The current dissertation research investigates the role that individual difference in Consideration of Future Consequences (CFC) plays in the context of health communication. In specific, the first purpose of the current research is to investigate the role of CFC in predicting vaccination behavior against the human papillomavirus (HPV). The second purpose of this research is to provide a better understanding of CFC's indirect effects through the Health Belief Model (HBM) constructs on acceptance of the HPV vaccine. The third purpose of this research is to provide a better understanding of the moderating effects of CFC on the relationship between temporal framing and persuasion, specifically within the HPV vaccination context.

Two studies were conducted. The first study examined the impact of individual difference in CFC on the uptake of the HPV vaccine and HPV-related health beliefs as potential mediators of this relationship. A cross-sectional survey of 767 college students was conducted. Findings indicated that CFC had no direct effect on HPV vaccine uptake. However, CFC had significant impacts on a number of HPV-related health beliefs in that greater CFC was associated with less perceived susceptibility to HPV, greater perceived severity of HPV, less perceived logistic/financial barriers, and higher perceived vaccine efficacy. CFC exerted a significant indirect effect on vaccine uptake through perceived vaccine efficacy.

The second study examined how individual difference in CFC and temporal message framing (i.e., present-oriented message and future-oriented message) interact to influence attitudinal and intentional outcomes. Results of a controlled experiment (N =416) showed a significant interaction effect of CFC and temporal framing on attitudes and intentions as a whole indicating high CFC individuals were more persuaded by present-oriented (versus future-oriented) messages. Low CFC individuals responded similarly to different temporal frames. These somewhat surprising findings are discussed in light of the unique characteristics of HPV vaccination behavior.

Theoretical contributions and practical implications of the current research are provided, and limitations along with future directions are discussed.