 129
The Effectiveness of Empathy- Versus Fear-Arousing Antismoking PSAs
Shen, L. (2011) · Health Communication · doi:10.1080/10410236.2011.552480 · Cited by 128 · cited 1×
“I — Shen (2011) .59 174 A N Y N R PP N —”
Evans, R. I., Rozelle, R. M., Lasater, T. M., Dembroski, T. M., & Allen, B. P. (1970) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0029834 · Cited by 127
Personality Differences Associated with Responsiveness to Fear-Arousing Communications1
JANIS, I. L., & FESHBACH, S. (1954) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1954.tb01145.x · Cited by 126
Cho, H., & Salmon, C. T. (2006) · Health Communication · doi:10.1207/s15327027hc2001_9 · Cited by 118 · cited 2×
“As a result, exposure to a fear appeal should lead individuals who have already enacted change to process the fear appeal in the context of their high response efficacy (Cho & Salmon, 2006).”
BackgroundYoon, H. J., & Tinkham, S. F. (2013) · Journal of Advertising · doi:10.1080/00913367.2012.749082 · Cited by 116
Cauberghe, V., Pelsmacker, P. D., Janssens, W., & Dens, N. (2008) · Accident Analysis & Prevention · doi:10.1016/j.aap.2008.11.006 · Cited by 115 · cited 1×
“…measured with semantic differential scales (e.g., positive/negative, beneficial/harmful, wise/foolish, etc.; Nabi et al., 2008; Roskos-Ewoldsen, Yu, & Rhodes, 2004) and Likert style scales (e.g., agreement with statements such as, " I don't like speeding " ; Cauberghe et al., 2009, p. 280).”
BackgroundGriffeth, R. W., & Rogers, R. W. (1976) · Journal of Educational Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-0663.68.4.501 · Cited by 111
Subjective Knowledge and Fear Appeal Effectiveness: Implications for Message Design
Nabi, R. L., Roskos‐Ewoldsen, D. R., & Carpentier, F. R. D. (2008) · Health Communication · doi:10.1080/10410230701808327 · Cited by 111 · cited 4×
“In contrast, late stage individuals are already committed to behavior change and do not require such motivational appeals (DiClemente et al., 1991; Nabi et al., 2008; Prochaska & DiClemente, 1983; Prochaska et al., 1992).”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialDoes a threat appeal moderate reckless driving? A terror management theory perspective
Ben‐Ari, O. T. –., Florián, V., & Mikulincer, M. (2000) · Accident Analysis & Prevention · doi:10.1016/s0001-4575(99)00042-1 · Cited by 109 · cited 4×
“81 60 I N — — R PP N — S — I — Ben-Ari et al. (2000) 1: Study 1, low driving-related selfesteem 1.”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialIncreasing Women's Calcium Intake: The Role of Health Beliefs, Intentions, and Health Value1
Wurtele, S. K. (1988) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.1988.tb00041.x · Cited by 109
Mcmath, B. F., & Prentice‐Dunn, S. (2005) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2005.tb02138.x · Cited by 109 · cited 1×
“….35 86 I N N Y R PP N SEE S 100 I — Lwin and Malik (2014) 1: With wii .10 199 AI N Y N R PP N SEE L 42 C E 2: Without wii Ϫ.24 199 AI N Y N R PP N SEE L 42 C E McMath and Prentice-Dunn (2005) 1.06 196 I Y Y N R PP N SEH S 74 I E Meijnders et al. (2001a) 1: Weak arguments Ϫ.27 54 AI N Y N O PP N —”
InfluentialEffects of fear appeals and physiological arousal upon emotion, attitudes, and cigarette smoking.
Rogers, R. W., & Deckner, C. W. (1975) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.32.2.222 · Cited by 108
Fear, threat, and perceptions of efficacy from frightening skin cancer messages.
Stephenson, M. T., & Witte, K. (1998) · PubMed · Cited by 105
Keller, P. A. (1999) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/0021-9010.84.3.403 · Cited by 105 · cited 1×
“12039 Keller, P. A. (1999). Converting the unconverted: The effect of inclination and opportunity to discount health-related fear appeals.”
