COGNITIVE RESPONSES IN PERSUASION - AFFECTIVE AND EVALUATIVE DETERMINANTS

The effectiveness of a persuasive communication often depends on the nature of recipient-generated cognitive responses. Cognitive responses can have their origin in the recipient's own attitude, in message contents, and in sources unrelated to the communication. The present study focused on the recipient's attitude as a source for cognitive responses. Drawing from theory and research on attitude structure, a distinction was made between affective and evaluative components of attitude. It was then proposed that each attitude component may contribute in unique ways to the production of cognitive responses. Subjects viewed two lengthy communications on the topic of legalized abortion, one arguing in support of the pro-life position and the other in support of the pro-choice position. Measures of global attitude, affect, evaluation, and cognitive responding were taken after each message. For both communications, cognitive responses were most strongly related to the affective component of precommunication attitudes and to the evaluative component of postcommunication attitudes. The importance of these results for the study of attitude structure and attitude change are discussed. © 1991.