You are hired by a group concerned with sex and violence in the ...

[frankwu]

You are hired by a group concerned with sex and violence in the media. This group wants to persuade children to behave morally and therefore wants to ban all images and messages of violence or sex in the media.
 
  From what you know about reactance theory, what would you tell this group?
  What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

You strongly suspect that your younger brother is no longer a virgin, so you want to persuade him to use condoms each and every time he has sex.
 
  How would you use McGuire's (1964) concept of attitude inoculation and the work on resisting peer pressure to make your younger brother immune to later attempts to persuade him to engage in risky sexual activities?
  What will be an ideal response?

[briezy]

Answer to Question 1

Answer: Reactance theory posits that when people feel their freedom is threatened, an unpleasant state of reactance is aroused. One way people can reduce this unpleasant state is to engage in the prohibited behavior. Therefore, a message that is too strong can backfire and cause individuals to become more likely to engage in those behaviors. Thus, one tactic is to use subtle messages that do not make individuals feel as though their freedoms are being threatened.

Answer to Question 2

Answer: Attitude inoculation involves exposing people to small doses of arguments counter to their initial attitudes, like a vaccination against disease. In this case, you would expose your brother to weak versions of arguments that he might hear later from his peers (e.g., condoms look stupid, or condoms ruin the sensation of sex), and encourage him to refute those arguments (I can enjoy the feeling of sex a lot more if I don't have to worry about illnesses or getting you pregnant). In addition, you might give him some practice role-playing and show him ways to combat these pressures. This should make him more immune to more powerful persuasive messages later.

[frankwu]

Thank you!

[briezy]

Happy to help