BackgroundEffects of fear appeals and physiological arousal upon emotion, attitudes, and cigarette smoking.
Rogers, R. W., & Deckner, C. W. (1975) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.32.2.222 · Cited by 105
Don’t Be Afraid to Use Fear Appeals: An Experimental Study
LaTour, M. S., Snipes, R. L., & Bliss, S. J. (1996) · Journal of Advertising Research · doi:10.1080/00218499.1996.12466523 · Cited by 104 · cited 1×
“S — I E Klohn and Rogers (1991) .68 85 I N Y N R PP N SEE S 100 I E LaTour et al. (1996) .29 305 AI N Y N O PP N —”
Joe Sampson, K. W. (2001) · Journal of Health Communication · doi:10.1080/108107301317140823 · Cited by 102 · cited 1×
“As African and European cultures tend to be more individualist, whereas Asian and Hispanic/Latino(a) cultures tend to be more collectivist (Sampson et al., 2001), I tested whether fear appeals were less effective when samples included higher percentages of African and European participants but more effective when samp…”
BackgroundFear appeals in HIV prevention: The role of anticipated regret
Smerecnik, C. M. R., & Ruiter, R. A. C. (2010) · Psychology Health & Medicine · doi:10.1080/13548506.2010.498888 · Cited by 99 · cited 1×
“I — Smerecnik and Ruiter (2010) 1: Low efficacy Ϫ.19 30 I N Y N R PP Y —”
BackgroundA Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of the First Federally Funded Antismoking Campaign
Xu, X., Alexander, R. L., Simpson, S. A., Goates, S., Nonnemaker, J. M., Davis, K., & McAfee, T. A. (2014) · American Journal of Preventive Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2014.10.011 · Cited by 98
Finding theory‐ and evidence‐based alternatives to fear appeals: Intervention Mapping
Kok, G., Bartholomew, L. K., Parcel, G. S., Gottlieb, N. H., & Fernández, M. E. (2013) · International Journal of Psychology · doi:10.1002/ijop.12001 · Cited by 96 · cited 10×
“54 352 AB Y Y N O PP N — S 80 I E Witte and Morrison (1995) .32 122 AIB Y Y Y R PP N — L 45 I — Witte et al. (1998) .03 96 AIB N Y Y R PP N — S 100 I — Wong and Cappella (2009) 1: Low efficacy .01 277 I N Y N R PP Y — S 47 I E 1: High efficacy .81 278 I Y Y N R PP Y — S 47 I E Wurtele and Maddux (1987) 1: No efficacy…”
InfluentialSmith, K. H., & Stutts, M. A. (2003) · Journal of Consumer Behaviour · doi:10.1002/cb.130 · Cited by 95 · cited 1×
“S 65 I L Smith and Stutts (2003) 1: Males, overall .29 79 B N Y N R PP Y —”
BackgroundA field experiment on fear arousal with data on the validity of questionnaire measures1
Leventhal, H., & Niles, P. (1964) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1964.tb01352.x · Cited by 95 · cited 1×
“S 43 I — Leventhal and Niles (1964) .45 209 AI Y Y N O D N —”
Fear arousal, efficacy, and imminency.
Chu, G. C. (1966) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0021189 · Cited by 93 · cited 1×
“We dichotomously coded whether each study’s sample came from a primarily collectivist culture (e.g., East Asian cultures like South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan; Chu, 1966; Fukada, 1973, 1975, 1988; Kim et al., 2009) or a primarily individualist culture (e.”
Re-thinking Culture and Personality
Higgins, E. T., Pierro, A., & Kruglanski, A. W. (2008) · Handbook of Motivation and Cognition Across Cultures · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-373694-9.00008-8 · Cited by 91 · cited 2×
“According to regulatory focus theory, people can be prevention or promotion focused, placing greater value on either the avoidance of negative outcomes or the pursuit of positive outcomes, respectively (Higgins et al., 2008).”
