Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick
Dados Biográficos
| ID | 184176 |
|---|---|
| NOME | Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick |
| PRENOMES | Silvia |
| SOBRENOME | Knobloch-Westerwick |
| ASSINATURA | KNOBLOCH-WESTERWICK S |
| AFILIAÇÕES | The Ohio State University |
| VERIFICADO | Não |
| TOTAL DE OBRAS | 38 |
| TOTAL DE CITAÇÕES | 151 |
| TOTAL COMO AUTOR | 38 |
| TOTAL COMO EDITOR | 0 |
| PRIMEIRO ANO DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 2005 |
| ANO MAIS RECENTE DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 2025 |
| ÍNDICE H | 6 |
The good, the bad, and the self on social media
“You See You” (UCU)
Bandwagon cues and interactivity affordances have transformed the way people choose and consume online messages. Two experiments, a computerized lab experiment and an online field experiment, were conducted to investigate the impact of bandwagon cues (high versus low numbers) on selective exposure to online news articles, contingent on the use of a self-representation affordance. Predictions were derived from the TIME framework as well as the Use…
Instilling Belief in the Ability to Change for the Better
The present experiment draws on social cognitive theory to examine how story protagonist self-efficacy (high vs. low) influences participants' sleep hygiene-related self-efficacy and behavior three days after narrative exposure. Social comparisons as factors in narrative impact were examined. To ensure the robustness of findings, two different narratives served as stimuli. Results indicated that immediately after narrative exposure, participants …
“Affective News” and Attitudes
Popular entertainment often involves political messages, and entertainment elements are now commonly used in politics coverage. This study examines how suspense drives impacts of political entertainment media content on attitudes, building on the “affective news” extended model. Hypotheses were tested with four texts on controversial political issues (within-subjects), presented in a linear or inverted-pyramid structure and either as news or fict…
Narratives’ Impacts on Attitudes
Reduced counterarguing – the generation of questions and arguments in response to a message – has been proposed to be a mechanism of persuasion in a variety of contexts, yet many questions remain unanswered regarding the factors that influence this process. Building upon past theorizing in narrative persuasion, this present work investigates whether signaling of persuasive intent (signaling vs. no signaling) and the fictional presentation of text…
Self-expression just a click away
Saving the World by Your Self
The effectiveness of behavioral change message strategies invoking the self-assessment (i.e. focusing on evaluating current behaviors) and the self-improvement (i.e. focusing on improving future behaviors) motives on pro-environmental information selection and subsequent pro-environmental beliefs, attitudes, and behavioral intentions were examined. The Selective Exposure and Self- and Affect Management (SESAM) model and the self-affirmation theor…
Confirmation Bias, Ingroup Bias, and Negativity Bias in Selective Exposure to Political Information
Selective reading of political online information was examined based on cognitive dissonance, social identity, and news values frameworks. Online reports were displayed to 156 Americans while selective exposure was tracked. The news articles that participants chose from were either conservative or liberal and also either positive or negative regarding American political policies. In addition, information processing styles (cognitive reflection an…
The PFAD-HEC Model
This study examined effects of four common news attributes—personalization, fragmentation, authority–disorder bias, and dramatization (PFAD)—on news exposure and the moderating impacts of hedonic, epistemic, and civic news use motivations. In a lab experiment, participants browsed online news while selective exposure was unobtrusively logged. Findings yielded longer exposure to personalized and dramatized articles and news with low authority–diso…
Pick and choose” opinion climate
High-choice media environments allow people to cocoon themselves with like-minded messages (confirmation bias), which could shape both individual attitudes and perceived prevalence of opinions. This study builds on motivated cognition and spiral of silence theory to disentangle how browsing political messages (both selective exposure as viewing full articles and incidental exposure as encountering leads only) shapes perceived public opinion and s…
Superstars within reach
Based on social comparison and role congruity theory, this study examined the effect of perceived attainability and role congruity in media female role models on women's social comparison and career interest. A 2×2 experiment was conducted in which participants read a high or low attainability message, then portrayals of role models in a counter-stereotypical career with a family (high congruity to the female gender role) or without a family (low…
