Lack of reassurance after unexpected positive health risk feedback – an analysis of temporal dynamics

INTRODUCTION: How do people receive unexpected positive health risk information? While common motivational accounts predict acceptance, consistency accounts such as the cue-adaptive reasoning account (CARA) predict a ‘lack of reassurance’. OBJECTIVES: We therefore tested (1) whether people prefer striving for positivity or retaining a sense of self-consistency (‘lack of reassurance’), and (2) if there are systematic differences in short- and long-term reception, which would indicate temporal dynamics in processing. METHODS: As part of a longitudinal cohort study, participants of a community health screening (N = 1,055) received their actual cholesterol readings. Feedback reception was assessed immediately, at one month and six months. RESULTS: Processing trajectories for unexpected positive feedback showed a significant ‘lack of reassurance’ effect over time compared with expected positive feedback, while unexpected negative feedback was less threatening than expected negative feedback. CONCLUSIONS: The perseverance of this ‘lack of reassurance’ over time indicates that striving for consistency in self-views is a robust phenomenon, even if it means forfeiting a better view of one’s own health.