The Influences of Message and Source Factors on Advice Outcomes

Guided by an integration of existing theories on advice and persuasion, the current study presented and assessed the influence of multiple message and source factors on responses to advice in supportive interactions. A total of 262 participants completed survey instruments designed to assess message and source factors and advice outcomes with regard to a recent instance of having received advice for a personal difficulty. Results showed that the sets of source factors (expertise, liking, trust, and similarity) and message factors (politeness, response efficacy, feasibility, absence of limitations, and confirmation) each had independent influences on advice outcomes (evaluation of advice quality, facilitation of coping, and intention to implement the advice), but the effect of source factors was partially mediated by message factors. In addition, the message factors had a stronger impact on advice outcomes as problem seriousness increased. The results also showed a different pattern of prediction for implementation intention than for the other advice outcomes.