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Volume 31, No.2
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Effects of Discrete Emotional Appeals in Minor Party Political Advertisements: A case study of New Power Party
Effects of Discrete Emotional Appeals in Minor Party Political Advertisements: A case study of New Power Party
- Hsuan-yi Chou, Bo-quan Su, Jiun-chi Lin
- 2024 / 11
Volume 31, No.2
pp.43-90
- 10.6612/tjes.202411_31(2).0002
Abstract
Recently, political scholars have examined the rise of minor parties through the lens of campaign strategies. However, researchers have yet to explore how minor parties garner voter support through political advertisements. Furthermore, scholars know less about how voters with different party preferences within similar political ideologies respond to minor party advertisements. Focusing on political advertisements of minor parties, this study examines the impact of prevalent emotional appeals (enthusiasm, pride, anger, hope, anxiety, and fear) in political ads on the party attitudes and voting intentions of voters with different party preferences. It integrates the affective intelligence theory and the emotional valence dimension (positive vs. negative) from the emotional dimension theory. With a one-factor-between-subjects experimental design, it manipulated the New Power Party’s (NPP) political ads to test the effectiveness of emotional appeals. The experimental results reveal that when voters’ party preferences are consistent with the advertised party (i.e., NPP supporters viewing NPP advertisements), the emotional appeals of enthusiasm and pride under the disposition system lead to more favorable party attitudes and voting intentions. Conversely, when voters’ party preferences are inconsistent with the advertised party (i.e., Democratic Progressive Party supporters viewing NPP advertisements), the emotional appeals of hope and anxiety under the surveillance system yield better effects. In contrast, the emotional appeals of hope and fear under the surveillance system are more effective for voters with no specific party preference. It fulfills the research gap in affective intelligence theory and broadens relevant theories of minor parties’ political marketing and emotional appeals. It also provides practical recommendations on how minor parties can design political advertisements.