Interpersonal influence attempts: The effects of construct differentiation and interactional goals

This experimental study examines the nature of interpersonal influence attempts from a multiple goals perspective. It seeks to understand the factors which influence communicators' strategies as they produce and interpret messages created in such interpersonal influence situations. Analyses of message style revealed a limited relationship between construct differentiation and message production and little relationship between preassigned goals and the messages produced. Rather, the role that the interactant plays in advancing a line of action primarily accounted for the creation of particular message styles. Results of the analyses regarding message effects on perceptions showed minor influences due to cognitive differentiation and a primary influence from the goals assigned in a situation. Overall, the results of this study suggest that the pursuit of multiple goals, especially as they are interactionally defined and revealed, are important for understanding why communicators produce and interpret different interpersonal influence messages. Specifically, locally created roles related to a line of action towards one's goals influence the type of message one will produce, and contextual features indicating the goals being pursued in a situation influence the ways in which specific messages are interpreted.U of I OnlyETDs are only available to UIUC Users without author permissio