Question

Juanita heard an argument in favor of increasing taxes in her local municipality. at the end of the presentation, she learned that the argument had been generated by a high school dropout who didn't even live in the same city she did. at that time, she disregarded the message and was not persuaded. according to the sleeper effect, how is juanita likely to feel about the proposal one month later?

Answer 1

Later on, she will feel more favorably toward the message than she did at first.

The sleeper effect says that when people are exposed to a persuasive message followed by a discounting cue (like a less-credible high school dropout) they will initially feel less persuaded by the message but over time will become more persuaded. Even though it was a good idea, Juanita discounted the message because a dropout came up with the idea. Over time, she realized that it was a good idea no matter who proposed it.