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Using a Non-Fit Message Helps to De-Intensify Negative Reactions to Tough Advice.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Fridman, I; Scherr, KA; Glare, PA; Higgins, ET
Published in: Pers Soc Psychol Bull
August 2016

Sometimes physicians need to provide patients with potentially upsetting advice. For example, physicians may recommend hospice for a terminally ill patient because it best meets their needs, but the patient and their family dislike this advised option. We explore whether regulatory non-fit could be used to improve these types of situations. Across five studies in which participants imagined receiving upsetting advice from a physician, we demonstrate that regulatory non-fit between the form of the physician's advice (emphasizing gains vs. avoiding losses) and the participants' motivational orientation (promotion vs. prevention) improves participants' evaluation of an initially disliked option. Regulatory non-fit de-intensifies participants' initial attitudes by making them less confident in their initial judgments and motivating them to think more thoroughly about the arguments presented. Furthermore, consistent with previous research on regulatory fit, we showed that the mechanism of regulatory non-fit differs as a function of participants' cognitive involvement in the evaluation of the option.

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Published In

Pers Soc Psychol Bull

DOI

EISSN

1552-7433

Publication Date

August 2016

Volume

42

Issue

8

Start / End Page

1025 / 1044

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Social Psychology
  • Physician-Patient Relations
  • Persuasive Communication
  • Motivation
  • Models, Psychological
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Emotions
  • Decision Making
 

Citation

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Fridman, I., Scherr, K. A., Glare, P. A., & Higgins, E. T. (2016). Using a Non-Fit Message Helps to De-Intensify Negative Reactions to Tough Advice. Pers Soc Psychol Bull, 42(8), 1025–1044. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167216649931
Fridman, Ilona, Karen A. Scherr, Paul A. Glare, and E Tory Higgins. “Using a Non-Fit Message Helps to De-Intensify Negative Reactions to Tough Advice.Pers Soc Psychol Bull 42, no. 8 (August 2016): 1025–44. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167216649931.
Fridman I, Scherr KA, Glare PA, Higgins ET. Using a Non-Fit Message Helps to De-Intensify Negative Reactions to Tough Advice. Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2016 Aug;42(8):1025–44.
Fridman, Ilona, et al. “Using a Non-Fit Message Helps to De-Intensify Negative Reactions to Tough Advice.Pers Soc Psychol Bull, vol. 42, no. 8, Aug. 2016, pp. 1025–44. Pubmed, doi:10.1177/0146167216649931.
Fridman I, Scherr KA, Glare PA, Higgins ET. Using a Non-Fit Message Helps to De-Intensify Negative Reactions to Tough Advice. Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2016 Aug;42(8):1025–1044.
Journal cover image

Published In

Pers Soc Psychol Bull

DOI

EISSN

1552-7433

Publication Date

August 2016

Volume

42

Issue

8

Start / End Page

1025 / 1044

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Social Psychology
  • Physician-Patient Relations
  • Persuasive Communication
  • Motivation
  • Models, Psychological
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Emotions
  • Decision Making