Does Need for Cognition Influence Perceived Credibility of Older Witnesses?

Need for Cognition Among Users of Self-Monitoring Systems for Physical Activity: Implications for System Design and Tailoring (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.23968 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Kirsi Halttu ◽

Harri Oinas-Kukkonen

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Need For Cognition ◽

Monitoring Systems ◽

Moderator Variable ◽

Self Monitoring ◽

Perceived Credibility ◽

Reported Study ◽

Rich Data ◽

The Relationship

BACKGROUND Need for cognition (NFC) is among the most studied personality traits in psychology. Despite its apparent relevance for engaging with technology and use of information, it has not been studied in the context of self-monitoring systems and wearables for health. The reported study is the first to explore the relationship between this trait and commercial self-monitoring systems among existing users. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to explore the effect of NFC levels on selection of self-monitoring systems and evaluation of system features self-monitoring and feedback as well as perceived credibility and perceived persuasiveness. We also assessed perceived behavior change in the form of self-reported activity after adopting the system. METHODS Survey data was collected in (blinded) in October 2019 among university students that had used a digital system to monitor their physical activity at least for two months. A Web-based questionnaire had three 3 parts: details of system use, partially randomly ordered theoretical measurement items, and user demographics. The data was analyzed with structural equation modelling. The effect of NFC was assessed both as three groups (low, moderate, high) and as continuous moderator variable. RESULTS There were significantly higher scores among high NFC individuals for all tested system features. NFC also had some effect on system selection. Perceived credibility is crucial for these systems, but relationships with credibility differ for low and high NFC individuals. For those with low NFC, it increases the persuasiveness of the system, but this effect is absent from high NFC individuals. For high NFC users, credibility is strongly related to self-monitoring activity and is perhaps continuously evaluated during prolonged use. The relationship between perceived persuasiveness and self-reported activity after adopting the system was very strong only for high NFC individuals. CONCLUSIONS Individuals’ system choices seem to reflect their intrinsic motivations to engage with rich data, and commercial systems might themselves be a tailoring strategy. Important characteristics of the system like perceived credibility have different role depending on NFC levels. Our data demonstrate that NFC as a trait differentiating information processing has several implications for selection, design and tailoring of self-monitoring systems.

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Investment Traits and Intelligence in Adulthood

Journal of Individual Differences ◽

10.1027/1614-0001/a000101 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 34 (2) ◽

pp. 82-89 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Sophie von Stumm

Keyword(s):

Individual Differences ◽

Personality Traits ◽

Fluid Intelligence ◽

Need For Cognition ◽

Openness To Experience ◽

Intelligence Tests ◽

Crystallized Intelligence ◽

New Knowledge ◽

The Relationship ◽

Over Time

Intelligence-as-knowledge in adulthood is influenced by individual differences in intelligence-as-process (i.e., fluid intelligence) and in personality traits that determine when, where, and how people invest their intelligence over time. Here, the relationship between two investment traits (i.e., Openness to Experience and Need for Cognition), intelligence-as-process and intelligence-as-knowledge, as assessed by a battery of crystallized intelligence tests and a new knowledge measure, was examined. The results showed that (1) both investment traits were positively associated with intelligence-as-knowledge; (2) this effect was stronger for Openness to Experience than for Need for Cognition; and (3) associations between investment and intelligence-as-knowledge reduced when adjusting for intelligence-as-process but remained mostly significant.

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Election Poster Persuasion

Social Psychology ◽

10.1027/1864-9335/a000323 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 49 (1) ◽

pp. 3-15 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Malte Schott ◽

Jule Wolf

Keyword(s):

Political Parties ◽

Policy Evaluation ◽

Political Party ◽

Need For Cognition ◽

Evaluation Study ◽

Additional Measure ◽

Political Preferences ◽

Policy Statements ◽

Voting Intentions

Abstract. We examined the effect of presenting unknown policy statements on German parties’ election posters. Study 1 showed that participants inferred the quality of a presented policy from knowledge about the respective political party. Study 2 showed that participants’ own political preferences influenced valence estimates: policy statements presented on campaign posters of liked political parties were rated significantly more positive than those presented on posters of disliked political parties. Study 3 replicated the findings of Study 2 with an additional measure of participants’ need for cognition. Need for cognition scores were unrelated to the valence transfer from political parties to policy evaluation. Study 4 replicated the findings of Studies 2 and 3 with an additional measure of participants’ voting intentions. Voting intentions were a significant predictor for valence transfer. Participants credited both their individually liked and disliked political parties for supporting the two unknown policies. However, the credit attributed to the liked party was significantly higher than to the disliked one. Study 5 replicated the findings of Studies 2, 3, and 4. Additionally, participants evaluated political clubs that were associated with the same policies previously presented on election posters. Here, a second-degree transfer emerged: from party valence to policy evaluation and from policy evaluation to club evaluation. Implications of the presented studies for policy communications and election campaigning are discussed.

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Meta-Cognition Predicts Attitude Depolarization and Intentions to Engage With the Opposition Following Pro-Attitudinal Advocacy

Social Psychology ◽

10.1027/1864-9335/a000424 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 51 (6) ◽

pp. 408-421

Author(s):

Ravini S. Abeywickrama ◽

Simon M. Laham

Keyword(s):

Need For Cognition

Abstract. Across two studies we show that attitudes can paradoxically depolarize when people advocate for their own opinions. In Study 1 ( n = 276), we show that attitude depolarization is driven by how much meta-cognitive confidence people place in their advocacy attempt, such that those who experience low confidence during advocacy are more likely to depolarize. In Study 2 ( n = 495), we show that meta-cognitive confidence predicts communicative intentions, such as intentions to engage with those holding dissimilar views. In Study 2, we also show that the confidence–polarization and confidence–engagement links are unaffected by audience attitudes, but are moderated by Need-for-Cognition. The findings suggest that confidence and level of elaboration may predict some self-persuasive effects of pro-attitudinal advocacy.

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