Why counterattitudinal messages are as memorable as proattitudinal messages: The importance of active defense against attack

Three experiments were designed to clarify the mechanisms underlying Eagly, Chen, Chaiken, and Shaw-Barnes's (1999) meta-analytic demonstration that a ttitudinally congenial information has typically not been more memorable th an uncongenial information. Participants remembered congenial and uncongeni al messages equally well, despite their disapproval of the uncongenial info rmation. This null congeniality effect was obtained regardless of whether ( a) messages pertained to abortion or gays in the military pr presented info rmation on both sides or only one side of the issue; (b) recognition or rec all measures were administered soon after the message or 2 weeks later; and (c) participants were or were not activists on the issue had stronger or w eaker attitudes, had more prior knowledge of counterattitudinal (vs. proatt itudinal) arguments, or did or did not have their attention constrained to the message. Process findings suggested that participants' thoughtful count erarguing of the uncongenial messages enhanced their memory for them.