Models Based on Perceived Threat and Fear Appeals

1. Models Based on Perceived Threat and Fear Appeals Intro: Diana J Govier Hollie J Roberts

2. What is Fear? • Chain reaction in the brain • Begins with stressful stimulus and ends with release of chemicals • Fear responses can be expressed as: • Physiological (arousal) • Language (verbal self-reports) • Overt acts (facial expressions) • Fear is relative • What is scary? How do populations differ? • Fight-or-Flight • Considered to be instintual in all animals

3. Fear and Health Behaviors • Some health professionals hypothesize that it is possible to harness power of fear to change health behaviors • Examples of fight responses • Examples of flight responses • Again: fear is relative; what causes fear in one person may be different for another • This should affect how health policy campaigns are developed

4. Chemical Reaction of Fear in the Brain

5. Perceived Threat • Perceived Threat (theoretical construct) = perceived scary stimuli + perceived vulnerability • Public Health = “scare tactics” • Do scare tactics work? • What about drug and alcohol public health campaigns?

6. Key Concepts of Ch. 5 • Health Belief Model • Protection Motivation Theory • Extended Parallel Process Model

7. Extended Parallel Process Model (EPPM) • Newest among perceived threat theories • Actually a mixture of PMT and Leventhal’sParallel Process Model • Communication theory rather than behavioral theory • Attempts to answer: How do individuals respond to fear-arousing communcations? • How or Why people respond to and do or do not act of fear messages

8. Extended Parallel Process Model

9. Stage 1: External Stimuli • Message components • Perceived susceptibility • Perceived severity • Response efficacy • Self-efficacy • Perceived Threat • Perceived susceptibility • Perceived severity • Perceived Efficacy • Response efficacy • Self-efficacy

10. Stage 2: Message Processing • Perceived efficacy is high, and perceived threat is high • Perceived efficacy is high, but perceived threat is low • Perceived efficacy is low, but perceived threat is high • Perceived efficacy is low, and perceived threat is low

11. Stage 3: Outcomes • Protection Motivation (Danger-Control Process) • engage in strategies to avert threat • Acceptance of fear message • Defense Motivation (Fear-Control Process) • Control fear rather than threat

12. Control Process • Danger Control Process • What public health professionals want in order to affect change • Successful when threat and efficacy are high • Responses are measured in changes in beliefs, attitudes, behaviors, intentions • Fear Control Process • What public health professionals want to avoid • typically characterized by two beliefs • Individual cannot engage in recommended response • Response will not be effective or change outcome • Controlling fear rather than threat

13. Extended Parallel Process Model

14. Other Thoughts • Fear is relative • High anxiety individual may need less fear stimuli in order to engage in danger control process • Sensation-seeking individual may need more fear stimuli in order to engage in danger control process • When can fear appeals work?

15. THE THEORY OF TRIADIC INFLUENCE GENETICS ENVIRONMENT IntraPersonal Environment Social Situation Attitudes Toward Behavior Self-Efficacy Social Normative Beliefs Intentions/Decision BEHAVIOR 15

16. Green & Witt (2006) Can Fear Arousal in Public Health Campaigns Contribute to the Decline in HIV Prevalence? • Opinion paper • Analysis/claims on surveys, related evidence, interviews • Uganda’s campaign strategy using fear to motivate behavior change • US’ campaign strategy avoiding fear tactics unless coupled with self-efficacy promotion

17. American AIDS Expert Viewpoint • Fear based tactics are “amateur” and only show short-term change at best • No evidence to support this claim • Americans respond better to lighthearted approaches • Humor in social marketing • Boomerang Effect • Promote condom use rather than restrictive sexual behaviors

18. Critique of American Expert Viewpoint • Increased HIV/AIDS in gay community • No clear operational constructs used in surveys • LoveLife in South Africa • Guilt-free tactics didn’t work, actually increased HIV prevalence • Pressured by international politics

19. History of Fear-Based Messages • Literature suggests that fear-based tactics do work • EPPM Model, when and why fear messages work and do not work

20. Uganda HIV/AIDS Program • Began in 1986 and used scare tactics, then provided options for avoidance of threat • ABC or D • A = abstinence • B = be faithful • C = use condom • OR DEATH • Used “dark” advertising, grim images (skulls, coffins), funeral drum music • Prevalence declined by 66%, but reasons for this decline may include number of deaths attributed to HIV/AIDS

22. Analysis of Objection to Fear Messages • Sexual revolution of 1960’s 70’s • Sex positive vs. sex negavtive • Christian and Muslim values • How generalizable is Uganda’s experience? • America’s experience?

23. Conclusions • Uganda adopted “softer” approach and as result HIV/AIDS transmission prevalence has slightly increased • “disregarding the importance of epidemic stage in this analysis…The question really is not whether fear appeals work or don’t work, or should or should not be used, rather it is when, under what conditions, and how should fear appeals be used”