Resistance

Abstract

Resistance toward persuasion has received more and more attention in the past decades to explain the ineffectiveness of (threatening) health messages. In the literature, several motivations for resistance and strategies to resist health messages (i.e., defensive responses) have been identified and studied. Moreover, research on persuasive strategies like self-affirmation, entertainment-education, and empathy arousal have found positive results on decreasing or overcoming resistance. New lines of research on these topics should focus on the relationships between resistance motivations, resistance strategies, and resistance-overcoming persuasion strategies.