BackgroundThe role of vivid information in fear appeals and attitude change
Sherer, M., & Rogers, R. W. (1984) · Journal of Research in Personality · doi:10.1016/0092-6566(84)90016-3 · Cited by 91 · cited 1×
“A message high in depicted susceptibility emphasizes the message recipient's personal risk for negative consequences (e.g., " One of fourteen women is destined to develop breast cancer during her life.”
BackgroundEffects of public education about breast cancer and breast self-examination
Siero, S., Kok, G., & Pruyn, J. F. A. (1984) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/0277-9536(84)90157-6 · Cited by 91 · cited 8×
“" ; Siero et al., 1984).”
BackgroundInfluentialEffects of high and low fear-arousing communications upon opinions toward smoking
Insko, C. A., Arkoff, A., & Insko, V. M. (1965) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/0022-1031(65)90030-2 · Cited by 91 · cited 3×
“Messages dealing with behaviors or issues that could clearly lead to death were still coded as nondeath if the word death was not explicitly mentioned within the message itself (e.g., messages about smoking or HIV/AIDS that did not explicitly mention death as one of the potential consequences; Insko et al., 1965; McMa…”
BackgroundScaring the Already Scared: Some Problems With HIV/AIDS Fear Appeals in Namibia
Muthusamy, N., Levine, T. R., & Weber, R. (2009) · Journal of Communication · doi:10.1111/j.1460-2466.2009.01418.x · Cited by 86 · cited 1×
“, 2008; Smart & Fejer, 1974; Stainback & Rogers, 1983); (b) the measure occurred one to fourteen days after fear appeal exposure (e.g., Berkowitz, 1998; Kirscht et al., 1978; Muthusamy et al., 2009); and (c) the measure occurred more than fourteen days after fear”
BackgroundMeijnders, A. L., Midden, C. J. H., & Wilke, H. (2001) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2001.tb01412.x · Cited by 86 · cited 2×
“S 50 I — Meijnders et al. (2001b) 1: Weak arguments .46 40 A Y Y N O PP N —”
InfluentialDeterminants of Self‐Protective Behavior: Home Radon Testing
Weinstein, N. D., Sandman, P. M., & Roberts, N. E. (1990) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.1990.tb00379.x · Cited by 85 · cited 1×
“L 100 I E Weinstein et al. (1990) .24 264 I Y Y Y O D Y —”
Coping with the energy crisis: Effects of fear appeals upon attitudes toward energy consumption.
Hass, J. W., Bagley, G. S., & Rogers, R. W. (1975) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/0021-9010.60.6.754 · Cited by 85
A Terror Management Perspective on the Persuasiveness of Fear Appeals
Shehryar, O., & Hunt, D. M. (2005) · Journal of Consumer Psychology · doi:10.1207/s15327663jcp1504_2 · Cited by 80 · cited 5×
“According to TMT, when people are reminded of their mortality by being exposed to the concept of death, they often become motivated to buffer their self-esteem to reduce mortality related anxiety (Goldenberg & Arndt, 2008; Pyszczynski et al., 1999; Shehryar & Hunt, 2005; Solomon et al., 1991).”
BackgroundInfluentialThe Role of Coping Appraisal in Reactions to Fear Appeals: Do We Need Threat Information?
Ruiter, R. A. C., Verplanken, B., Kok, G., & Werrij, M. Q. (2003) · Journal of Health Psychology · doi:10.1177/13591053030084006 · Cited by 79
Levin, A. M., Dato‐on, M. C., & Manolis, C. (2007) · Journal of Consumer Behaviour · doi:10.1002/cb.211 · Cited by 78 · cited 1×
“S — I E Levin et al. (2007) Ϫ.41 222 I N Y N R PP N —”
Riet, J. V. ‘., Cox, A. D., Cox, D. S., Zimet, G. D., de Bruijn, G., van den Putte, B., de Vries, H., Werrij, M. Q., & Ruiter, R. A. C. (2014) · Psychology and Health · doi:10.1080/08870446.2014.896916 · Cited by 78
Identifying effective components of alcohol misuse prevention programs.
