Prior attitudes and personal involvement with the subject of a message do not necessarily affect a listener's recollection of the speech or his assessment of the speaker's position. This is the conclusion of a study in which subjects listened to messages presenting positions for, against, and neutral on the topic of legalizing the use of marijuana. Predictions indicated that an individual's ego involvement with the topic would have a direct effect on his recall of the controversial message and on his selectivity in recalling the material presented. This hypothesis was not confirmed, however, by the study. Secondary analyses indicated that relationships between acceptance of the message and overall recall of its content depended on the type of speech delivery. (RN)