Intellectual Balkanization or Globalization
Context Impacts on Confirmation Bias
Much concern exists about individuals’ tendency to favor attitude-consistent messages (confirmation bias) and the consequences for democracy; yet, empirical evidence is predominantly based on U.S. data and may not apply to other cultural contexts. The current three-session online experimental study unobtrusively observed Japanese participants’ (N = 200) selective exposure to political news articles right before the 2017 Japanese snap general elec…
Perusing pages and skimming screens
Changing structures to online news have instigated concerns that the electorate may predominantly consume soft news for entertainment purposes while neglecting public affairs information. The Internet in particular brought an increase in outlets, including unconventional low-credibility sources. A 2 × 2 × 2 within-subjects experiment ( n = 197) investigated whether delivery format (print vs online) and source type (high vs low credibility) shape …
Selecting Serious or Satirical, Supporting or Stirring News? Selective Exposure to Partisan versus Mockery News Online Videos
The present investigation combines cognitive dissonance theory with entertainment-education frameworks to study selection and effects of news. Selective exposure to satirical and partisan news was examined with online clips to test hypotheses on overcoming resistance to persuasive messages. An experiment (n = 146) presented news choices, varied in stance (conservative vs. liberal) and format (serious partisan news vs. satirical news). Results sho…
Confirmation biases in selective exposure to political online information
The present work examines the role of source vs. content cues for the confirmation bias, in which recipients spend more time with content aligning with preexisting attitudes. In addition to testing how both source and content cues facilitate this biased pattern of selective exposure, the study measures subsequent attitude polarization. An experiment (N = 120) presented messages with opposing political stances, associated with unbiased or slanted …
When Misery Avoids Company
Social networking site usage may affect subjective well-being. Two experiments examined how selective exposure to profiles of other users facilitated mood management via self-enhancing social comparisons. In Study 1, when given detailed impression management cues, such as photographs and status updates, users in a negative mood sought upward rather than downward social comparisons. Study 2 found that relatively low levels of group identification …
Can the Media Help Women Be Better at Math? Stereotype Threat, Selective Exposure, Media Effects, and Women's Math Performance
This study examines women's media selections when under the gender–math stereotype threat and the subsequent media effects on their math performance through the lens of the Selective Exposure Self- and Affect-Management (SESAM) model, mood management theory, and social comparison theory. Female college students were randomly assigned to the stereotype threat condition or the control condition; then, they selectively browsed magazine pages showing…
The Allure of Aphrodite
This study investigated how media exposure affects how noncollege women envision their futures. Over 5 days, a prolonged exposure experiment presented childless women (aged 21–35) with magazine portrayals of females in gender-congruent (mother/homemaker or beauty ideals) or gender-incongruent (professional) social roles. Responses to an open-ended question revealed that 3 days after media exposure, only gender-congruent roles remained salient. Ex…
The Selective Exposure Self- and Affect-Management (Sesam) Model
The present contribution aims to advance discussion toward theoretical and methodological shifts in the field by tailoring a media-effects model to selective exposure research. The first section reviews earlier theorizing and highlights media exposure motivations, conceptualizations of media user characteristics, and methodology with an emphasis on exposure measures. The second section develops the Selective Exposure Self- and Affect-Management (…
Political Online Information Searching in Germany and the United States
Before the 2013 German federal election, 121 participants completed a 2-session online study (which paralleled a U.S. study before the 2012 presidential election). They browsed online search results pertaining to 4 political issues while selective exposure was unobtrusively measured. In a 4 × 2 × 2 (topic × issue stance × source credibility) within-subjects design, the search results indicated either issue support or opposition, associated with l…
Science Exemplars in the Eye of the Beholder
Drawing on exemplification theory and confirmation bias, this study examined exposure to online science information and subsequent attitude impacts. Participants freely browsed online messages manipulated to feature (a) either exemplar or numeric information and (b) opposing viewpoints, resulting in a 2 (exemplar vs. numeric) × 2 (supporting vs. opposing technology) within-subjects design. Online search findings pertained to four different topics…