Kleinot, M. C., & Rogers, R. W. (1982) · Journal of Studies on Alcohol · doi:10.15288/jsa.1982.43.802 · Cited by 75 · cited 1×
“L 58 I — Kirscht et al. (1978) 1.23 109 B N Y N R PP Y SEE M 100 I E Kleinot and Rogers (1982) 1: Low efficacy .77 22 I N Y Y R PP Y —”
InfluentialSturges, J. W., & Rogers, R. W. (1996) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037//0278-6133.15.3.158 · Cited by 75
Goldenbeld, C., Twisk, D. A. M., & Houwing, S. (2008) · Transportation Research Part F Traffic Psychology and Behaviour · doi:10.1016/j.trf.2007.11.001 · Cited by 73
Stainback, R. D., & Rogers, R. W. (1983) · International Journal of the Addictions · doi:10.3109/10826088309039356 · Cited by 73
Effects of fear arousal and reassurance on attitude change.
Rogers, R. W., & Thistlethwaite, D. L. (1970) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0029437 · Cited by 69
Radon: Appealing to our fears1
LaTour, M. S., & Tanner, J. F. (2003) · Psychology and Marketing · doi:10.1002/mar.10078 · Cited by 65 · cited 1×
“S 100 I — LaTour and Tanner (2003) .13 124 AI N Y N O D N —”
The Relationship between Anxiety and Positive and Negative Advertising Appeals
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The influence of narrative risk communication on feelings of cancer risk
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“, smokers that were highly committed to smoking; Priolo & Milhabet, 2008), or if the existing behavior is one that people typically engage in to improve self-esteem and/or physical attractiveness (e.g., tanning or bulimia; Janssen et al., 2013; Smalec & Klingle, 2000).”
BackgroundInfluentialSkilbeck, C. E., Tulips, J., & Ley, P. (1977) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2420070208 · Cited by 56 · cited 1×
“L 100 I L Skilbeck et al. (1977) 1: Single exposure Ϫ.99 40 B N Y N R PP N SEE M 100 I E 2: Multiple exposures Ϫ1.”
BackgroundGeneral Action and Inaction Goals
Albarracín, D., Hepler, J., & Tannenbaum, M. B. (2011) · Current Directions in Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/0963721411402666 · Cited by 55 · cited 1×
“Greenberg, & Pyszczynski, 1991), general action theory (Albarracin et al., 2011; Tannenbaum et al., 2011), and Colburn’s health relevance theory (Colburn, 1967).”
BackgroundSelf-citationSelf-Report and Psychophysiological Responses to Fear Appeals
Ordoñana, J. R., Javier, F. G., López, L. E., & Gómez-Amor, J. (2009) · Human Communication Research · doi:10.1111/j.1468-2958.2009.01344.x · Cited by 55
Promotion, Prevention or Both: Regulatory Focus and Culture Revisited
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“…theories make predictions about the impact of the audience on fear appeal effectiveness: Regulatory fit theory (Higgins, Pierro, & Kruglanski, 2008; Kurman & Hui, 2011; Lockwood, Marshall, & Sadler, 2005) and the transtheoretical model (Prochaska & DiClemente, 1983; Prochaska et al., 1992;…”
BackgroundUsing scare tactics to promote safer sex among juvenile detention and high school youth
Witte, K., & Morrison, K. (1995) · Journal of Applied Communication Research · doi:10.1080/00909889509365419 · Cited by 52 · cited 1×
“…that exercise leads to higher levels of high-density lipoprotein and thus prevents heart attacks; Wurtele & Maddux, 1987), or both (e.g., highlighting that condoms substantially reduce the risk of HIV transmission if used correctly and are easy to use consistently; Witte & Morrison, 1995).”
BackgroundO’Keefe, D. J. (2013) · Annals of the International Communication Association · doi:10.1080/23808985.2013.11679151 · Cited by 51 · cited 1×
“Further, prior research has demonstrated that composite measures combining attitudes, intentions, and behaviors are a valid outcome of interest when investigating the relative persuasiveness of messages (O’Keefe, 2013).”
