The Space-Time Congruency Effect in Political and Societal Campaigns: The Role of Spatial Metaphors in Persuasion.
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2025-07-02
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en
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The present study investigated whether space-time congruency (congruent vs. incongruent) and temporal priming (future mentioned in introduction vs. no future mentioned in introduction) influence the perceived persuasiveness of political and societal campaign posters. Based on previous research on the space-time congruency effect, it was hypothesised that posters with congruent spatial positioning (future on the right) would be evaluated as more persuasive than incongruent posters (future on the left). It was further expected that this effect would be amplified when participants were primed to focus on the future. A 2x2 between-subjects design was used, including 122 participants who viewed 6 campaign posters on climate change, social issues, and politics. Participants rated poster persuasiveness using a 7-point Likert scale. The findings did not provide sufficient evidence to support either hypothesis. Neither space-time congruency nor priming significantly influenced persuasiveness ratings. However, persuasiveness was positively correlated with participants’ topic awareness of the campaign posters, particularly for climate and social issues.
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