ELABORATION-LIKELIHOOD MODEL (ELM)
Elaboration-Likelihood Model (ELM): A Review
The Elaboration-Likelihood Model (ELM) is an influential persuasion theory developed to explain how people process messages and how this process influences their attitudes and decision making. The ELM is based upon the concept of cognitive processing and is a dual-route approach to persuasion that considers the two different mechanisms of attitude change: central route and peripheral route processing. This paper will review and discuss the ELM, its key components, and its implications for persuasive communication.
The ELM was first proposed in 1980 by Richard E. Petty and John Cacioppo. It was developed to explain how attitudes are formed and changed in response to persuasive messages. The ELM is based on the dual-route model of attitude change, which suggests that people can form attitudes in two different ways. The central route to persuasion is based on thoughtful, systematic consideration of the message content, whereas the peripheral route to persuasion is based on less effortful processing of the message cues.
The ELM is composed of four main components: message elaboration, attitude accessibility, attitude certainty, and attitude strength. Message elaboration is the process of actively thinking about and processing the message content, which can occur through either the central or the peripheral route. Attitude accessibility is the extent to which an attitude is activated in memory and is influenced by both message elaboration and prior attitude strength. Attitude certainty is the extent to which an attitude is held with confidence and is influenced by both message elaboration and attitude accessibility. Finally, attitude strength is the degree of the attitude held and is determined by both attitude certainty and attitude accessibility.
The ELM has important implications for persuasive communication. One of its key insights is that the degree of message elaboration is an important factor in determining attitude change. This suggests that in order to be effective, persuasive messages should be designed to be easily understood and processed. Additionally, the ELM suggests that attitudes are more likely to be changed if they are well-defined and accessible in memory. Finally, the ELM also suggests that attitudes are more likely to be changed if they are held with high certainty.
In conclusion, the ELM provides an important framework for understanding how attitudes are formed and changed in response to persuasive messages. It has important implications for designing persuasive messages and has been widely used in communication research.
References
Petty, R. E., & Cacioppo, J. T. (1980). The Elaboration Likelihood Model of persuasion. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 13, pp. 123–205). New York, NY: Academic Press.
Ferguson, M. J., & Brannick, M. T. (2012). The Elaboration Likelihood Model: A review of Theory and Research. The American Psychologist, 67(8), 632–634. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0028983
Hamilton, D. L., & Sherman, S. J. (1994). Stereotypes. In E. T. Higgins & A. W. Kruglanski (Eds.), Social psychology: Handbook of basic principles (pp. 344–380). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
