In this publication, Dr. Lisa Farman argues that ads, movies, and other forms of media content have potential to change behaviors by appealing to identity but that the mechanisms responsible for persuasive effects have not been adequately specified.
This piece builds on a previously proposed model by Comello (the prism model) that conceptualizes identity as both a moderator and mediator of communication effects. In this paper, she presenst empirical support for the model via a re-analysis of experiment data using moderated-mediation techniques.
Here's a link to full text:
http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/mcIxyy9wCF4f9EwAE7xq/full
Comello, M. L. G., & Farman, L. (2016). Identity as a moderator and mediator of communication effects: Evidence and implications for message design. The Journal of Psychology. Online ahead of print. doi: 10.1080/00223980.2016.1196160.
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20160720125018452