Does regulatory fit lead to more effective health communication? A systematic review

Ramona Ludolph and Peter J. Schulz

Social Science & Medicine, 2015, vol. 128, issue C, 142-150

Abstract: Many of today's threats to public health arise from people's lifestyle. Hence, the public's compliance with advice given for health promotion and disease prevention has to be enhanced. Much research traces back the efficacy of health promotion messages to message qualities, while other work focuses on recipient qualities. Regulatory focus theory posits inter-individual differences in motivational orientation, namely a promotion or prevention focus, and offers a unique chance to look at message and recipient variables at the same time (Higgins, 1997). Whereas a promotion-focused individual tries to achieve desired end-states, someone with a prevention focus is rather vigilant. If individuals' goal pursuit strategies match their regulatory orientation, they experience regulatory fit, which increases the perceived persuasiveness of health messages (Higgins, 2000). Such a match can be evoked by particularly framed messages that highlight a person's regulatory orientation. Thus, the assumption of regulatory fit goes beyond the concept of gain- and loss-framing. To assess whether regulatory fit contributes to the effectiveness of health communication, a systematic review was conducted.

Keywords: Regulatory focus theory; Regulatory fit; Health communication; Persuasion; Systematic review; Behavior change; Framing; Health education (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.01.021

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