Interactivity as a Double-Edged Sword: Parsing Out the Effects of Modality Interactivity on Anti-Smoking Message Processing and Persuasion

This study combines the heuristic-systematic model of persuasion with user interface literature to examine how website interactivity influences processing of anti-smoking messages and smoking outcome beliefs. We conducted a pilot experiment with 112 current smokers and found that the interactive website elicited more heuristic processing among participants, which diminished their outcome beliefs and website attitudes. However, their positive interface perception functioned as a salient cue that led to greater systematic processing, which outperformed the negative impact of interactivity. It is recommended for future research to examine the effect of interactivity on persuasion with other types of interface features and health messages.

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