An affirmed self and an open mind: Self-affirmation and sensitivity to argument strength

Self-affirmation seems to enable an individual to objectively evaluate information that would otherwise evoke a defensive reaction. If this objectivity reflects freedom from self-evaluative concerns, affirmation should sensitize people to central cues of a persuasive message, like argument strength. If affirmation simply induces agreeableness or trivializes the issue, affirmed participants should not particularly heed argument strength. Affirmed and non-affirmed participants rated the persuasiveness of proand counterattitudinal arguments that varied in strength. Among participants who rated their attitudes as personally important, selfaffirmation decreased bias and increased sensitivity to argument strength, as predicted by self-affirmation theory. 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.