Why Influence?
Everyday
Modern
Definitions
Ethics I
Ethics II
Disciplines
Approach
Bad Info
Structure
Mindfulness
Mindlessness
6 Principles
Matrix
Cults I
Cults II
Cults III
Framing I
Framing II
Framing III
Framing IV
Framing V
Framing VI
Framing VII
Framing VIII
Bibliography
Links |
 |
What's in a Frame?
Or perhaps I should ask, "Of what does a frame consist?" Here's my
definition:
A frame is a psychological device that offers a perspective and
manipulates salience in order to influence subsequent judgment.
You'll notice this definition consists of three separate components:
1) A frame "offers a perspective." It manages the viewer's alignment
in relation to the issue. Picture frames on expensive artwork are often
deep to ensure that the viewer examines the artwork from a limited perspective.
. . a perspective that flatters the artwork, of course. Just as a picture
frame can obscure a painting from an oblique view, so a psychological frame
invites the observer to view the topic from a certain perspective. By labeling
ground beef as "75% lean" rather than "25% fat," for example, researchers
Levin & Gaeth (1988) were able to impel people to consider meat in
terms of its positive healthful qualities.
2) A frame "manipulates salience." That is, it directs the viewer to
consider certain features and ignore others. A picture frame sets the artwork
apart from the wallpaper. A psychological frame, however, encourages the
observer to attend to a feature of the stimulus within the frame, while
disregarding other features of that same stimulus which lie outside the
frame. To borrow the language of the Gestaltists, a frame emphasizes 'figure'
at the expense of 'ground.' For example, referring to someone as "blue
collar" or "intellectual" or "an athlete" emphasizes one particular feature
of that person. Perception may become organized around the label.
3) A frame influences "subsequent judgment." The frame precedes a persuasive
attempt, and implies a certain organization for the information that follows.
A story tells of a Florentine patron of the arts who took a beautiful picture
frame to Leonardo da Vinci and asked him to paint a picture that would
fit within it. Ludicrous as this sounds, a successful psychological frame
operates in precisely this fashion. Information received after the frame
is delivered may be organized and resized to fit within the parameters
established by the frame. The frame not only contains, but constrains.
The frame helps create the picture we view.
Ancient and Contemporary Frames
Framing
has recently enjoyed a renaissance of investigation in the social psychological
literature. This line of research appears to have grown from a peripheral
treatment in a paper on decisions under risk published by Kahneman &
Tversky in 1979. Since then, social psychology has pursued the topic in
much the same way it was presented by Kahneman & Tversky; however,
communications and marketing have studied the phenomenon more broadly,
and the scientific community is beginning to render the topic with the
richness and diversity that this venerable topic deserves.
"Venerable," because what we call "framing" Aristotle called "atechnoi"
and Cicero called "statis." Cicero was known to be a particular aficionado
of the framing technique, and his lawyerly reputation in ancient Rome was
based in part on his ability to demonstrate murdering villains as laudable
patriots and have them subsequently acquitted (Pratkanis & Aronson,
1992). What we in science are beginning to understand with methodological
rigor, successful practitioners of influence from Cicero to Johnny Cochran
have used with intuitive dexterity for centuries. But to take persuasive
techniques from the intuitive ether and transform them into reliable, predictable
incarnations is the task of social science. Let's continue
our examination of framing with the seminal 1979 Kahneman & Tversky
study.
|