“The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself”: Predicting College Students’ Voting Behavior Using the Extended Parallel Process Model

Abstract

This longitudinal study examines how well the EPPM predicts and explains college students’ voting behavior. One-hundred-and-seventy-eight undergraduate students filled out a survey at two points in time: (1) four weeks before and (2) one week after the 2022 midterm election. As hypothesized, the EPPM accurately predicted danger control outcomes (i.e., severity, susceptibility, self-efficacy, and response efficacy predicted voting intentions, and voting intentions predicted voting behavior). The EPPM also predicted one fear control outcome (though only the path between severity and fear was significant). More specifically, the EPPM explained 45.7% of the variance in intention, 81.7% of the variance in behavior, 77% of the variance in contesting, and 33.6% of the variance in suppression.

Keywords

• extended parallel process model (EPPM)
• fear appeals
• voting behavior
• danger control
• fear control