For simplicity's sake in the context of this example, let's say yes. E.g. a PC casts a freeze nova that does 5 units of freezing affliction, and targets in range either lose 5 resistance points, or, for those targets that can't afford it, are frozen for some number of turns. Which means that it'll take multiple castings to freeze more resistant opponents.
However, there are issues with such a simplistic implementation: