Assessing the Impact of Conflicting Health Warning Information on Intentions to Use E-Cigarettes -An Application of the Heuristic-Systematic Model

The purpose of this study is to determine how nonsmokers perceive conflicting information when a modified risk statement is included along with a warning label on e-cigarette packages. We propose an application of the heuristic-systematic model to test whether this conflicting information leads to more or less active processing. As part of a larger inquiry into e-cigarette labeling, we present an experiment (n = 303) in which we test this model with nonsmokers, measuring ambiguity perceptions, counter-arguing, reduced effectiveness of the message, and behavioral intentions. Results demonstrate that the addition of a modified risk statement on the package with the warning label increases ambiguity perceptions which can lead to reduced effectiveness of warning labels and reduced behavioral intentions to avoid using e-cigarettes among nonsmokers. While the systematic and heuristic pathways are both explanatory, heuristic processing provides the better fit.