Abstract

The present study attempted to investigate the effects of the message type and the group category of the source of a message on regional prejudice. Specifically, we hypothesized that the emotional message would be more persuasive when the source was an in-group member of the recipient than when he was an out-group member, in comparison with the rational message. We also hypothesized that the persuasive effect of an emotional message would be through the emotional elaboration that the message elicited, while that of the rational message would be due to the cognitive elaboration. To test these hypotheses, participants listened to the emotional or rational message, indicating the negative effects of regional conflicts in Korea. The message was delivered thriough a tape recording either by Yongnam, Honam or Seoul source, manipulated by dialects. The results obtained a significant interaction effect of the message type and the source`s group category on attitude ratings. That is, the emotional message, unlike the rational message, was more persuasive when it was delivered by an in-group source than an out-group source. This result indicated that the emotional message which had been relatively ignored in persuasion research area could be as effective as the rational message, in changing prejudiced attitudes. However, the results failed to clarify the specific mechanism through which the emotional message elicited persuasion. These results were discussed in terms of theoretical and practical implications.