- Presentation of source followed by comments

Examples of the Differential Decay Hypothesis

- Opposite impact
- Sequence of source and discounting cue

Conditions for the Differential Decay Hypothesis

Grounded on principles of primacy and recency, the differential decay hypothesis suggests that the persuasiveness of a message and a discounting cue have different rates of decay. Since the discounting cue appears after the message, it is is expected to decay faster.

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- Source forgetting interpretation
- Dissociation interpretation
- Differential decay hypothesis

Interpretations of the Sleeper Effect

Heinbach, D., Ziegele, M., & Quiring, O. (2018). Sleeper effect from below: Long-term effects of source credibility and user comments on the persuasiveness of news articles. New Media & Society, 20(12), 4765–4786. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444818784472

Sleeper effect from below: Long-term effects of source credibility and user comments on the persuasiveness of news articles

This explanation for the Sleeper Effect states that when people are presented with an argument and a discounting cue, the Sleeper Effect takes hold because over time they dissociate the content from the discounting cue. They are not merely forgetting the discounting cue, they are just no longer associating it with the message.

Dissociation Interpretation of the Sleeper Effect

The recipient of a message forgets the source of the message quicker than they forget the content of the message. This is thought to be especially apparent when the message is persuasive but the source isn't perceived as reliable.

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