The Use of Humor and Narratives in the Inoculation Process

Inoculation theory has earned its place in persuasion research as one of the only processes that promote resistance in spite of persuasion attempts. The current chapter explores what occurs when such messages face strategies that are meant to inhibit forms of resistance, such as narratives and humor. Moreover, the theoretical integration of inoculation with narratives, and inoculation with humor, shows promise for more powerful means of building resistance against impending counter-attitudinal attacks. The following chapter synthesizes existing literature on how inoculation can be used to build resistance in the face of narratives and humorous persuasion and how inoculation can be used in tandem with narratives and humor to reinforce attitudes, and also offers numerous theoretical implications for such processes.