Campaign-induced interpersonal communication following exposure to strong and weak persuasive messages.

This article examines how media campaigns aimed at reducing sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption influence audiences through both direct exposure to messages and indirect interpersonal communication, termed campaign-induced interpersonal communication (CIC). An experiment with 232 college student SSB consumers tested the effects of strong versus weak anti-SSB messages combined with either allowing or prohibiting discussion. Results showed that while heavy drinkers who privately judged messages as effective intended to reduce consumption, allowing conversation attenuated this effect, with heavy drinkers expressing less favorable views of strong messages during discussions. Analytic language in conversations enhanced the persuasiveness of strong messages but undermined weak ones, particularly among heavy consumers. The study highlights a complex interplay between intrapersonal accuracy- and defense-motivated processing and interpersonal communication, suggesting that message strength, prior consumption levels, and conversation content jointly shape campaign effectiveness.