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.
Competing Interests: No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
(© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.)