SUNScholar - Browsing by Author "Jansen, Carel"

Browsing by Author "Jansen, Carel"

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Beinvloedt een meer of minder sympathieke protagonist de transportatie van de lezer?
(Amsterdam University Press, 2019-11-01) Jansen, Carel; De Graaf, Anneke; Hustinx, Lettica; Ooms, Joelle; Schreinemakers, Merel; Zwiers, Lisa
Three previous studies into presenting a protagonist in a story as more or less sympathetic have not provided a clear picture of the effects that the portrayal of the protagonist may have on transportation, and via transportation on story-consistent beliefs. Results from a first study (N = 83) by De Graaf and Hustinx (2015) suggest that the way the protagonist is portrayed – as sympathetic, unsympathetic or neutral – influences the extent to which readers are transported into a story. No significant effects on beliefs of the readers were found, however. In a direct replication study (N = 79) and in a conceptual replication study (N = 81), Jansen, Nederhoff, and Ooms (2017) found results that supported the hypotheses from the original study to a limited extent. In view of the relatively small numbers of participants in these three studies and the resulting limited power of the statistical tests two new, larger-scaled replication studies were conducted. A direct replication study was performed (N = 238) with the same versions of the story as used in the original study, and also a conceptual replication study (N = 248) with three versions of a new story. Again, the hypotheses from the original study were supported to a limited extent. A meta-analysis of all five studies revealed a large indirect positive effect of story version on transportation via empathy, when comparing the versions with a sympathetic protagonist with the versions with an unsympathetic protagonist. When comparing the neutral story versions with the versions with an unsympathetic protagonist, the meta-analytic indirect effect was medium sized. Other than what the Affective Disposition Theory (Raney, 2004; Zillmann, 1994; 2006) claims, the story versions with a neutral protagonist did not lead to an absence of emotional responses. Furthermore, the outcomes add to the Transportation-Imagery Model (Green & Brock, 2002; Van Laer, De Ruyter, Visconti, & Wetzels, 2014). While this model does not include concrete suggestions of story characteristics that lead to transportation, our studies show that a protagonist who is portrayed as sympathetic may contribute to the level of transportation that readers experience, be it indirectly through empathy.
Effecten van anti-rookboodschappen bij jongeren : een conceptueel replicatieonderzoek
(Amsterdam University Press, 2019-04) Van Wijk, Heleen; Jansen, Carel
Based on an experiment with young Dutch smokers, Mollen, Engelen, Kessels, and Van den Putte (2017) advise the European Commission to reconsider the use of warning labels on cigarette packages. Participants in their study were students at institutes for higher education (N = 132). Their attitudes and behavioral intentions were found to be affected both by message framing and temporal discounting in the verbal anti-smoking messages they were presented with. Gain frames were more persuasive than loss frames, and short-term consequences were more persuasive than long-term consequences. We performed a conceptual replication study in which we employed the same experimental design, followed the same procedure, and used similar anti-smoking messages. Other than in Mollen et al., however, both smokers (N = 129) and non-smokers (N = 173) participated, and the verbal messages were accompanied with matching visuals. Furthermore, participants were younger (M = 18.0 years) than in the original study (M = 22.4 years), and they were students at a lower educational level. We found none of the effects reported in the original study, neither for smokers nor for non-smokers. Therefore, our study does not support the advice from Mollen et al. (2017).
Evaluating four readability formulas for Afrikaans
(University of Stellenbosch, Department of General Linguistics, 2017) Jansen, Carel; Richards, Rose; Van Zyl, Liezl
For almost a hundred years now, readability formulas have been used to measure how difficult it is to comprehend a given text. To date, four readability formulas have been developed for Afrikaans. Two such formulas were published by Van Rooyen (1986), one formula by McDermid Heyns (2007) and one formula by McKellar (2008). In our quantitative study the validity of these four formulas was tested. We selected 10 texts written in Afrikaans – five articles from a popular magazine and five documents used in government communications. All characteristics included in the four readability formulas were first measured for each text. We then developed five different cloze tests for each text to assess actual text comprehension. Thereafter, 149 Afrikaans-speaking participants with varying levels of education each completed a set of two of the resulting 50 cloze tests. On comparing the data on text characteristics to the cloze test scores from the participants, the accuracy of the predictions from the four existing formulas for Afrikaans could be determined. Both Van Rooyen formulas produced readability scores that were not significantly correlated with actual comprehension scores as measured with the cloze tests. For the McKellar formula, however, this correlation was significant and for the McDermid Heyns formula the correlation with the cloze test scores almost reached significance. From the outcomes of each of these last two formulas, about 40% of the variance in cloze scores could be predicted. Readability predictions based only on the average number of characters per word, however, performed considerably better: about 65% of the variance in the cloze scores could be predicted just from the average number of characters per word.
Hey, that could be me : the role of similarity in narrative persuasion
(Public Library of Science, 2019) Ooms, Joelle; Hoeks, John; Jansen, Carel
