Bolstering Attitudes by Autobiographical Recall: Attitude Persistence and Selective Memory

Area of Science:

• Social Psychology
• Cognitive Psychology

Background:

• Attitude formation and persistence are key areas in social psychology.
• Understanding how behavior influences attitudes is crucial for persuasion research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if recalling attitudinally-relevant behavior enhances newly formed attitudes.
• To examine the impact of behavioral recall on attitude persistence and memory selectivity.

Main Methods:

• Experimental manipulation involving persuasive messages and behavioral recall.
• Comparison between relevant and irrelevant behavior recall conditions.
• Longitudinal assessment of attitudes and memory recall over two weeks.

Main Results:

• Subjects recalling relevant behaviors showed enhanced memory for the persuasive message.
• Selective memory was observed, with less recall of counter-attitudinal information in the relevant recall group.
• Attitude persistence results were inconclusive, suggesting potential limitations of behavioral recall.

Conclusions:

• Behavioral recall can bolster newly formed attitudes through selective memory.
• The bolstering effect may not be sufficient to prevent attitude decay over time.
• Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms underlying attitude persistence.