An implicit assumption in the design of health interventions is that the people who most need the information are the ones who actually receive it. However, there is a dearth of work examining who pays attention to health information, as well as the conditions that foster approach rather than avoidance of needed messages. Are high-risk audiences more or less likely to attend to health information? What cognitive and motivational responses predict attention (versus inattention) to health information? Do disparities in attention to health information parallel disparities in health outcomes? At what point do high-risk audiences disengage from health messages? How can we increase attention to health information as a way of improving health outcomes for all?
Related Publications
*Takahashi, K. J., & Earl, A. (in press). Effects of Extraneous Affect on Health Message Reception Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
*Nisson, C.A., & Earl, A. (in press). The theories of reasoned action and planned behavior. In K. Sweeny & M. Robbins (Eds.) The Wiley Encyclopedia of Health Psychology. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons.
*Derricks, V. & Earl, A. (2019). Targeting increases the weight of stigma: Leveraging relevance backfires when people feel judged. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 82, 277-293.
Earl, A. & *Lewis Jr. N.A. (2019). Health in context: New perspectives on healthy thinking and healthy living. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 81, 1-3.
*Nisson, C.A., & Earl A. (2016). Regulating food consumption: Action messages can help or hurt. Appetite, 107, 280-284.
Earl, A., Crause, C., Vaid, A., & Albarracín, D. (2016). Disparities in attention to HIV-prevention communications. AIDS care, 28, 1-8. Abstract.
Earl, A. & *Nisson, C.A. (2015). Applications of selective exposure and attention to information for understanding health and health disparities. In R. Scott & S. Kosslyn (Eds.) Emerging Trends in the Social and Behavioral Sciences. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons. DOI: 10.1002/9781118900772.etrds0013 Abstract:
Earl, A., *Nisson, C.A., & Albarracín, D. (2015). Stigma cues increase self-conscious emotions and decrease likelihood of attention to information about preventing stigmatized health issues. Acta de Investigación Psicológica, 5, 1860-1871.
Earl, A., Albarracín, D., Durantini, M.R., Gunnoe, J.B., Leeper, J., & Levitt, J.H. (2009). Participation in counseling programs: High-risk participants are reluctant to accept HIV-prevention counseling. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 77, 668-679. Abstract
Albarracín, D., Durantini, M.R., Earl, A., Gunnoe, J.B., & Leeper, J. (2008). Beyond the most willing audiences: A meta-intervention to increase exposure to HIV prevention interventions by vulnerable populations. Health Psychology, 27, 638-644. Abstract:
Albarracín, D., Leeper, J., Earl, A., & Durantini, M.R. (2008). From brochures to videos to counseling: Exposure to HIV-prevention programs. AIDS & Behavior, 12, 354-362.