The transmitter-persistence effect: Resolving the dispute

Previous research has demonstrated that expecting to transmit a persuasive message to another person preserves the transmitters' attitudes over time. This finding was originally explained by the organized cognitive construct in which transmitters store the message. Other researchers suggested that the attitudes' persistence stemmed from the incompleteness of the task; i.e., the transmitters did not actually transmit the message. The current research aimed at resolving the dispute by comparing the attitude persistence of receivers of information to that of transmitters who ultimately did not transmit information and to that of transmitters who actually did transmit information to other people. While the attitudes of receivers weakened over time, the attitudes of the finished and unfinished transmitters persisted, supporting the original explanation.