A Review and Analysis of Questions About the Relationship Between Fear and Persuasion

Main Article Content

Lijiang Shen
James Price Dillard

Abstract

Some theories of fear appeals have predicted a curvilinear relationship between fear and persuasion, often based on the description of an overtime process. This paper reviews selected theories of fear appeals against what is known from the meta-analyses and finds that some of the theoretical questions simply cannot be addressed with existing data. Recommendations for testing linearity and curvilinearity in dynamic designs are presented.

Article Details

How to Cite
Shen, L., & Dillard, J. P. (2014). A Review and Analysis of Questions About the Relationship Between Fear and Persuasion. Review of Communication Research, 2, 94–114. Retrieved from https://rcommunicationr.org/index.php/rcr/article/view/10
Section
Health Communication
Author Biography

James Price Dillard, Pennsylvania State University

Liberal Arts Professor of Communication Arts & Sciences