The Cognitive-Sentient Exploration of Mediated Reality

This chapter described the intimate processes of the informational system of the human body and cells and their effect on the mind in order to understand how information is received/operated and integrated in the genetic structure of the organism by epigenetic mechanisms. Individual education/learning are the basic processes allowing the knowledge/judgement of mediated reality, and for the formation of decision criteria, beliefs, and mentality. The contributive role of media in education/behavior is highlighted, revealing the positive/negative effects of the persuasive messages in interaction with individual/collective beliefs and mentality. The inoculation techniques applied in various fields of media are discussed from the informational perspective, emphasizing the implication of the cognitive centers on such processes. Big data analysis and predictive conclusions on the social effects are used nowadays as feedback support, helping the optimization of the relation between audience and media products.

To Be, or Not to Be Healthy

This chapter, as the starting point of the book, (re)constructs the substantive setting and puzzle of health communication, being a reflection and discussion based on the literature review on fundamentals and practices of health communication and the contributions and implications of informative and persuasive messages and communication practices to health. The literature review results show the essential role that communication has assumed in the context of health, having several positive effects, such as the treatment effectiveness, the improvement of the therapeutic relationship and health literacy, the penetration of certain health issues in the public agenda. It has also highlighted the need to strengthen and rethink, in the name of individual and social well-being, the relationship between health and communication. Particularly, in the therapeutic relationship, the need for the health professional to have adequate communication competences to interact with patients is emphasized. Additionally, the media prove to be a versatile tool in the achievement of health promotion aims.

Pembentukan Persuasif Dalam Struktur Naratif Pada Iklan Gopay Indonesia Versi Bumbu Rahasia Dari Bu Sisca Yang Bikin #Lebihenak

The concept of an advertisement aimed at modern society can no longer rely solely on the description of a product. Because basically people can find their own info from a product using their smartphone. Therefore, an advertisement must be designed in such a way that it really attracts potential consumers. Persuasive messages need to be packaged well in order to achieve the target to influence consumers to use the company's products. The research "Pembentukan Persuasif Dalam Struktur Naratif Pada Iklan Gopay Indonesia Versi Bumbu Rahasia Dari Bu Sisca Yang Bikin #LebihEnak " aims to find a persuasive formation of a product advertisement used by modern society, namely Gopay Indonesia e-money through narrative analysis of one of the advertising versions, namely Bumbu Rahasia dari Bu Sisca yang Bikin #Lebihenak. The research method used is descriptive qualitative by collecting data through documentation, observation, and literature study. This research uses narrative theory from Bordwell-Thompson which sees the narrative elements consist of plot and story, space, time, characters, and narrative. The results showed that the formation of persuasion to grow awareness and product introduction was formed from each narrative element.

Penerimaan Pesan Persuasif dari Perspektif Elaboration Likelihood Model : Iklan Layanan Masyarakat Himbauan Berhenti Merokok

The number of smokers among Indonesian teenagers continues to increase every year. Public service advertisements (PSA) for smoking prevention must be delivered with the right approach to be accepted in the minds of the audience. This study aims to expand on previous research on smoking prevention PSAs by testing the concept of the Elaboration Likelihood Model theory. The research method applied is exploratory qualitative which is complemented by the results of in-depth interviews with 4 participants of postgraduate students of communication science at the University of Indonesia. The results of this study indicate that attitudes towards issues and personal relevance are the factors that most influence the acceptance of persuasive messages on PSAs that prohibit smoking #SuaraTanpaRokok. Repetition can be used to increase the effectiveness of a given persuasive message.

Types of Gameplay in Newsgames. Case of Persuasive Messages about COVID-19

Currently, independent video games have been presented as an alternative to approach the development of a ludic typology called newsgames in which, distancing themselves from the interests of the entertainment industry, a series of games related to the pandemic are presented. From here, we seek to examine the gameplay elements and persuasive messages of 17 “indie games” in the context of COVID-19, categorizing them according to types of newsgames and determining any patterns present among them. The results manifest a tendency towards tabloid newsgames, which are characterized by dealing with sensational, direct, and immediate information using humor and exaggeration to convey messages, which, in this case, focuses on biosafety measures such as hand washing, the use of alcohol for sanitation, and social distancing. On the part of the gameplay elements, a linear narrative is maintained, but it is mainly a sum of achievements to reach the game’s objectives. In short, independent newsgames are formalized as an instrument of diversification in media realities that allow for the presenting of information in an alternative way without depending on editorial lines within a crisis context, as has been the case during the pandemic.

The (minimal) persuasive advantage of political video over text

Concerns about video-based political persuasion are prevalent in both popular and academic circles, predicated on the assumption that video is more compelling than text. To date, however, this assumption remains largely untested in the political domain. Here, we provide such a test. We begin by drawing a theoretical distinction between two dimensions for which video might be more efficacious than text: 1) one’s belief that a depicted event actually occurred and 2) the extent to which one’s attitudes and behavior are changed. We test this model across two high-powered survey experiments varying exposure to politically persuasive messaging (total n = 7,609 Americans; 26,584 observations). Respondents were shown a selection of persuasive messages drawn from a diverse sample of 72 clips. For each message, they were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: a short video, a detailed transcript of the video, or a control condition. Overall, we find that individuals are more likely to believe an event occurred when it is presented in video versus textual form, but the impact on attitudes and behavioral intentions is much smaller. Importantly, for both dimensions, these effects are highly stable across messages and respondent subgroups. Moreover, when it comes to attitudes and engagement, the difference between the video and text conditions is comparable to, if not smaller than, the difference between the text and control conditions. Taken together, these results call into question widely held assumptions about the unique persuasive power of political video over text.

Effective strategies for changing public opinion: A literature review

Social movements often try to affect public opinion as a lever for legislation and other social change. This report provides a broad overview of research relating to (1) whether advocates can successfully influence public opinion and how they can do so most effectively, and (2) what the other causes of public opinion change are and how advocates can harness them. Key findings include that direct persuasion attempts to change attitudes (rather than behavior) tend to have “small” or “very small” short-term effects, but advocates may be able to have lasting indirect effects on public opinion via policy change or reframing the issues. We list factors that affect how persuasive messages are and make tentative suggestions for how advocates can cost-effectively leverage external influences on public opinion such as the media, celebrities, politicians, and policy.

Promoting public retirement savings accounts during tax filing: evidence from field experiments

In 2015, the U.S. Treasury Department launched myRA, a no-fee retirement account designed for people who lacked employer-sponsored retirement options. We report findings from two behavioral field experiments intended to motivate interest in using the tax refund to open and fund myRAs directly through the tax-filing process. These experiments, administered to more than 100,000 low-income tax filers in 2016, embedded persuasive messages in emails sent to filers and directly within online tax-filing software. We find that interest in myRA was generally very low, although interest and enrollment intentions varied depending on the framing of the program's benefits.