BackgroundSelf, C. A., & Rogers, R. W. (1990) · Journal of Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1007/bf00844883 · Cited by 50
Beck, K. H. (1984) · Social Behavior and Personality An International Journal · doi:10.2224/sbp.1984.12.2.121 · Cited by 49 · cited 1×
“, 2009) or a primarily individualist culture (e.g., Western cultures like Australia, Canada, and the United States; Beck, 1984; Brouwers & Sorrentino, 1993; Dahl et al., 2003; Hill & Gardner, 1980; Jones & Owen, 2006; LaTour & Tanner, 2003; Lewis et al., 2010; Smart & Fejer, 1974).”
BackgroundKlohn, L. S., & Rogers, R. W. (1991) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037//0278-6133.10.5.323 · Cited by 49 · cited 11×
“99 40 B N Y N R PP N SEE M 100 I E 2: Multiple exposures 1.23 46 B N Y N R PP N SEE M 100 I E Smalec and Klingle (2000) 1: Low efficacy .60 22 B N Y Y O PP N SEH S 81 I L 2: High efficacy 1.40 22 B Y Y Y O PP N SEH S 81 I L Smart and Fejer (1974) 1: Marijuana, nonusers .”
BackgroundInfluentialUsing fear appeals to promote cancer screening—are we scaring the wrong people?
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Effects of threat appeals and media of transmission
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“1186/1471-2458-14-30 Frandsen, K. D. (1963). Effects of threat appeals and media of transmission.”
BackgroundSmalec, J. L., & Klingle, R. S. (2000) · Journal of Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1023/a:1005468220077 · Cited by 41 · cited 3×
“" with responses Yes and No; Smalec & Klingle, 2000, p. 45) or behavioral observation data (e.g., information obtained from medical records; Ordoñana et al., 2009).”
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France, K. E., Donovan, R. J., Bower, C. I., Elliott, E. J., Payne, J., D’Antoine, H., & Bartu, A. E. (2014) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/1471-2458-14-30 · Cited by 41
The Role of Esteem and Coping in Response to a Threat Communication.
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Neuroticism and Attitudes Toward Action in 19 Countries
Ireland, M. E., Hepler, J., Li, H., & Albarracín, D. (2015) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/jopy.12099 · Cited by 41
Self-citationEffects of volunteering, fear arousal, and number of communications on attitude change.
Horowitz, I. A. (1969) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0027024 · Cited by 40
Lwin, M. O., & Malik, S. (2013) · Journal of Health Communication · doi:10.1080/10810730.2013.798372 · Cited by 40 · cited 1×
“S 100 I — 2: High relevance .35 86 I N N Y R PP N SEE S 100 I — Lwin and Malik (2014) 1: With wii .10 199 AI N Y N R PP N SEE L 42 C E 2: Without wii Ϫ.24 199 AI N Y N R PP N SEE L 42 C E McMath and Prentice-Dunn (2005) 1.06 196 I Y Y N R PP N SEH S 74 I E Meijnders et al. (2001a) 1: Weak arguments…”
InfluentialEffects of threatening communications and mothers' health beliefs on weight change in obese children
Kirscht, J. P., Becker, M. H., Haefner, D. P., & Maiman, L. A. (1978) · Journal of Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1007/bf00846636 · Cited by 40 · cited 2×
“1983); (b) the measure occurred one to 14 days after fear appeal exposure (e.g., Berkowitz, 1998; Kirscht et al., 1978; Muthusamy et al., 2009); and (c) the measure occurred more than 14 days after fear appeal exposure (e.”
BackgroundInfluentialBehavioral research and strategies in public health: A demur
Robertson, L. S. (1975) · Social Science & Medicine (1967) · doi:10.1016/0037-7856(75)90053-0 · Cited by 40 · cited 4×
“17 25 A N Y N R PP Y SEH S 57 I — Shelton and Rogers (1981) 1: Low empathy .85 56 I Y Y N R PP N — S — I — 2: High empathy .26 56 I Y Y N R PP N — S — I — Shen (2011) .59 174 A N Y N R PP N — S 66 I L Siero et al. (1984) .24 269 B N Y Y R D Y — L 100 I L Skilbeck et al. (1977) 1: Single exposure .”
