ABSTRACT
If individuals have a tendency to ascribe the influence of negative media content onto other people rather than self, a naturally occurring corollary to this basic hypothesis is its antithesis, that we have a tendency to ascribe the influence of positive media content onto self more than others. This latter notion, again, is the first-person effect. After all, if a positive self-image can be preserved by believing that other people are susceptible to the influence of weak argumentation, negative media formats, and undesirable messages, then a positive self-image should also be maintained by believing self is more influenced by the exact opposite. Thus, first-person perceptions have been found for messages society usually considers positive, such as encouraging traffic safety and crime prevention (Hoorens & Ruiter, 1996) or discouraging smoking (Chock & Lee, 2005).