Choice and Preference in Media Use
Mediated messages flood our daily lives, through virtually endless choices of media channels, genres, and content. However, selectivity determines what media messages we attend to and focus on. The present book examines the factors that influence this selectivity. Seminal books on selective media exposure were published in 1960 by Klapper and in 1985 by Zillmann and Bryant. But an integrated update on this research field is much needed, as rigoro…
Confirmation Bias in Online Searches
Impacts of Internet use on political information seeking and subsequent processes have been subject to much debate. A 2-session online field study presented online search results on political topics to examine selective exposure and its attitudinal impacts. Session 1 captured attitudes, including their accessibility. Session 2 tracked what online search results participants selected and how long they read them; participants then reported attitude…
Turn a Blind Eye If You Care
Abundant media outlets allow for much diversity of political messages and selective use among citizens. A 2-session online field study examined impacts of attitude consistency, attitude importance, and source credibility on selective exposure to political messages and subsequent attitude accessibility. The first session assessed attitudes and their accessibility. In the second session, participants browsed online search results that featured atti…
The Matilda Effect in Science Communication
An experiment with 243 young communication scholars tested hypotheses derived from role congruity theory regarding impacts of author gender and gender typing of research topics on perceived quality of scientific publications and collaboration interest. Participants rated conference abstracts ostensibly authored by females or males, with author associations rotated. The abstracts fell into research areas perceived as gender-typed or gender-neutral…
Confirmation Bias in Online Searches
Impacts of Internet use on political information seeking and subsequent processes have been subject to much debate. A 2-session online field study presented online search results on political topics to examine selective exposure and its attitudinal impacts. Session 1 captured attitudes, including their accessibility. Session 2 tracked what online search results participants selected and how long they read them; participants then reported attitude…
Confirmation biases in selective exposure to political online information
The present work examines the role of source vs. content cues for the confirmation bias, in which recipients spend more time with content aligning with preexisting attitudes. In addition to testing how both source and content cues facilitate this biased pattern of selective exposure, the study measures subsequent attitude polarization. An experiment (N = 120) presented messages with opposing political stances, associated with unbiased or slanted …
Selective Exposure for Better or Worse
The role of selective exposure in the relationship between online news use and political participation is examined. American adults (N = 205) completed a 2-session online study that measured political interest and online news use, unobtrusively observed selective exposure, and finally measured political participation likelihood. Online news use and selective exposure to attitude-consistent information were modeled as sequential mediators between …
When Misery Avoids Company
Social networking site usage may affect subjective well-being. Two experiments examined how selective exposure to profiles of other users facilitated mood management via self-enhancing social comparisons. In Study 1, when given detailed impression management cues, such as photographs and status updates, users in a negative mood sought upward rather than downward social comparisons. Study 2 found that relatively low levels of group identification …
Mood Adjustment to Social Situations Through Mass Media Use
Peer Reviewed
Pick and choose” opinion climate
High-choice media environments allow people to cocoon themselves with like-minded messages (confirmation bias), which could shape both individual attitudes and perceived prevalence of opinions. This study builds on motivated cognition and spiral of silence theory to disentangle how browsing political messages (both selective exposure as viewing full articles and incidental exposure as encountering leads only) shapes perceived public opinion and s…
Intellectual Balkanization or Globalization
Perusing pages and skimming screens
Changing structures to online news have instigated concerns that the electorate may predominantly consume soft news for entertainment purposes while neglecting public affairs information. The Internet in particular brought an increase in outlets, including unconventional low-credibility sources. A 2 × 2 × 2 within-subjects experiment ( n = 197) investigated whether delivery format (print vs online) and source type (high vs low credibility) shape …