BackgroundInfluentialHepler, J., & Albarracín, D. (2013) · Cognition · doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2013.04.012 · Cited by 38 · cited 1×
“Cultural research in the area of regulatory focus has found that women tend to be more prevention focused than men, and members of collectivist groups tend to be more prevention focused than members of individualist ones (Kurman & Hui, 2011; Lockwood, Marshall, & Sadler, 2005).”
BackgroundSelf-citationThe effect of anxiety‐arousing messages when related to personal, familial, and impersonal referents
Powell, F. A. (1965) · Speech Monographs · doi:10.1080/03637756509375437 · Cited by 38
The Effects of High and Low Fear Messages about Drugs
Smart, R. G., & Fejer, D. (1974) · Journal of Drug Education · doi:10.2190/1v5h-1nk5-qnxm-465f · Cited by 38 · cited 1×
“23 46 B N Y N R PP N SEE M 100 I E Smalec and Klingle (2000) 1: Low efficacy Ϫ.60 22 B N Y Y O PP N SEH S 81 I L 2: High efficacy 1.40 22 B Y Y Y O PP N SEH S 81 I L Smart and Fejer (1974) 1: Marijuana, nonusers Ϫ.05 856 I N Y Y R PP N SEE S —”
BackgroundInfluentialAnxiety, comprehension, and susceptibility to social influence.
Millman, S. (1968) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0021252 · Cited by 36 · cited 2×
“…in which message recipients disengage from the message, avoid further exposure to the message, and/or derogate the message because it is too frightening (Higbee, 1969; Hovland et al., 1953; Janis, 1967, 1968; Janis & Feshbach, 1953; Janis & Leventhal , 1968; McGuire, 1968, 1969; Millman, 1968).”
BackgroundCooper, D., Goldenberg, J. L., & Arndt, J. (2013) · British Journal of Health Psychology · doi:10.1111/bjhp.12019 · Cited by 36
The Effects of Fear of AIDS and Gender on Responses to Fear‐Arousing Condom Advertisements
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Ethnicity of Communicator, Self-Esteem, and Reactions to Fear-Arousing Communications
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Self-citationWill, K. E., Sabo, C. S., & Porter, B. E. (2008) · Accident Analysis & Prevention · doi:10.1016/j.aap.2008.09.007 · Cited by 27
New Measure of Effects of Persuasive Communications: A Chemical Indicator of Toothbrushing Behavior
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“S 100 I E 2: Regularly use condoms .66 34 I Y Y N R PP Y SEE S 100 I L Kim et al. (2009) .00 183 B N N N R PP N —”
Being active and impulsive: The role of goals for action and inaction in self-control
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Self-citationReactions to threatening health messages
ten Hoor, G. A., Peters, G.-J., Kalagi, J., de Groot, L., Grootjans, K., Huschens, A., Köhninger, C., Kölgen, L., Pelssers, I., Schütt, T., et al. (2012) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/1471-2458-12-1011 · Cited by 26
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“Powell, F. A. (1965). The effect of anxiety-arousing messages when”
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Self-citationInternal–external locus of control as a moderator of fear appeals.
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Some Effects of Fear-Arousing Communications on Preventive Health Behavior
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Repression-sensitization and yielding to threatening health communications
Hill, D. J., & Gardner, G. (1980) · Australian Journal of Psychology · doi:10.1080/00049538008254688 · Cited by 23
The effects of repeated exposure to graphic fear appeals on cigarette packages: A field experiment.
Dijkstra, A., & Bos, C. (2015) · Psychology of Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1037/adb0000049 · Cited by 23
Effects of Fear-Arousing Communications and Topic Importance on Attitude Change
Beck, K. H., & Davis, C. M. (1978) · The Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/00224545.1978.9924040 · Cited by 22
Negating the effects of fear appeals in election campaigns.
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The influence of exemplars in fear appeals on the perception of self-efficacy and message acceptance
Hoeken, H., & Geurts, D. (2005) · Information Design Journal · doi:10.1075/idjdd.13.3.09hoe · Cited by 18 · cited 5×
“09hoe Horowitz, I. A. (1969). Effects of volunteering, fear arousal, and number of communications on attitude change.”
