Self, Health & Emotion Lab

A program of social psychological research is described that has found consistent beneficial effects of framing health messages to be congruent with personality factors in encouraging preventive oral health behaviors. In several studies, health messages were administered to non-flossing young adults who had either a predominant approach or avoidance motivational orientation. The messages were framed to either emphasize the benefits of dental flossing or the costs of not flossing. Effectiveness was assessed in terms of flossing self-efficacy and flossing behavior. When people received a dental health message congruent with their approach/avoidance motivation, they had a stronger belief that they are capable of flossing, greater intentions to floss, and increased flossing behavior, flossing 50-65% more often in the next week. Two factors for dental health practitioners to consider when delivering information are whether the target individual is more approach- or avoidance-oriented and whether the message is framed in terms of gains or losses. These theory-based findings could be utilized in dental practice to promote positive oral health behaviors by administering brief personality assessments to patients and having practitioners frame the information accordingly.

The ability to make sense of events in one’s life has held a central role in theories of adaptation to adversity. Yet, there are few rigorous studies on the role of meaning in adjustment and those that have been conducted have focused predominantly on direct personal trauma. We examined the predictors and long-term consequences of Americans’ searching for and finding meaning in a widespread cultural upheaval – the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 – among a national probability sample of US adults (N=931). Searching for meaning at 2-months post-9/11 was predicted by demographics and high acute stress response. In contrast, finding meaning was predicted primarily by demographics and specific early strategies used to cope with the attacks. Importantly, both searching for and finding meaning 2-months post-9/11 were associated with lower post-traumatic stress symptoms across the following 2-years, after controlling for pre-9/11 mental health, exposure to 9/11, and acute stress response. Mediation analyses suggest that finding meaning supported adjustment by reducing fears of future terrorism. Results highlight the role of meaning in adjustment following collective traumas that shatter people’s fundamental assumptions about security and invulnerability.