Forbid/allow asymmetry in persuasion Experiments 1-4 data

Four experiments were conducted to test how asking about forbidding vs. allowing of the attitude object affects attitude changes, cognitive responses, and the assessment of arguments about GMOs, euthanasia, and barbecuing in public places. The results show that the forbid frame reduces bias in the evaluation and interpretation of the presented arguments (Experiments 1 and 4). The forbid frame also decreases the tendency for generating thoughts prevailingly consistent with participants’ initial attitudes (Experiment 3). Finally, the attitudes are more susceptible to change within the forbid frame (they move more in the direction opposite to the initial attitude) than within the allow frame (Experiments 2-4). The results show the existence of a new effect – forbid vs. allow asymmetry in persuasion.