Abstract
Interest groups increasingly communicate with the public, yet we know little about how effective they are in shaping opinions. Since interest groups differ from other public communicators, we propose a theory of interest group persuasion. Interest groups typically have a low public profile, and so most people are unlikely to have strong attitudes regarding them. Source-related predispositions, such as credibility assessments, are therefore less relevant in moderating effects of persuasive appeals by interest groups than those of high-profile communicators. We test this argument in multiple large-scale studies. A parallel survey and field experiment (N = 4,659) establishes the persuasive potential of low-profile interest groups in both controlled and realistic settings. An observational study (N = 700) shows that substantial portions of the public are unable to assess interest group credibility. A survey experiment (N = 8,245) demonstrates that credibility assessments moderate the impact of party but not interest group communication.
Cite
@article{10.1093/joc/jqab005,
author = {Jungherr, Andreas and Wuttke, Alexander and Mader, Matthias and Schoen, Harald},
title = "{A Source Like Any Other? Field and Survey Experiment Evidence on How Interest Groups Shape Public Opinion}",
journal = {Journal of Communication},
volume = {71},
number = {2},
pages = {276-304},
year = {2021},
month = {04},
abstract = "{Interest groups increasingly communicate with the public, yet we know little about how effective they are in shaping opinions. Since interest groups differ from other public communicators, we propose a theory of interest group persuasion. Interest groups typically have a low public profile, and so most people are unlikely to have strong attitudes regarding them. Source-related predispositions, such as credibility assessments, are therefore less relevant in moderating effects of persuasive appeals by interest groups than those of high-profile communicators. We test this argument in multiple large-scale studies. A parallel survey and field experiment (N = 4,659) establishes the persuasive potential of low-profile interest groups in both controlled and realistic settings. An observational study (N = 700) shows that substantial portions of the public are unable to assess interest group credibility. A survey experiment (N = 8,245) demonstrates that credibility assessments moderate the impact of party but not interest group communication.}",
issn = {0021-9916},
doi = {10.1093/joc/jqab005},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/joc/jqab005},
eprint = {https://academic.oup.com/joc/article-pdf/71/2/276/37367708/jqab005.pdf},
}