Shark bytes: message sensation value and emotional appeals in shark diving websites |
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| Authors: | Maria Knight Lapinski Lindsay Neuberger Meredith L Gore Bret A Muter Brandon Van Der Heide |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Communication , College of Communication Arts &2. Sciences, Michigan State University , East Lansing , MI , USA lapinsk3@msu.edu;4. Nicholson School of Communication, University of Central Florida , Orlando , FL , USA;5. Department of Fisheries &6. Wildlife , Michigan State University , East Lansing , MI , USA;7. School of Criminal Justice, Michigan State University , East Lansing , MI , USA;8. Wildlife , Michigan State University , East Lansing , MI , USA;9. School of Communication, The Ohio State University , Columbus , OH , USA |
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| Abstract: | Websites designed to promote risky activities provide a novel context for studying the role of emotional appeals and message sensation value (MSV) in risk messages in order to ultimately understand the type of messages that motivate people to engage in risk behaviors. Framed in theories of message design and emotion, this study investigates representations of threat, efficacy, and the extent to which risk messages appeal to a range of positive and negative emotions through the examination of 53 shark diving websites using content analysis and computer generated linguistic analysis. Results indicate that few websites provide explicit threat information (i.e. severity and susceptibility) but many do present implicit threats. Efficacy-related messages were present on all websites. Positive emotion was more common than negative emotion and there is little representation of the traditional components of MSV. Implications for theory development and communication about risk-seeking are addressed. |
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| Keywords: | risk message sensation value website content wildlife emotion |
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