Can the Media Help Women Be Better at Math? Stereotype Threat, Selective Exposure, Media Effects, and Women's Math Performance
This study examines women's media selections when under the gender–math stereotype threat and the subsequent media effects on their math performance through the lens of the Selective Exposure Self- and Affect-Management (SESAM) model, mood management theory, and social comparison theory. Female college students were randomly assigned to the stereotype threat condition or the control condition; then, they selectively browsed magazine pages showing…
The PFAD-HEC Model
This study examined effects of four common news attributes—personalization, fragmentation, authority–disorder bias, and dramatization (PFAD)—on news exposure and the moderating impacts of hedonic, epistemic, and civic news use motivations. In a lab experiment, participants browsed online news while selective exposure was unobtrusively logged. Findings yielded longer exposure to personalized and dramatized articles and news with low authority–diso…
Superstars within reach
Based on social comparison and role congruity theory, this study examined the effect of perceived attainability and role congruity in media female role models on women's social comparison and career interest. A 2×2 experiment was conducted in which participants read a high or low attainability message, then portrayals of role models in a counter-stereotypical career with a family (high congruity to the female gender role) or without a family (low…
Context Impacts on Confirmation Bias
Much concern exists about individuals’ tendency to favor attitude-consistent messages (confirmation bias) and the consequences for democracy; yet, empirical evidence is predominantly based on U.S. data and may not apply to other cultural contexts. The current three-session online experimental study unobtrusively observed Japanese participants’ (N = 200) selective exposure to political news articles right before the 2017 Japanese snap general elec…
The Allure of Aphrodite
This study investigated how media exposure affects how noncollege women envision their futures. Over 5 days, a prolonged exposure experiment presented childless women (aged 21–35) with magazine portrayals of females in gender-congruent (mother/homemaker or beauty ideals) or gender-incongruent (professional) social roles. Responses to an open-ended question revealed that 3 days after media exposure, only gender-congruent roles remained salient. Ex…
Science Exemplars in the Eye of the Beholder
Drawing on exemplification theory and confirmation bias, this study examined exposure to online science information and subsequent attitude impacts. Participants freely browsed online messages manipulated to feature (a) either exemplar or numeric information and (b) opposing viewpoints, resulting in a 2 (exemplar vs. numeric) × 2 (supporting vs. opposing technology) within-subjects design. Online search findings pertained to four different topics…
Impact of Popularity Indications on Readers' Selective Exposure to Online News
Selecting news online may differ from traditional news choices, as most formal importance indicators in traditional media do not convert directly to online news. However, online portals feature news recommendations based on collaborative filtering. To investigate how recommendations affect information choices, 93 participants browsed online news that featured explicit (average rating) or implicit (times viewed) recommendations or no recommendatio…
Mood Adjustment to Social Situations Through Mass Media Use
Peer Reviewed
The Gender News Use Divide
To examine psychological origins of sex-typed news preferences, an online newsmagazine was presented to 196 American participants in an experimental setting. The presented articles featured the same portions of social/interpersonal and achievement/performance topics. Newsreaders’ selective news exposure was unobtrusively logged. Results show that, in line with gender stereotypes, women favor social/interpersonal topics and men prefer achievement/…
Looking the Other Way
An experiment with two computer-based sessions (complete data for 156 participants) examined selective exposure to attitude-consistent and counterattitudinal media messages. In the first session, participants indicated interest in politics and news, political attitudes, with four target issues embedded, along with attitude certainty and importance. Attitude accessibility data were derived from response latencies. In the second session, participan…
Sports Spectators' Suspense
El Suspenso de los Espectadores de Deportes: El Afecto y la Inseguridad en el Entretenimiento de los Deportes Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick1, Prabu David1, Matt Eastin2,Ronald Tamborini3, & Dara Greenwood4ResumenPara explicar la atracción a los deportes en los medios, la teoría de suspenso es extendida para predecir el suspenso durante la exposición a los deportes. Los espectadores de juego de fútbol de una universidad (n = 113) en un contexto de ri…
