Page 108 - The Social Animal

90 The Social Animal

member of the audience (and hence the more threatening it was), the
more these persons convinced themselves that the dangers contained
in the message were overstated.
This analysis is supported by a host of findings in the AIDS lit-
43
erature. For example, research by Russell Clark indicates that the
AIDS epidemic has had little effect upon the general willingness of
young adults to have casual sex; Katie Leishman found that “many
44
people at high risk nevertheless dispense with even minimal precau-
tions”; research by Sunyna Williams and her colleagues shows that
45
college students justify their continued engagement in unsafe sex by
the false belief that, if they know and like their partner, then he or
she could not possibly be HIV positive. Similarly, surveys on college
campuses across the country indicate that the majority of sexually ac-
tive college students are not engaging in safe sex, are not discussing
sexually transmitted diseases with their partners, and have never even
purchased a condom. 46
If fear arousal is ineffective because it leads to denial, must we
simply sit back and brace ourselves for the onslaught of a major epi-
demic? Not necessarily. There is no simple solution to this problem.
But if we believe that getting people to use condoms is the most re-
alistic way to stem the spread of AIDS, one possibility is to design
the message to overcome whatever it is that sexually active people
find unattractive about condoms. For example, in our survey of sex-
ually active college students, we found that the great majority see the
putting on of condoms as a “turnoff,” as “an antiseptic procedure”
that detracts from the romantic sequence of a sexual encounter. Ac-
47
cordingly, one possible approach to this problem might be to find a
way to change people’s mind-set—perhaps by convincing them that
putting on the condom could become a mutual event that can be
used as an erotic aspect of foreplay—a prelude to lovemaking rather
than a burdensome interference. Other strategies aimed at dealing
48
with this important issue will be described in Chapter 5.

Fear and the Threat of Terrorism In the aftermath of the
September 11 terrorist attack, most Americans were understandably
shocked, angry, and frightened. Among other things, we wanted to
know when we might expect the next attack and what we might do
to minimize the danger. Into the breach stepped the Department of
Homeland Security and the Attorney General of the United States.