International awareness, information processing, and attitude change: A cross-cultural experimental study

Gadi Wolfsfeld*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Scopus citations

Abstract

The study examines the effects of international awareness on attitude change. A theoretical model of information processing was developed which suggests that in general individuals of middle‐level awareness are the most likely to be influenced by propaganda. However, an additional variable of cultural salience illustrates the importance of considering the interaction of individual and social level variables. It is hypothesized that in cultures where a given political object is highly salient, attempts to change attitudes about such an object will fail. To test the theory a cross‐cultural experiment was conducted in New England, Israel, and Hawaii. A promotional film about Japan was shown to high school students in all three cultures. As predicted, a curvilinear relationship was found between international awareness and attitude change in both New England and Israel. The hypothesis that no such relationship would be found in Hawaii, where Japan is relatively salient, was also confirmed.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)127-145
Number of pages19
JournalPolitical Communication
Volume2
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jan 1983

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'International awareness, information processing, and attitude change: A cross-cultural experimental study'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this