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Social Judgment Theory

Assimilation and Contrast

Sometimes people perceive a message that falls within their latitude of rejection as farther from their anchor than it really is; a phenomenon known as contrast. In other words, when a persuasive message is relatively far from the anchor,or preferred viewpoint,people tend to contrast the new position to their own, making it seem even more different than it actually is. [1] The opposite of contrast is assimilation, in which a person perceives a message as advocating a position that is closer to their position than it actually is. [2]

These latitudes of rejection and acceptance dictate the likelihood of assimilation and contrast. When a discrepant viewpoint is expressed in a communication message within the person's latitude of acceptance, the message is more likely to be assimilated or viewed as being closer to the person's anchor (viewpoint) than it actually is. When the message is perceived as being very different from one's anchor and, thus, falling within the latitude of rejection, persuasion is unlikely, due to a contrast effect.

Messages falling within the latitude of noncommitment, however, are the ones most likely to achieve the desired attitude change, because the individual is either not involved or uninformed. On the other hand, the more involved or invested a person is (also known as ego-involvement), the larger their latitude of rejection becomes, also creating a smaller latitude of acceptance. [3]

[1] "Social Judgment Theory." International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. Ed. William A. Darity, Jr. 2nd ed. Vol. 7. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2008.602. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 17 Oct. 2014. [2] "Attitude Change Following Persuasive Communication: Integrating Social Judgment Theory and the Elaboration Likelihood Model." European Journal of Social Psychology.Frans W. Siero and Bert J. Doosje. 23.5 (1993): 542. Print. 17 Oct. 2014. [3] "Social Judgment Theory". International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences.602.