Tino Meitz

Source does matter

Provocative messages targeting childhood obesity are a central means to increase problem awareness. But what happens when different online media platforms take up the campaign, comment, re-contextualize, and evaluate it? Relating to preliminary findings of persuasion research, we postulate that source credibility perceptions vary across types of online media platforms and contextualization of the message. Individual characteristics, in particular weight-related factors, are assumed to influence message effects. A 3 (media type: blog, online news, Facebook)?×?2 (reinforcement versus impairment context) experimental design with students (N?=?749) aged between 13 and 18 years was conducted. Results show an interaction between media type and argumentation for affective self-perceptions of weight. Self-relevance varies based on different source credibility perceptions. Overall, campaign re-contextualization of provocative messages may result in negative persuasion effects and needs to be considered in campaign development. First systematic research on variations of online source credibility perceptions.Experimental study on online re-contextualization effects.Stratified sample for education levels of 700 secondary school students.Provocative campaigning takes the risk of boomerang effects.Media and argumentation-type affects affective self-perceptions of weight.

Flagging uncivil user comments: Effects of intervention information, type of victim, and response comments on bystander behavior

The study investigates the flagging behavior as specific type of bystander intervention against uncivil user comments in comments sections on news sites. Two experimental studies examine the effects of intervention information, characteristics of response comments, and the type of victim attacked in a comment on flagging behavior, that is on reporting a comment to professional moderators. Our results indicate that intervention information is a promising strategy to motivate flagging. Flagging is based on responsibility attribution to professional moderators but not on self-responsibility perception. Type of victim and characteristics of other users’ posted responses to preceding comments (public disagreement and politeness) shape deviance perceptions of the situation and influence flagging behavior.

Managing Obesity Prevention Using Digital Media: A Double-Sided Approach

In this chapter we report results from a study on a digital health communication campaign initiated by Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. This campaign has triggered a highly controversial discussion in the USA, because it used obese children and showed them in online media talking about being stigmatized. Our research is based on the assumption that controversial campaigns disseminated via online media run the risk of being re-contextualized, with the possible negative result of jeopardizing the original communicator’s intentions. Results showed that contextual reinforcement of the campaign message (in three contexts: Facebook, online-news, and a health-related blog) improved the self-relevance-perceptions of adolescent recipients. Also, the participants’ affective self-perceptions concerning their own weight were significantly influenced by the argumentative reframing of the original message on a Facebook site, a Blog, and an online news site. In addition, we report about the development and evaluation of a motion-controlled serious game used to address barriers of obesity prevention in school aged children. In the media, communication about health-related risks mainly uses fear as a motivation for lifestyle-changes, as the time window to communicate the message is usually very short. In contrast, to support motivation in an informal unguided learning context which has to be viable for a longer time, the gamification of learning content is an important strategy. The focus of the serious game is on (1) self-reflective diagnostic tools to analyse the daily food intake and free-time activities, (2) gamified information and knowledge-tests about food groups, drinks, and energy density, as well as (3) relaxation exercises to aid addressing psychosocial aspects.

Nicht standardisierte Methoden der Werbeforschung

Wahrend die quantitativ ausgerichtete Marktforschung seit den 1940er-Jahren von professionellen Marktforschungsunternehmen standardisiert worden ist, hat in den Agenturen das sogenannte Account Planning gezielt auf nicht standardisierte Verfahren gesetzt, um kreative Arbeitsprozesse in den Agenturen anzustosen und mit Daten zu untermauern. Auch in der akademischen Forschung spielen nicht standardisierte Verfahren eine wichtige Rolle. In der Kommunikatorforschung sind sie geeignete Methoden, um kreative Prozesse zu beschreiben. In der Inhaltsforschung eroffnen sie Moglichkeiten der Analyse latenter Bedeutungsebenen. In der Rezeptions- und Wirkungsforschung helfen sie, die Relevanz von Marken und Konsum nah am Konsumenten im Alltag zu untersuchen.