Journal article
A Missing Mechanism of Effect: How People Who Habitually Replot Stories React Differently (Or Not so Differently) to Melanoma Narratives
Journal of health communication, Vol.30(sup1), pp.59-67
03/28/2025
DOI: 10.1080/10810730.2024.2427395
PMCID: PMC11957928
PMID: 39550610
Abstract
When stories have undesirable endings, readers often engage in replotting, meaning they imagine alternative plotlines that could change the unwanted ending. Recent research has found that both the cognitive and emotional components of replotting serve as mechanisms of narrative persuasion. Building on this work, the current study assessed if people who habitually replot are more persuaded by a tragic story ending than those who do not, testing hypotheses with melanoma narratives. Cognitive and emotional (i.e., anger, anxiety, sadness, and hope) aspects of replotting were tested as mechanisms of this proposed interaction. Participants (N = 432) were randomized into a 2 (protagonist death vs. survival) x 6 (specific melanoma story) between-subjects online narrative message experiment. Participants who habitually replot had significantly higher melanoma prevention intentions after reading a death (compared to a survival) ending. This effect was not present for other participants. However, counter to hypotheses, the cognitive and emotional aspects of actual replotting did not explain the effect, meaning habitual replotters were not more likely to replot the death ending or experience replotting emotion than other participants were. Future research is needed to determine why habitual replotters are more persuaded by unwanted story endings than other audience members are.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- A Missing Mechanism of Effect: How People Who Habitually Replot Stories React Differently (Or Not so Differently) to Melanoma Narratives
- Creators
- Helen M. Lillie - University of IowaManusheela Pokharel - Texas State UniversityJakob D. Jensen - University of Utah
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of health communication, Vol.30(sup1), pp.59-67
- DOI
- 10.1080/10810730.2024.2427395
- PMID
- 39550610
- PMCID
- PMC11957928
- NLM abbreviation
- J Health Commun
- ISSN
- 1081-0730
- eISSN
- 1087-0415
- Publisher
- TAYLOR & FRANCIS INC
- Number of pages
- 9
- Grant note
- National Institutes of Health: 1DP2EB022360-01, 3P30CA042014-29S7
The work was supported by the National Institutes of Health [1DP2EB022360-01, 3P30CA042014-29S7]
- Language
- English
- Electronic publication date
- 11/16/2024
- Date published
- 03/28/2025
- Academic Unit
- Communication Studies
- Record Identifier
- 9984749828902771
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