Psychology Commons^™

Meta-Analysis Of Anger And Persuasion: An Empirical Integration Of Four Models, Nathan Walter, Riva Tukachinsky, Ayellet Pelled, Robin Nabi

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

Despite the increasing use of anger in persuasive messaging, such as political ads and health campaigns, very little is known about when and how anger affects persuasion. Building on theoretical propositions derived from four theoretical models that have addressed the link between anger and persuasion, the current meta-analysis (k = 55, N = 6,805) finds a weak impact of anger on behavior (r = .15, p = .04) and nonsignificant effects on attitudes (r = −.03, p = .30) and intent (r = .06, p = .13). Yet a closer look reveals a more complicated reality, where positive effects are …