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Enhancing self-protective behavior in times of crisis: The effect of efficacy beliefs and peer feedback*

Verroen, Stephan (2011) Enhancing self-protective behavior in times of crisis: The effect of efficacy beliefs and peer feedback*.

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Abstract:In times of crisis, a government will try to protect involved citizens through effective crisis communication in which relevant precautionary measures are communicated. Nowadays, this crisis communication is supplemented by peer feedback through the use of social network sites. Based on the strong influence of both communication flows, an interaction effect can occur. This research focuses on the effect of efficacy beliefs and peer feedback from SNS messages on the intention to engage in self protective behavior and the interaction effect between these two. The study was a 2 (efficacy beliefs: high vs low) x 2 (peer feedback: positive vs negative) between participant experiment in which 242 respondents participated. Results indicate a highly significant interaction effect between efficacy beliefs in a news article and peer feedback from SNS messages on both the intention to engage in self protective behavior and levels of involvement. When confronted with a low efficacious news article, the effect of peer feedback on these two variables was significantly stronger. Finally, implications for theory and government crisis communication are discussed.
Item Type:Essay (Master)
Faculty:BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences
Subject:77 psychology
Programme:Psychology MSc (66604)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/61236
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