The article “The Grammar of Persuasion: A Meta-Analytic Review Disconfirming the Role of Nouns as Linguistic Cues of Subsequent Behavior” by Marta Witkowska, Joanna Dołżycka, Caterina Suitner, and Magdalena Formanowicz has been published in the Journal of Language and Social Psychology. This research offers a critical examination of the assumption that nouns, as a linguistic category, exert a stronger effect than other grammatical forms in shaping behaviors. Previous findings suggested that linguistic cues, taking the grammatical structure of a noun (e.g., “be a voter”, “be a helper”, “don’t be a cheater”), are more effective compared to semantically corresponding cues adopting different grammatical structures (e.g., “vote”; “help”, “don’t cheat”). Through a comprehensive meta-analysis of 28 effect sizes involving 13,376 participants, the current research identified an average positive effect of nouns but also underscores significant inconsistencies in replication efforts and highlights a substantial publication bias, raising doubts about the robustness and generalizability of nouns’ superior persuasive power. The paper delves into the theoretical implications of these findings, suggesting that previous research may have overlooked essential aspects of the complex interplay between language, identity, and behavior, and calls for a more nuanced exploration of how different grammatical structures can influence individual actions.
Publication:
Witkowska, M., Dołżycka, J., Suitner, C., & Formanowicz, M. (2024). The Grammar of Persuasion: A Meta-Analytic Review Disconfirming the Role of Nouns as Linguistic Cues of Subsequent Behavior. Journal of Language and Social Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/0261927X241234845. Open access: https://share.swps.edu.pl/entities/article/9fb1832d-9929-4fd5-a1c3-a900f7f26037
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