The generality of the automatic attitude activation effect.

Abstract

and Kardes (1986) demonstrated that Ss were able to evaluate adjectives more quickly when these adjectives were immediately preceded (primed) by attitude objects of similar valence, compared with when these adjectives were primed by attitude objects of opposite valence. Moreover, this effect obtained primarily for attitude objects toward which Ss were presumed to hold highly accessible attitudes, as indexed by evaluation latency. The present research explored the generality of these findings across attitude objects and across procedural variations. The results of 3 experiments indicated that the automatic activation effect is a pervasive and relatively unconditional phenomenon. It appears that most evaluations stored in memory, for social and nonsocial objects alike, become active automatically on the mere presence or mention of the object in the environment. The research we report in this article concerns the extent to which attitudes may be activated automatically on mere observation of the attitude objects to which they correspond. This phenomenon is central to Fazio's (1986, 1989, 1990) attitude accessibility model, a theory of the process by which attitudes guide behavior. Consistent with the attitude accessibility model, we demonstrate that attitudes are capable of automatic Editor's Note. Two of the authors are Associate Editors of this journal; therefore, this article was subjected to a special review process to avoid any potential conflict of interest. I asked Anthony Greenwald, a former Editor of JPSF to handle the article. He solicited the reviews and made the recommendations that the article be published. I am grateful to him for taking on this chore.

The dilution model: How additional goals undermine the perceived instrumentality of a shared path.

“…Because the latency of incorrect responses would be difficult to interpret, only correct responses were used in all the subsequent analyses (see Bargh, Chaiken, Govender, & Pratto, 1992;Fazio, 1990). The percentage of errors was 7%.…”

Fearful expressions gain preferential access to awareness during continuous flash suppression.

“…Behavioral findings further suggest that emotional stimuli can influence performance on certain tasks even when participants are not consciously aware of the stimuli. Studies using subliminal priming have shown that reaction time is faster when the prime and target are congruent in valence (Bargh et al, 1992) and similarly, subliminal priming effects have been reported with novel, nonrepresentational stimuli presented as targets (Murphy & Zajonc, 1993;Wong & Root, 2003). Importantly, under conditions of restricted attentional resources, emotional stimuli are able to reach conscious awareness even when neutral stimuli cannot (Anderson, 2005;Milders et al, 2006).…”

Theories of reasoned action and planned behavior as models of condom use: A meta-analysis.

“…Behavioral or outcome beliefs are typically measured by bipolar probability statements linking the behavior to a set of outcomes ("My using condoms will prevent AIDS" with response options unlikely vs. likely; Chan, 1994, p. 84), whereas outcome evaluations are measured by means of bipolar evaluative items (e.g., "Preventing AIDS is …" with response options bad vs. good; Chan, 1994; p. 83). This component of the model is critical when researchers are interested in modifying attitudes because it assumes that attitudes are based on beliefs (but see Bargh, Chaiken, Govender, & Pratto, 1992; Fazio, 1990). However, outcome beliefs and evaluations are not a primary focus of this review as they do not contribute to actions in a direct fashion.…”