Taylor K. Ruth

What’s in a Name? The Influence of Persuasive Communication on Florida Consumers’ Attitude toward Genetically Modified Food

Consumer acceptance of new food technology, like genetically modified food, is essential for the product’s success. Consumers have been skeptical toward the technology of genetically modified food due to lack of knowledge by the public, negative portrayal of the technology by the media, and a lack of communication about the technology from those who develop and use it. This research was guided by the Elaboration Likelihood Model to investigate the influence of persuasive communication on Florida consumers’ attitude toward genetically modified food. Consumers typically use the peripheral route to assess food information, therefore a message source (peripheral cue) was manipulated to examine its effect on attitude. An experimental design administered through an online survey was used to collect data (n = 515). Respondents reported that they agreed they were knowledgeable about genetically modified food, but they were unsure about associated risks. Respondents neither agreed nor disagreed that the four sources were credible, and there were no differences in credibility. Additionally, there were no differences in their attitude toward genetically modified food associated with the source. The results showed that the source did not predict attitude, but source credibility, risk perception, and some demographic characteristics did. Prior knowledge was not a predictor of attitude, and the respondents likely used the peripheral route to assess the message. Agricultural communicators should target communication for specific audiences and deliver value-driven messages rather than trying to increase consumer knowledge alone. Future research should explore different peripheral cues and their effects on attitude formation.

Media Portrayal of GM Science and Citrus Greening in State and National Newspapers

Huanglongbing (HLB), commonly known as citrus greening, is a bacterial disease severely affecting the profitability and continuation of the citrus industry in Florida and is threatening the citrus industry in other states as well. Currently, the disease only can be managed, not cured. Gene-based therapies, such as GM science, have been identified as a viable long-term solution. However, consumer acceptance of genetically modified food is low and their understanding and acceptance of new technologies is largely dependent on what they receive through mass media. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to understand news coverage of both citrus greening and gene modification science. This content analysis studied news articles of either citrus greening or gene modification science in national and state-specific newspapers and identified that while citrus greening is not highly covered by newspapers, it is accurately described via appropriate terminology. Genetic modification science is more commonly a topic of news coverage and is somewhat neutral and balanced in coverage. This research shows that source use in media coverage of gene modification science is balanced, but sources are most commonly chosen from organizations with a directed opinion or position on the topic.

Public Knowledge and Trust of Agricultural and Natural Resources Organizations

The public lacks knowledge and connectedness to agriculture and natural resources in the United States, leading to a need for effective communications from agricultural and natural resources organizations. Trust is an integral component of communications, but it is not well understood how the public trusts the various organizations communicating agricultural and natural resources issues. The study evaluated non-profit, forprofit, and governmental organizations. A survey was conducted of a representative sample of the U.S. population to assess the public’s awareness, knowledge, and trust of organizations and their communications. The highest number of respondents was aware and knowledgeable of governmental organizations, except for Extension. Communications from non-profit organizations tended to be trusted the most compared to forprofit organizations and governmental organizations, except for Extension. Respondents’ trust of the nonprofit organizations was typically higher than for-profit organizations and governmental organizations, except for Extension. The relationship between trust of an organization and trust of its communications were statistically significant for all organizations, while relationships between trust of an organization and knowledge of an organization were typically negligible and not statistically significant. For-profit organizations and governmental organizations should work to improve the public’s trust. Extension should seek to improve the public’s awareness and knowledge given the level of trust the knowledgeable respondents had for the organization. Future research should address what factors are influencing the public’s trust in organizations and organizations’ communications.

Identifying Publics in Citrus Producing States to Address the Issue of Citrus Greening

Citrus greening is a critical issue facing the agricultural industry in the United States. The disease has been identified in residential and commercial areas, and there is a need to identify best practices in communicating with the public about the disease. The Situational Theory of Publics (STOPs) uses audience segmentation to determine how to best communicate with target consumers and was used to guide this study. The purpose of the study was to determine the types of publics present in the citrus producing states of Florida, California, and Texas as they relate to citrus greening. An online survey was completed by 1,541 respondents in the states of interest. The majority of respondents in all three states had low issue involvement and high knowledge related to citrus greening. The publics were categorized as active, aware, aroused, and inactive, and differences were noted across demographic categories. There were also differences in the types of publics present across states; Florida had the largest percent of active publics. Communication in Florida should use calls to action to encourage specific behaviors from the active public, but agricultural communicators in Texas and California need to focus messages and campaigns on increasing issue involvement related to citrus greening. Future research should test messages about citrus greening using focus groups to gain a greater understanding of consumers’ information seeking behaviors related to the disease.