Imagine two ice cream labels: “90% Fat-free” and “Contains 10% fat”. Same product;same message. Still, the first somehow feels healthier than the second. This effect is known as framing -a psychological mechanism through which information presentation shapes the audience’s interpretation and judgment.
Framing means selecting and emphasizing specific information elements while omitting others, thereby increasing their salience to promote a particular problem definition. This enhances the probability that receivers will perceive the information, discern meaning, and store it in memory (Etman, 2023).
Framing operates through four functions, which can appear independently or in combination within a given sentence. These include problem definition(determining what the causal agent is doing with what costs and benefits) and cause diagnosis (identifying the forces creating the problem). The third element is the moral evaluation, while the fourth is the remedies’ recommendations, which are the suggestions and explanations of the possible treatment and its effects (Entman, 2023).
Additionally, framing includes four components in the communication process: the communicator, the text, the receiver, and the culture. Communicators make conscious and unconscious choices about presenting information, influenced by frames that shape their beliefs (Entman, 2023). When someone writes a text, he or she employs framing through specific structures, images, metaphors, and sentences that create thematically reinforcing clusters of facts or judgments (Entman, 2023). The interpretation of these frames by the audience (the receiver) depends on their prior beliefs, knowledge, and experiences. Culture encompasses a collection of commonly recognized frameworks that embody shared values, myths, and narratives. These elements make certain frameworks more effective and familiar. As a result, culture significantly influences how frames are created and understood by providing a shared context. All four components involve framing that serves similar purposes: selecting and emphasizing specific elements used to construct arguments about issues, their causes, evaluations, and potential solutions (Entman, 2023).
While framing plays a crucial role in shaping how arguments are presented, it is essential to recognize that it differs from persuasion. Unlike traditional persuasion, which uses new information to alter the audience’s attitude towards an object, framing triggers pre-existing beliefs or schemas in the individual’s long-term memory. Thus, the perceived relevance or weight of existing considerations in decision-making is shifted (Nelson, Oxley, Clawson, 1997). For instance, a newspaper headline like “Violent protesters demand police budget cuts, putting communities in danger” would activate already present negative biases, reinforcing the skepticism towards protesters’ motives while stroking fears that reduced policing will compromise safety, even if no new facts are presented. This mechanism can successfully exclude alternative interpretations of an issue, narrowing the range of considerations that the audience could find relevant. In their paper, Nelson, Oxley, and Clawson have shown that framing works by making particular mental associations more accessible thus manipulating the cognitive pathways through which individuals arrive at judgments.
Advertisers exploit framing effects to manipulate consumers’ actions such as through Goal Framing. This approach structures the persuasive message around the benefits of taking action (positive framing) or the prevention of losses (negative framing) (Stanzi, 2015). Both aim at the same behavior; nonetheless, the negative framing has a more substantial impact, although the positive one is preferred for brand image. An example of Goal framing could be: “You are more beautiful than you think. Don’t let beauty standards define you” (from Dove’s Real Beauty Campaign), which combines empowerment (positive framing) with the rejection of negativity (negative framing).
Attribute framing denotes another relevant example, where the subject of manipulation is a single attribute within any given context that can positively or negatively shape perceptions (Stazi, 2015). In their study, Gaeth and Levin have demonstrated that attribute framing occurs because the valence of the description, either positive or negative, affects how the information is memorized. Positive labeling evokes favorable memory associations linked to substantial positive distortions of the item’s attributes. In contrast, negative framing activates unfavorable associations. An example of such an effect can be the following: “The vaccine is 95% effective at preventing COVID-19” and “There is a 5% chance the vaccine will not prevent COVID-19”. The public response would be more favorable when the vaccine’s effectiveness is framed positively because they would perceive the vaccine as more efficient, even though both frames provide the same statistical information. Ultimately, this framing illustrates how subtle linguistic variations in presenting identical information can reshape one’s evaluation through a memory-based associative process.
The framing effect may also be found in the context of political communication, as shown by Nelson, Oxley, and Clawson in their paper which exemplifies that when political messages are framed differently, they can influence citizens’ evaluations and decisions. This means that politicians do not necessarily need to change people’s values or facts; they only need to make specific assessments and opinions more accessible during decision-making (ex., elections). Thus, contentious issues like immigration and gun rights can be framed through various value lenses to build or erode support. As Stanzi discusses in her article, the concept of political framing also encompasses political news and, more generally, the media. In her study, she argues that the media doesn’t report facts neutrally; instead, they frame issues through selective emphasis, which guides audiences in interpreting political events and determining what they consider necessary or legitimate. Framing choices are not random; they often reflect the ideological stance of a media outlet. These patterns create environments where certain narratives dominate while others are excluded, reinforcing existing worldviews.
Framing influences issue salience, value activation, and the legitimacy of debate. In this context, framing is a form of political power. By controlling how narratives are presented, the media can often steer public opinion and limit policy options without altering facts.
Yet, understanding framing effects at times has improved decision-making outcomes. A notable example is the 2021 “sludge audit” conducted by the U.S. government, which leveraged behavioral insights to simplify bureaucratic procedures. The initiative enhanced retirement benefit claims through the substitution of complex legal terms with direct communication (such as “You qualify for $X/month”) and the usage of potential loss figures in the message (like “You could miss out on $Y over 10 years”). The program’s automatic enrollment process together with simplified messaging allowed for the successful retrieval of millions of dollars in previously unclaimed funds for American citizens.
In conclusion, framing influences our perceptions and decisions by highlighting certain aspects of information. Understanding this mechanism allows individuals to critically evaluate messages and make more informed choices in a world filled with persuasive communication. Recognizing the impact of framing is essential for navigating complex issues effectively.
REFERENCES
Nelson, T.E., Oxley, Z.M. and Clawson, R.A. (1997) ‘Toward a psychology of framing effects’, Political Behavior, 19(3), pp. 221–246.
Stazi, I. (2015) Framing Effects in Marketing Messages. LUISS Guido Carli.
Entman, R.M. (1993) Framing: Toward clarification of a fractured paradigm. Journal of Communication, 43(4), pp. 51-58.
Gosling, C.J. and Moutier, S. (2018) Is the framing effect a framing affect? Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 71(6), pp. 1412-1423.
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