Message frames interact with motivational systems to determine depth of message processing

Although several theoretical perspectives predict that negatively framed messages will be processed more deeply than positively framed messages, a recent meta-analysis found no such difference. In this article, the authors explore 2 explanations for this inconsistency. One possibility is methodological: the statistics used in the primary studies underestimated framing effects on depth of message processing because the data were maldistributed. The other is theoretical: the absence of a main effect is veridical, but framing interacts with individual differences that predispose individuals to greater or lesser depth of processing. Data from 2 experiments (Ns = 286 and 252) were analyzed via tobit regression, a technique designed to overcome the limitations of maldistributed data. One study showed the predicted main effect for framing, but the other did not. Both studies showed the anticipated interaction: Depth of processing correlated positively with a measure of the behavioral activation system in the advantage framing condition, whereas depth of processing correlated positively with the behavioral inhibition system in the disadvantage framing condition.