Voice frequency impacts hemispheric processing of attribute frames John J. Seta a, ⁎, Michael McCormick a , Patrick Gallagher b , Todd McElroy c , Catherine E. Seta d a University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, United States b Duke University, Durham, NC, United States c Appalachian State University, Boone, NC, United States d Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, United States abstract article info Article history: Received 20 November 2009 Revised 26 June 2010 Available online 7 July 2010 Keywords: Judgment Decision making Framing Hemispheres Associative processes Attribute framing effects involve the activation of associations that promote information encoding in a way that is consistent with the descriptive valence of the frame. For example, positive frames invoke positive associations and negative frames invoke negative ones—these associations are then mapped onto evaluations. To predict the strength of attribute framing effects, we built on the idea that a speaker with a relatively low frequency voice produces enhanced right hemisphere processing whereas a speaker with a relatively high frequency voice produces enhanced left hemisphere processing. We found a strong framing effect when the holistic/contextual processing style of the right hemisphere was enhanced. In contrast, we observed a weak effect when we enhanced the inferential/analytical style of the left hemisphere. This work has theoretical implications for processes invoking associations, such as priming. It has applied implications for constructing effective persuasive messages. © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Understanding people's judgments and decisions requires an understanding of the type of frame they use as interpretive tools. A frame is a person's conceptualization of the outcomes, acts and contingencies associated with a particular choice (Tversky & Kahne- man, 1981). There are several types of framing manipulations (e.g., Fagley, 1993; Kuhberger, 1998; Rothman & Salovey, 1997) and an important distinction is made between risky-choice and attribute framing (Levin, Schneider, & Gaeth, 1998). A risky-choice framing manipulation involves a choice between a risk-free and a risky option framed in terms of gains or losses. The classic Asian disease problem is the most commonly studied example (Tversky & Kahneman, 1981). In the typical gains condition, a disease's outcomes are described in positive terms (number of lives saved), whereas they are described in negative terms (number of lives lost) in the losses condition. People tend to choose the risk-averse option when the problem is framed as a gain and they tend to choose the risk-seeking option when it is framed as a loss. Risky-choice and attribute framing are driven by different psychological processes. Risky-choice framing is thought to be a consequence of prospect theory's negatively accelerating value function (see Kahneman & Tversky, 1979 for a description). However, because this manipulation involves a choice between a risk-free and a risky option framed in terms of gains or losses, interpretations regarding its ultimate causes are complicated by the fact that this manipulation involves the presence of risk and the dependent measure of choice (e.g., Levin, Schneider et al., 1998; Levin, Schnittjer, & Thee, 1988). In contrast, attribute framing only involves a singular attribute framed either positively or negatively. Attribute framing involves the activation of associations that promote information encoding in a way that is consistent with the descriptive valence of the frame (e.g., Levin, Schneider et al., 1998; Levin, Schnittjer et al., 1988). When an attribute is framed in a positive way, an individual concentrates on the attribute's desirable features; when labeled negatively, undesirable features draw the person's attention. So, for example, when hamburger is described as being 75% lean, this aspect along with its associations are salient. When the same product is framed as 25% fat, it is the fat aspect along with its associations that are salient. Consequently, individuals tend to evaluate the product as being leaner when it is framed as being 75% lean versus 25% fat, even though this information is objectively equivalent. In the present research, we investigated the role that differential hemispheric processing styles (induced via voice frequency) have on attribute framing effects. Hemisphere activation The two hemispheres have different styles of information proces- sing. The right hemisphere has an advantage in processing informa- tion holistically/contextually whereas the left hemisphere has an advantage in processing inferentially/analytically (e.g., Banich, 2004; Friedman & Forster, 2005; Levy, 1974; Ornstein, 1997; Van Lancker & Kempler, 1987). When processing with a holistic/contextual style, a person is likely to perceive the frame and attribute as a unified whole. Because attention is directed at forming a unified impression, this Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 46 (2010) 1089–1092 ⁎ Corresponding author. Department of Psychology, 296 Eberhart Bldg. The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402-6170, United States. E-mail address: jjseta@uncg.edu (J.J. Seta). 0022-1031/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2010.06.009 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Experimental Social Psychology journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jesp