Information Enabling Action: Agency-Focused Social Media Frames as a Way to Promote Willingness to Help and Prevent Compassion Fade in Response to Natural Disasters
Open Access
Author:
Colucci, Anthony
Area of Honors:
Psychology
Degree:
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Theresa K Vescio, Thesis Supervisor Greg Edward Loviscky, Thesis Honors Advisor Heather Shoenberger, Thesis Supervisor
Keywords:
social media frames natural disaster response social media natural disasters compassion fade empathy willingness to help empathy-altruism hypothesis empathy helping
Abstract:
This study explores whether the framing of social media posts related to natural disasters influences an audience’s responses to a natural disaster. After reading a news story about a recent tornado, participants were randomly assigned to one of three experimental social media feed conditions (victim-focused, agency-focused, and weather-focused control) and responded to a series of questions assessing their feelings of empathy, retention, and willingness to donate. The study found that framing influences empathy and willingness to donate. In addition, providing evidence consistent with a novel hypothesis, findings indicate that providing information about how to help predicts helping in conditions marked by numbing and a lack of emotion, like compassion fade. Because knowing how to help is as important as being motivated to do so, these findings can be used to shape more effective social media strategies in a time of need to ensure audiences are informed about how to give and do not feel overwhelmed or numb to dire situations.