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Effects of the volunteer subject, choice, and fear arousal on attitude change
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Attitudinal and Behavioral Reactions to Fear-Arousing Communications
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Hendrick, C., Giesen, M., & Borden, R. J. (1975) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1975.tb00702.x · Cited by 16
Self-Reports of Reactions to Fear-Arousing Information
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“" ; Siero et al., 1984), whereas a message low in depicted susceptibility does not personalize risk (e.g., " One of fourteen women is destined to develop breast cancer during her life.”
BackgroundStark, E. N., Kim, A., Miller, C., et al. (2008) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2007.00305.x · Cited by 16
Advertising and Road Safety: A Segmentation Approach
Tay, R., Ozanne, L. K., & Jati, S. (2000) · QUT ePrints (Queensland University of Technology) · Cited by 15
Does a Credible Source Also Need a Fearful Audience?
Umeh, K. F. (2012) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2012.00916.x · Cited by 13 · cited 1×
“S 0 I — Umeh (2012) 1: Low credibility source .06 134 I Y Y N R D Y —”
Fear Appeals Revisited: Testing a Unique Anti-smoking Film
Schmitt, C. L., & Blass, T. (2008) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-008-9029-7 · Cited by 13 · cited 1×
“17 25 A N Y N R PP Y SEH S 57 I — Shelton and Rogers (1981) 1: Low empathy .”
BackgroundEnhancing flossing compliance in college freshmen.
Jg, B., & Kg, L. (1993) · PubMed · Cited by 12
Effects of Risk-Focused and Recommendation-Focused Mental Imagery on Occupational Risk Communication
Welbourne, J. L., Hartley, T. A., Ott, S. D., et al. (2008) · Health Communication · doi:10.1080/10410230802342168 · Cited by 8 · cited 1×
“I — Welbourne et al. (2008) .00 308 A N Y N R PP Y —”
Promoting child passenger safety in children served by a health maintenance organization
Chang, A., Hearey, C. D., Gallagher, K. D., et al. (1989) · Patient Education and Counseling · doi:10.1016/0738-3991(89)90023-2 · Cited by 7 · cited 1×
“We coded whether the recommended behaviors concerned one-time-only instances (e.g., signing up for a stress management training; Das et al., 2003) or would need to be enacted over an extended period of time (e.g., regularly using child safety devices when traveling by car; Chang et al., 1989).”
Umeh, K. F., & Stanley, S.-J. (2007) · Journal of Applied Biobehavioral Research · doi:10.1111/j.1751-9861.2005.tb00011.x · Cited by 7 · cited 1×
“I L Umeh and Stanley (2005) Ϫ.04 100 I Y Y N R PP N —”
Learned helplessness and depression among Israeli women
ROSENBAUM, M. S., & Shichman, S. (1979) · Journal of Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1002/1097-4679(197904)35:2 · Cited by 7
Quand l’engagement précède l’appel à la peur : une forme de communication engageante
Priolo, D., & Milhabet, I. (2008) · L’Année psychologique · doi:10.4074/s0003503308002029 · Cited by 6
Stimulating dental attendance in the Netherlands: comparison of three conceptual frameworks
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“08 27 I N Y N R PP Y SEH S 0 C — 3: Study 2, low driving-related self- esteem Ϫ.76 27 B N Y N R PP Y SEE S 0 C — 4: Study 2, high driving-related self- esteem .20 28 B N Y N R PP Y SEH S 0 C — ter Horst et al. (1985) Ϫ. 12 107 B Y Y Y O PP N —”
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“S 100 I — Venkatesan (2010) 3.01 72 A Y N Y O PP N —”
InfluentialEFFECTS OF FEAR AROUSAL, SEX AND ANXIETY PREDISPOSITION OF SUBJECTS ON ATTITUDE CHANGE
Fukada, H. (1973) · THE JAPANESE JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY · doi:10.2130/jjesp.13.40 · Cited by 3
Fukada, H. (1975) · THE JAPANESE JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY · doi:10.2130/jjesp.15.12 · Cited by 2 · cited 1×
“For each article, we coded if the recommended behavior was a detection behavior (e.g., getting tested for syphilis; Fukada, 1975) or a prevention/promotion behavior (e.g., attending a training to prevent repetitive stress injury; Pengchit, 2010 ).”
