Be Yourself, Image Is Nothing: Bias Correction when Viewing Messages in Sequence.

Abstract

Attempts at social influence are frequently encountered in sequence rather than in isolation. We suggest that messages can play a new correction-based role when they prompt message recipients to consider possible biases. The resulting corrections can reduce or even reverse the typical context effects. Two experiments examined advertisements as contexts for activating corrections. In Experiment 1, the context ad contained a tagline highlighting potential endorser bias. In Experiment 2, a sequence of context ads featured the same endorser endorsing different products, subtly prompting the potential for endorser bias. In both studies, research participants corrected for the assimilative effect of the celebrity endorser more when motivation was relatively high rather than low. Implications for the practice of social influence are discussed.