Please Your Self
Journal Article Please Your Self: Social Identity Effects on Selective Exposure to News About in- and Out-Groups Get access Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick, Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick 1School of Communication, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Matthias R. Hastall Matthias R. Hastall 2Department of Communication, Zeppelin University Friedrichshafen, Friedrichshafe…
Reinforcement of the Political Self Through Selective Exposure to Political Messages
The idea that recipients prefer messages that reinforce preexisting attitudes and self-perceptions has pervaded much communication research, but effects of selective exposure are rarely examined. This 2-session experiment (n = 157) investigates such effects. The first session presented computerized questions on 12 political issue attitudes and political self-concept. Accessibility data were collected based on response times. In the second session…
Preelection Selective Exposure
The glut of media coverage prior to a presidential election requires individuals to selectively expose themselves to some messages and not others. The study involves a two-session online quasi-experiment with 205 participants that was conducted before the 2008 presidential election. Hypotheses on confirmation bias and information utility driving selective exposure prior to an election are tested. Results confirm that information utility can overr…
Selective Exposure and Reinforcement of Attitudes and Partisanship Before a Presidential Election
Journal Article Selective Exposure and Reinforcement of Attitudes and Partisanship Before a Presidential Election Get access Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick 1School of Communication, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of Communication, Volume 62, Issue 4, August 2012, Pages 628–642, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.2012.01651.…
Turn a Blind Eye If You Care
Abundant media outlets allow for much diversity of political messages and selective use among citizens. A 2-session online field study examined impacts of attitude consistency, attitude importance, and source credibility on selective exposure to political messages and subsequent attitude accessibility. The first session assessed attitudes and their accessibility. In the second session, participants browsed online search results that featured atti…
Ingroup Favoritism and Outgroup Derogation
This study examined whether the positive or negative valence of a news story, and the race of the character portrayed in the story, would influence Black or White readers' selection of a story. The study employed selective exposure methodology to unobtrusively measure story selections among Black and White readers as they browsed a news site. The results demonstrated Black newsreaders were more likely to select and read positive and negative stor…
To Your Health
Reaching target audiences is of crucial importance for the success of health communication campaigns, but individuals may avoid health messages if they challenge their beliefs or behaviors. A lab study (N=419) examined effects of messages' consistency with participants' behavior and source credibility on selective exposure for 4 health lifestyle topics. Drawing on self-regulation theory and dissonance theory, 3 motivations were examined: self-bol…
Selective Exposure for Better or Worse
The role of selective exposure in the relationship between online news use and political participation is examined. American adults (N = 205) completed a 2-session online study that measured political interest and online news use, unobtrusively observed selective exposure, and finally measured political participation likelihood. Online news use and selective exposure to attitude-consistent information were modeled as sequential mediators between …
The Matilda Effect in Science Communication
An experiment with 243 young communication scholars tested hypotheses derived from role congruity theory regarding impacts of author gender and gender typing of research topics on perceived quality of scientific publications and collaboration interest. Participants rated conference abstracts ostensibly authored by females or males, with author associations rotated. The abstracts fell into research areas perceived as gender-typed or gender-neutral…
Choice and Preference in Media Use
Mediated messages flood our daily lives, through virtually endless choices of media channels, genres, and content. However, selectivity determines what media messages we attend to and focus on. The present book examines the factors that influence this selectivity. Seminal books on selective media exposure were published in 1960 by Klapper and in 1985 by Zillmann and Bryant. But an integrated update on this research field is much needed, as rigoro…
Confirmation Bias in Online Searches
