New article “Beyond the Notion of Accessibility Bias: Message Content as the Common Source of Agenda-Setting and Priming Effects” in the journal Mass Communication and Society from the Cognitive Effects Research Group (KEG).
Abstract: This study examines the cognitive mechanisms behind agenda-setting and priming effects. Recent evidence suggests that accessibility effects within network models of memory are not well suited to explain agenda-setting and priming effects. This article attempts to provide additional evidence regarding the roles of issue accessibility and message content in agenda-setting and priming processes. Our findings indicate that changes in issue accessibility are not a sufficient condition for agenda-setting and priming effects. Instead, the content of mediated messages that validates an issue as a matter of public concern is shown to be the primary explanation of agenda-setting and priming effects. Different psychological processes observed in social psychological studies and political communication studies as well as theoretical relationships between agenda setting and priming are discussed.
Full citation: Lee, B., Liu, J., Choung, H., & McLeod, D. M. (2020). Beyond the notion of accessibility bias: Message content as the common source of agenda-setting and priming effects. Mass Communication and Society, 23:4, 554-577.
Access the article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15205436.2019.1708403?journalCode=hmcs20