Message Resonance Across Cultures: Toward Evidence-based Assessment

The article introduces the Influence Messaging Impact Model (IM2), a framework for the evaluation of how well a message resonates with its intended audience. We tested the model through a survey experiment with over 6,000 respondents in Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, and Taiwan. Among the findings, the identity of the messenger alone shifted a message's effectiveness by as much as 15.2%, independent of the content itself.

Key findings:

• Individual value alignment was the strongest predictor of resonance in all four countries, although its weight in each country varied.
• Messenger credibility operates as a multiplier on content, with adjustments that ranged from ±8% in Japan to ±15.2% in South Korea.
• Security framing and "us versus them" identity framing failed to reach statistical significance in any of the four countries.
• Cognitive engagement predicted resonance in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan but not in the Philippines, where narrative coherence, emotional impact, and issue salience carried greater weight.

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