Impacts of Internet use on political information seeking and subsequent processes have been subject to much debate. A 2-session online field study presented online search results on political topics to examine selective exposure and its attitudinal impacts. Session 1 captured attitudes, including their accessibility. Session 2 tracked what online search results participants selected and how long they read them; participants then reported attitude…
The Selective Exposure Self- and Affect-Management (Sesam) Model
The present contribution aims to advance discussion toward theoretical and methodological shifts in the field by tailoring a media-effects model to selective exposure research. The first section reviews earlier theorizing and highlights media exposure motivations, conceptualizations of media user characteristics, and methodology with an emphasis on exposure measures. The second section develops the Selective Exposure Self- and Affect-Management (…
Political Online Information Searching in Germany and the United States
Before the 2013 German federal election, 121 participants completed a 2-session online study (which paralleled a U.S. study before the 2012 presidential election). They browsed online search results pertaining to 4 political issues while selective exposure was unobtrusively measured. In a 4 × 2 × 2 (topic × issue stance × source credibility) within-subjects design, the search results indicated either issue support or opposition, associated with l…
Science Exemplars in the Eye of the Beholder
Drawing on exemplification theory and confirmation bias, this study examined exposure to online science information and subsequent attitude impacts. Participants freely browsed online messages manipulated to feature (a) either exemplar or numeric information and (b) opposing viewpoints, resulting in a 2 (exemplar vs. numeric) × 2 (supporting vs. opposing technology) within-subjects design. Online search findings pertained to four different topics…
The Allure of Aphrodite
This study investigated how media exposure affects how noncollege women envision their futures. Over 5 days, a prolonged exposure experiment presented childless women (aged 21–35) with magazine portrayals of females in gender-congruent (mother/homemaker or beauty ideals) or gender-incongruent (professional) social roles. Responses to an open-ended question revealed that 3 days after media exposure, only gender-congruent roles remained salient. Ex…
Selecting Serious or Satirical, Supporting or Stirring News? Selective Exposure to Partisan versus Mockery News Online Videos
The present investigation combines cognitive dissonance theory with entertainment-education frameworks to study selection and effects of news. Selective exposure to satirical and partisan news was examined with online clips to test hypotheses on overcoming resistance to persuasive messages. An experiment (n = 146) presented news choices, varied in stance (conservative vs. liberal) and format (serious partisan news vs. satirical news). Results sho…
Confirmation biases in selective exposure to political online information
The present work examines the role of source vs. content cues for the confirmation bias, in which recipients spend more time with content aligning with preexisting attitudes. In addition to testing how both source and content cues facilitate this biased pattern of selective exposure, the study measures subsequent attitude polarization. An experiment (N = 120) presented messages with opposing political stances, associated with unbiased or slanted …
When Misery Avoids Company
Social networking site usage may affect subjective well-being. Two experiments examined how selective exposure to profiles of other users facilitated mood management via self-enhancing social comparisons. In Study 1, when given detailed impression management cues, such as photographs and status updates, users in a negative mood sought upward rather than downward social comparisons. Study 2 found that relatively low levels of group identification …
Can the Media Help Women Be Better at Math? Stereotype Threat, Selective Exposure, Media Effects, and Women's Math Performance
This study examines women's media selections when under the gender–math stereotype threat and the subsequent media effects on their math performance through the lens of the Selective Exposure Self- and Affect-Management (SESAM) model, mood management theory, and social comparison theory. Female college students were randomly assigned to the stereotype threat condition or the control condition; then, they selectively browsed magazine pages showing…
Perusing pages and skimming screens
Changing structures to online news have instigated concerns that the electorate may predominantly consume soft news for entertainment purposes while neglecting public affairs information. The Internet in particular brought an increase in outlets, including unconventional low-credibility sources. A 2 × 2 × 2 within-subjects experiment ( n = 197) investigated whether delivery format (print vs online) and source type (high vs low credibility) shape …
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