Some of the findings of my research on persuasion and emotions are:

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• The use of emotional appeals (fear, enthusiasm) in election campaigns substantially drives media coverage (ref)

• Campaigns of populist candidates contain much more fear appeals than campaigns of non-populist candidates (ref)

• Sequences of messages with the same valence (positive/negative) are more likely to persuade: Being exposed to a higher volume of negative messages often depresses evaluations of the target, whereas being exposed to a higher volume of positive messages enhances evaluation of the sponsor (ref)

• Anxiety lowers resistance to persuasion (ref)

• Emotional appeals attract the attention of the media (ref)

• Narcissists are more likely to be influenced by persuasive messages (work in progress)

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Publications

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Maier, J., & Nai, A. (2020). Roaring candidates in the spotlight. Campaign negativity, emotions, and media coverage in 107 national elections. The International Journal of Press/Politics (forthcoming).

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Nai, A. (2020). The Trump paradox: How cues from a disliked source foster resistance to persuasion. Politics & Governance, 8(1), 122-132.

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Gerstlé, J., & Nai, A. (2019). Negativity, emotionality and populist rhetoric in election campaigns worldwide, and their effects on media attention and electoral success. European Journal of Communication, 34(4) 410–444.

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Nai, A. (2018). Fear and loathing in populist campaigns? Comparing the communication style of populists and non-populists in elections worldwide. Journal of Political Marketing. doi: 10.1080/15377857.2018.1491439

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Nai, A., and Seeberg, HB. (2018). A series of persuasive events. Sequencing effects of negative and positive messages on party evaluations and perceptions of negativity. Journal of Marketing Communications, 24(4): 412-432.

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Nai, A., Schemeil, Y. and Marie, J.-L. (2017). Anxiety, Sophistication, and Resistance to Persuasion: Evidence from a Quasi-experimental Survey on Global Climate Change. Political Psychology, 38(1): 137-156.