Stories are often used in health communication because of accumulating evidence of their potential to affect people’s attitudes and health behavioral intentions. Similarity between the reader and the story’s protagonist appears to positively influence narrative persuasion, but the exact role of similarity on persuasive outcomes is debated, as some research finds clear effects of similarity manipulations whereas others do not. Possibly, these mixed results were found because the similarity manipulations were not always relevant to the topic of the story. We conducted an experiment (N = 582) in which we varied the age and gender of the protagonist, features that were of central relevance to the story’s topic, namely breast cancer versus testicular cancer. There were two groups of participants: 324 students (mean age: 21.46 years) and 258 older adults (mean age: 56.83 years). Age similarity (but not gender similarity) had an effect on identification with the protagonist, transportation (i.e. the experience of being absorbed into a story), and the intention to donate, but only for students. For older adults, age or gender of the protagonist did not seem to matter, as nearly no differences in persuasive measures were found. As far as the underlying mechanism is concerned, the results of structural equation modeling showed that the concept of ‘perceived similarity’ would be a relevant addition to models of narrative persuasion, as it was significantly related to the narrative processes of transportation and identification, which, in turn, predicted attitudes and behavioral intentions, both directly—in the case of transportation—or indirectly, via the emotion of compassion. We conclude that both manipulated and perceived similarity are important for narrative persuasion, and that it should be kept on the research agenda of health communication.
The influence of conversational content on college students’ safe sex intentions : a mixed method approach
(Canadian Center of Science and Education, 2018-02-19) Donne, Lennie; Jansen, Carel; Hoeks, John
Even though health campaign designers are advised to specifically focus on triggering conversations between people about health issues, there is still a lot unknown about what aspects of a conversation may contribute to safe sex behavior and intentions. Empirical research in this field so far has mainly focused on conversational occurrence rather than conversational content, and where content is taken into account, this mostly concerns self-reports. In this mixed method study, we looked into the quantitative effects of real-life conversations about safe sex, triggered by a safe sex message, on college students’ intentions related to safe sex. We then used a qualitative analysis to try and identify content-related aspects that may be related to the quantitative effects. Two weeks after filling in a questionnaire on their safe sex-related intentions, participants (N = 24) were instructed to watch and talk about a safe sex video with a conversation partner of choice, followed by filling in a questionnaire. The conversational data were analyzed qualitatively. The results suggest that the conversations increased safe sex-related intentions compared to pretest scores, and that content-related aspects such as conversational valence, type of communication behavior and behavioral determinants were related to these effects. Thus, our findings provide enhanced insight into the social norms and behavioral patterns related to safe sex, and indicate that it is important to look at conversational content in detail rather than to focus on mere conversational occurrence or quantitative effects.
De rol van gelijkenis bij narratieven
(Amsterdam University Press, 2019-04-01) Ooms, Joelle; Hoeks, John; Jansen, Carel
This paper presents two studies on the role of similarity in the processing of narratives. In Experiment 1 (N = 83), female students were presented with one of two versions of a story about the severe consequences of breast cancer. In the similar version, the protagonist was a 22-year-old female student; in the dissimilar version, the protagonist was a 59-year-old working woman. Experiment 2 (N = 62) was an online replication of the first study, with an added measure of perceived similarity. Neither in Experiment 1 nor in Experiment 2 significant differences were found between the two versions on identification, attitude, or intention. Mediation analyses in Experiment 2 did show that the manipulation of similarity had a significant indirect influence on identification, transportation, emotions, and intentions, via perceived similarity. These findings suggest that manipulating similarity may influence persuasion, but only when this similarity is perceived as such by the participants.
Sweet temptations : how does reading a fotonovela about diabetes affect Dutch adults with different levels of literacy?
(Routledge, 2019) Van T Jagt, Ruth Koops; Hoeks, John; Duizer, Evelien; Baron, Melvin; Molina, Gregory B.; Unger, Jennifer B.; Jansen, Carel
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Recent studies suggest that health-related fotonovelas—booklets that portray a dramatic story using photographs and captions—may be effective health communication tools, especially for readers with a low level of literacy. In this experiment, effects on knowledge and behavioral intentions were assessed of a fotonovela originally developed for a Latin-American audience. Dutch readers from a low literacy group (N = 89) and a high literacy group (N = 113) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: a fotonovela condition (all captions translated into Dutch), a traditional brochure condition (also in Dutch), and a control condition. On knowledge about diabetes, participants in the fotonovela condition outperformed participants in both other conditions. This finding was consistent across literacy levels. On behavioral intentions, however, readers of the fotonovela did not score significantly higher than participants in the other conditions. We also evaluated hypotheses proposed in the Entertainment Overcoming Resistance Model (EORM; Moyer-Gusé, 2008) on the possible mechanisms underlying persuasion through narratives. No support was found for the mechanisms proposed in the EORM. The outcomes of this study suggest that a fotonovela may be a valuable health education format for adults with varying levels of literacy, even if it was developed for a target group with a different cultural background.
This may come as a surprise : how prior knowledge of information in a fear appeal is associated with message outcomes
(Unisa Press, 2016-09) Davis, Burt; Jansen, Carel
Two related studies were performed aimed at finding if and how prior knowledge of threat and efficacy information in a fear appeal message is associated with message outcomes (attitude and behavioural intentions). the extended Parallel Process model (ePPm) (Witte 1992; 1998) served as theoretical framework for one study about a chlamydia fear appeal (n = 57) and another about an alcohol abuse fear appeal (n = 59). Findings from both studies suggest that prior knowledge of threat information is hardly relevant for readers’ reactions to a fear appeal message. Prior knowledge of efficacy information, however, proved to play a more important role, most often in a positive way. Findings from both studies furthermore suggest that the ePPm may be incorrect in assuming that individual differences – in this case, in prior knowledge – may only affect fear appeal outcomes in an indirect way, that is through different perceptions of threat and efficacy.

Browsing by Author "Jansen, Carel"

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