Having Fun with the Periodic Table: A Counterexample to Rea’s Definition of Pornography

In a paper from 2001, Michael C. Rea considers the question of what pornography is. First, he examines a number of existing definitions of ‘pornography’ and after having rejected them all, he goes on to present his own preferred definition. In this short paper, I suggest a counterexample to Rea’s definition. In particular, I suggest that there is something that, on the one hand, is pornography according to Rea’s definition, but, on the other hand, is not something that we would intuitively describe as being an instance of pornography.

A Review of Determinants of and Interventions for Proenvironmental Behaviors in Organizations

A review of empirical studies on proenvironmental behaviors in organizational contexts is presented. Twenty‐one studies met the inclusion criteria. Quantitative effect sizes were compared where statistics were available and research designs were comparable. Characteristics of the dependent variable and the targeted organizational (sub)populations were systematically examined. With respect to individual‐specific determinants, the results show relatively consistent effects for attitudinal determinants and past behavior. For organization‐specific influences, management and physical facilitation were frequently significant. Findings related to other factors are less conclusive. Given the available evidence and feasibility considerations, it is recommended that interventions focus on physical facilitation, tailored persuasive communication, and active engagement of middle management. It is further recommended that future research integrates the analysis of individual and organizational determinants.     

Sixty years of fear appeal research: Current state of the evidence

Fear arousal is widely used in persuasive campaigns and behavioral change interventions. Yet, experimental evidence argues against the use of threatening health information. The authors reviewed the current state of empirical evidence on the effectiveness of fear appeals. Following a brief overview of the use of fear arousal in health education practice and the structure of effective fear appeals according to two main theoretical frameworks—protection motivation theory and the extended parallel process model—the findings of six meta‐analytic studies in the effectiveness of fear appeals are summarized. It is concluded that coping information aimed at increasing perceptions of response effectiveness and especially self‐efficacy is more important in promoting protective action than presenting threatening health information aimed at increasing risk perceptions and fear arousal. Alternative behavior change methods than fear appeals should be considered.     

Energy‐Related Behaviors in Office Buildings: A Qualitative Study on Individual and Organisational Determinants

An analysis of individual and organisational determinants of energy‐related behaviors in office buildings and the interplay between the two is presented. Interviews and focus groups were conducted with office workers from four organisations in two Dutch provinces. The results indicate that, overall, work efficiency and productivity was prioritised over energy conservation. In general, self‐efficacy was the most salient individual determinant, and social norm the least discussed determinant of current office energy‐related behaviors. Nevertheless, both self‐efficacy and social norm elements were encountered in employees' proposed strategies to achieve future office energy‐saving. Formal and informal aspects of the organisational context were found to equally affect individual determinants and their related behaviors. Facility managers' and general office workers' views differed in a few but important ways. Interorganisational comparisons showed that differences in organisational foci were linked to the relative salience of normative, gain, and hedonic motivations.     

Threatening communication: A qualitative study of fear appeal effectiveness beliefs among intervention developers,policymakers, politicians,scientists, and advertising professionals

Threatening communication is a widely applied method in behavior change interventions, which at the same time has been heavily criticized in the psychological literature. The current paper describes a study of the reasons for this persistent wide application of threatening communication. We conducted qualitative interviews with 33 key actors in behavior change intervention development in The Netherlands. Specifically, we interviewed intervention developers, policymakers, politicians, scientists, and advertising professionals. The interviews were transcribed and subsequently coded using NVivo. We found that participants most closely involved with the actual intervention development were generally convinced that threatening information was to be prevented, but often did not understand the exact processes involved. They were often under the impression that rather than a potent efficacy enhancing element, a behavioral suggestion would suffice to prevent threatening communication from backfiring. As participants were further removed from the actual intervention development, they generally tended to be more in favor of threatening communication. The main reasons for use of threatening information were to attract attention or prompt self‐reflection through confrontation, because target population members were assumed to like threatening information and respond rationally to increased risk perceptions by changing their behavior, or simply because no alternatives were available. In addition, intervention developers frequently had to deal with supervisors or funders who preferred threatening communication. Thus, when communicating with practitioners, it seems fruitful to provide them with a toolbox of evidence‐based behavior change methods that promote adaptive, rather than maladaptive, behavior; to promote basing interventions on the most relevant behavioral determinants as identified by determinant analyses; and to equip intervention developers with the tools to persuade other key stakeholders that fear is a bad counselor.