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Abstract The saying-is-believing effect is an important step for changing students’ attitudes and beliefs in a wise intervention. However, most studies have not closely examined the process of the saying-is-believing effect when individuals are engaged in the activity. Using a qualitative approach, the present study uses an engagement framework to investigate (a) components of engagement in the saying-is-believing effect; and (b) how differently students may engage in a saying-is-believing exercise. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 undergraduates in a scholarship program for low-income transfer students from community college. Analysis using inductive and deductive approaches found that students varied on the extent to which they experienced the effectiveness of the saying-is-believing effect through affective, cognitive, and behavioral experiences. The study offers examples of how people can indeed differ in the extent to which they experience the saying-is-believing effect, and the implications for designing more effective interventions. Specifically, students’ positive affective experiences from seeing the larger goal of creating videos may be important components for the saying-is-believing effect to work. Behavioral experiences, such as learning soft skills, academic skills learned indirectly from the intervention, and academic skills learned directly from the intervention were accompanied by both positive affective and cognitive experiences. Findings show the importance of students’ differential engagement in saying-is-believing exercises both for building more effective wise interventions and interpreting heterogeneity in intervention effectiveness.
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Precision Emotion and Affective Context (PEAC) process model: a theoretical framework for creating the affective circumstances that promote engagement
Behavior change interventions are key to improving health and well-being. Knowledge of appropriate health behaviors does not, however, translate into engaging in them. We propose the “Precision Emotion and Affective Context (PEAC) Process Model of Engagement for Behavior Change” to serve as a theoretical framework to advance our understanding of how affect drives engagement and subsequent behavior change. Our framework highlights the importance of accounting for affective circumstances when designing and implementing behavior change interventions. The model accounts for affect that is both incidental and integral to the intervention: ongoing affective states that may work for or against the likelihood of engaging with the intervention (incidental), and affective states that are elicited by the intervention and consequently shape behavior change (integral). We focus on the promise of moderate levels of arousal and positive affective states, along with the need for contextual congruence, social acceptability, and personally meaningful approaches, for enhancing the likelihood of engagement and positive behavior change in interventions. Finally, just-in-time intervention approaches are discussed as a means of delivering personalized, affectively informed interventions that leverage advances in digital health technologies to promote opportunities for real-time implementation. This theoretical framework thus serves as a guide for constructing or harnessing the affective circumstances necessary to promote sustained intervention engagement and behavior change.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2231874
- PAR ID:
- 10688739
- Publisher / Repository:
- Frontiers
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Frontiers in Psychology
- Volume:
- 16
- ISSN:
- 1664-1078
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1554099
