This study investigated with 44 undergraduates the effects of political candidates' consistency of attitudes and party affiliation on candidates' image. An experiment designed to examine the waffle phenomenon—individuals who display attitude change are evaluated negatively—showed that observers have significantly more positive images of consistent candidates than inconsistent candidates. Party affiliation did not significantly interact with consistency of attitude.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AllgeierA. R.ByrneD.BrooksB.RevnesD.The waffle phenomenon: Negative evaluations of those who shift attitudinally. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 1979, 9, 170–182.
2.
HoffmanH. S.CarverC. S.Political waffling: Its effects on the evaluations of observers. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 1984, 14, 375–385.
3.
NimmoD.SavageR.Candidates and their images. Pacific Palisades, CA: Goodyear, 1976.
4.
NovakD. W.LernerM. J.Rejection as a consequence of perceived similarity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1968, 9, 147–152.