MethodPERSUASION FACILITATING EFFECTS UNDER IRRELEVANT FEAR-AROUSING SITUATIONS
Fukada, H. (1983) · THE JAPANESE JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY · doi:10.2130/jjesp.23.83 · Cited by 2
EFFECTS OF FEAR-AROUSING COMMUNICATIONS ON RESISTANCE TO SUBSEQUENT COUNTERPROPAGANDA
Fukada, H. (1988) · THE JAPANESE JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY · doi:10.2130/jjesp.27.149 · Cited by 2
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The psychological drivers of misinformation belief and its resistance to correction
Ecker, U. K. H., Lewandowsky, S., Cook, J., Schmid, P., Fazio, L. K., Brashier, N., Kendeou, P., Vraga, E. K., & Amazeen, M. A. (2022) · Nature Reviews Psychology · doi:10.1038/s44159-021-00006-y · Cited by 1,372
Leventhal, H., Phillips, L. A., & Burns, E. (2016) · Journal of Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1007/s10865-016-9782-2 · Cited by 1,350
“As the level of fear was irrelevant, it appeared that the representation of the threat, not the momentary affective component, was critical for action when combined with the plan (Leventhal, 1970; Tannenbaum et al., 2015).”
Increasing Vaccination: Putting Psychological Science Into Action
Brewer, N. T., Chapman, G. B., Rothman, A. J., Leask, J., & Kempe, A. (2017) · Psychological Science in the Public Interest · doi:10.1177/1529100618760521 · Cited by 1,233
“people experience both heightened fear and a feeling of efficacy for taking action to ameliorate the threat (Tannenbaum et al., 2015).”
BackgroundClimate Endgame: Exploring catastrophic climate change scenarios
Kemp, L., Xu, C., Depledge, J., Ebi, K. L., Gibbins, G., Kohler, T. A., Rockström, J., Scheffer, M., Schellnhuber, H. J., Steffen, W., et al. (2022) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.2108146119 · Cited by 918
Chou, W. S., & Budenz, A. (2020) · Health Communication · doi:10.1080/10410236.2020.1838096 · Cited by 673
Metadata
- Authors
- Tannenbaum, M. B., Hepler, J., Zimmerman, R. S., Saul, L., Jacobs, S., Wilson, K., & Albarracín, D.
- Affiliations
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US)
- University of Nevada, Reno (US)
- University of Missouri–St. Louis (US)
- Virginia Commonwealth University (US)
- Venue
- Psychological Bulletin
- Published
- 2015-11
- Volume
- 141
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 1178-1204
- ISSN
- 0033-2909 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1455
- PMC
- PMC5789790
- OpenAlex
- W2238586764
- Semantic Scholar
- 7940c739aafad42be93bddeda83667a658986963
- Cited by
- 1,315
- References
- 203
- Citations by year
- 2026: 148 · 2025: 149 · 2024: 138 · 2023: 124 · 2022: 134 · 2021: 192 · 2020: 203 · 2019: 78 · 2018: 78 · 2017: 48 · 2016: 21
- FWCI
- 5.77
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Psychological Bulletin (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Sponsor name not included (R01 MH094241, R01 NR08325, and R56 AI114501)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Risk Perception and Management
- Social Sciences › Communication › Media Influence and Health
- Keywords
- fear appeals, attitude change, behavioral intention, risk communication, perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, message framing
- MeSH terms
- Attitude, Behavior, Fear, Female, Humans, Male, Models, Psychological, Persuasive Communication, Risk Factors, Intention
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
A language model drew the claims from the paper on 2026-09-28, under version 3 of the claim definition (model deepseek-v4.1-flash, prompt extract-v3).
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Cited sources are checked with a language model’s help (gpt-6-sol).
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