Increasing Alcohol Control Policy Support: The Mediating Role of Empathy and Emotions

Background: Mass media messages have the potential to reduce alcohol-related harm through increasing support for alcohol-control policies. Objectives: In Study 1, we experimentally examined the incidental effects of alcohol mention in news articles about accidents and crime and found evidence that messages mentioning alcohol as a causal factor in the accident or crime can activate empathic and emotional responses, which in turn increase support for alcohol control policy. In Study 2, anti-drinking and driving public service announcements (PSAs) were edited to either portray consequences of drinking and driving for the driver only or for both the driver and innocent others. Results: The versions of the PSAs that showed consequences to others were more successful at eliciting alcohol-control policy support than the versions showing only consequences to the self. As hypothesized, empathy that was directed toward victims (but not drivers under the influence) and negative emotions were supported as mediators of this relationship. Although negative affect and feelings of empathy for the victims of drunk driving are not pleasant emotions to experience, they appear to play an important role in increasing support for public policies to increase safety without having a negative impact on viewer's evaluations of the PSA. Conclusions: Results from the two studies provide evidence that empathy and emotions can play a mediating role between message characteristics (either intentional or incidental) and alcohol control policy support.