Role of narratives in promoting mental illnesses acceptance

Abstract

This study examines the role of narrative persuasion in promoting acceptance of mental illnesses. Specifically, we investigate the relative persuasiveness of narrative versus non-narrative messages, as well as the relative effectiveness of first-person versus third-person narratives. Findings of a between-subjects experiment (N = 562) suggested that narratives were more effective than non-narratives in promoting favorable attitudes toward people with mental illnesses. Although narratives led to greater transportation among the participants, reduced counterarguing seemed to be the underlying mechanism for enhanced persuasiveness of narratives. Moreover, the results were indicative of a possible interaction between narrative perspective and participants’ gender. Implications of the findings for health campaigns are discussed.

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