[When each person thinks he is less exposed to risks than others, but more receptive to health prevention messages].
Comparative optimism consists of projecting oneself into a situation that is advantageous in relation to others. This is observed in the estimation of future risks, as well as in the evaluation of prevention messages: people who consider themselves less exposed to risks but more receptive than others to prevention messages. Our experimental research, which included a sample of 523 people, examines the effect of prevention messages on comparative optimism regarding future risks such as automobile accidents, domestic accidents or infectious diseases. Three independent variables were tested: the framing of messages, the context of judgement, and the target of comparison. The framing of messages consisted of centering the arguments on losses resulting from the absence of prevention or on the benefits of prevention. The context allowed for the evaluation of the perception of risks with or without a prevention message or reading instructions. People should have indicated if they were more or less likely to be at risk compared to someone close to them (a friend) or to an abstract entity (someone of their generation). Our study shows that the preliminary attention to prevention messages diminishes comparative optimism relative to future risks when the target of comparison is abstract, and the instruction increases the personal implication; it increases the comparative optimism regarding future risks when the comparison is to someone familiar and the messages are framed negatively. The discussion relates to the applications of these results for the conception and evaluation of prevention messages.
Meyer
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T
Université Paris X Département de psychologie, Nanterre.
Delhomme
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P
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007600:Judgment; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011322:Primary Prevention; D011588:Psychology, Educational; D012307:Risk Factors; D012309:Risk-Taking; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires