Resistance & Persuasion classes week 1-9
Lecture 1 Introduction
Due to resistance to change, messages sometimes fail. Commercial messages reaching audiences
is hard. – in order to understand persuasion, you must understand resistance
Resistance defined:
→ a reaction against change (I don’t like it, I don’t believe it, I won’t do it)
→ the ability to withstand a persuasive attack
→ an outcome; not being moved by pressures to change
→ a motivational state; motivation to oppose and counter pressures to change
Lecture 2 Psychological reactance & politeness theory
Psychological resistance → feeling the urge to do the opposite of something/someone tells you
to do
Reactance Theory – 4 elements:
1. Freedom → the need to make your own decisions (think/behave/feel as you want)
2. Threat to freedom → when someone makes it more difficult for you to do as you want
(you can’t do something, or you need to do something else)
3. Reactance → negative feelings and negative thoughts as response
4. Restoring freedom →
o Directly = Boomerang effect (you immediately rebel; perform the forbidden
behavior)
o Indirectly
• Derogate source of threat – take the source in question
• Increase liking for threatened choice – wanting to do something more
o Boomerang effect = physical
o Increase liking = just in your mind!
• Deny existence of threat – ‘I didn’t want to do it anyway’
• Exercise different freedom – do something else you like, to regain sense of
freedom (e.g. try touching different fragile object)
Reactance is in your head & therefore hard to measure
The nature of reactance: 5 conceptualizations
1. Purely cognitive – negative thoughts; that could be measured as counterarguments
a single process cognitive model
, 2. Purely affective – a (negative) emotion or feeling
a single process affective model
3. Cognitive & affective – distinct effects → dual-process
a dual process cognitive-affective model
4. Cognitive & affective – linear effects → when our freedom is threatened, we feel negative
emotions and this will lead to negative thoughts
a linear process cognitive-affective model
5. Cognitive & affective – intertwined effects
an intertwined process cognitive-affective model
! This model fits the results of many studies on reactance best:
Using reactance to promote change:
Persuasive strategies
- Reverse psychology → you evoke reactance to promote change
- Scarcity → freedom is threatened → the option becomes more attractive
• Ex. Balanciaga limited edition; people want it more; not being able to threatens
freedom and we don’t want that
Politeness theory:
People have face wants → refers to a person’s desire to maintain their social identity and self-
esteem in interactions
- Negative face wants = people have fundamental need for autonomy and independence
- Positive face wants = people have a fundamental need for approval, acceptance, and
being viewed as competent
Lecture 1 Introduction
Due to resistance to change, messages sometimes fail. Commercial messages reaching audiences
is hard. – in order to understand persuasion, you must understand resistance
Resistance defined:
→ a reaction against change (I don’t like it, I don’t believe it, I won’t do it)
→ the ability to withstand a persuasive attack
→ an outcome; not being moved by pressures to change
→ a motivational state; motivation to oppose and counter pressures to change
Lecture 2 Psychological reactance & politeness theory
Psychological resistance → feeling the urge to do the opposite of something/someone tells you
to do
Reactance Theory – 4 elements:
1. Freedom → the need to make your own decisions (think/behave/feel as you want)
2. Threat to freedom → when someone makes it more difficult for you to do as you want
(you can’t do something, or you need to do something else)
3. Reactance → negative feelings and negative thoughts as response
4. Restoring freedom →
o Directly = Boomerang effect (you immediately rebel; perform the forbidden
behavior)
o Indirectly
• Derogate source of threat – take the source in question
• Increase liking for threatened choice – wanting to do something more
o Boomerang effect = physical
o Increase liking = just in your mind!
• Deny existence of threat – ‘I didn’t want to do it anyway’
• Exercise different freedom – do something else you like, to regain sense of
freedom (e.g. try touching different fragile object)
Reactance is in your head & therefore hard to measure
The nature of reactance: 5 conceptualizations
1. Purely cognitive – negative thoughts; that could be measured as counterarguments
a single process cognitive model
, 2. Purely affective – a (negative) emotion or feeling
a single process affective model
3. Cognitive & affective – distinct effects → dual-process
a dual process cognitive-affective model
4. Cognitive & affective – linear effects → when our freedom is threatened, we feel negative
emotions and this will lead to negative thoughts
a linear process cognitive-affective model
5. Cognitive & affective – intertwined effects
an intertwined process cognitive-affective model
! This model fits the results of many studies on reactance best:
Using reactance to promote change:
Persuasive strategies
- Reverse psychology → you evoke reactance to promote change
- Scarcity → freedom is threatened → the option becomes more attractive
• Ex. Balanciaga limited edition; people want it more; not being able to threatens
freedom and we don’t want that
Politeness theory:
People have face wants → refers to a person’s desire to maintain their social identity and self-
esteem in interactions
- Negative face wants = people have fundamental need for autonomy and independence
- Positive face wants = people have a fundamental need for approval, acceptance, and
being viewed as competent
