Smoker's recall of fear appeal imagery: Examining the effect of fear intensity and fear type

•We examine the effect of fear intensity and type on message attention and recall.•High intensity fear messages promote superior recall.•Viewing time moderates the relationship between fear intensity and type on recall.

This study examines the effect of fear intensity and type of fear on smokers' recall of fear-based graphic stimuli. A 2 × 2 factorial design manipulates fear intensity (high vs. low) and fear type (physical vs. social). Results show high intensity messages promote superior recall, with recall heightening when the message also depicts physical harm. This study also shows that viewing time moderates the interaction effect of fear intensity and fear type on recall. Findings demonstrate that smokers report greater recall when exposed to highly intense messages that depict physical harm, with the effect only significant when viewing time is low. We argue that high intensity physical harm messages encourage greater message recall when viewed for only a short period due to shock arousal.

Chinese abstract本研究探讨有关吸烟者以恐惧为基础的图像刺激回忆的强度和类型。研究使用2×2析因设计控制恐惧强度（高与低）和恐惧类型（物理型与社会型）。结果表明，高强度消息的回忆效果显著，接触到描绘身体上伤害的信息时回忆增强。研究还表明，观察时间会中和恐惧强度和恐惧类型的互动效应。结果显示，当在较短的观察时间内接触到高强度的描述人身伤害的信息时，吸烟者有更多回忆。我们认为，由于冲击觉醒，吸烟者的观察时间很短，高强度的人身伤害消息会引起更多回忆。