Author Question: Automatic processing appears to have both positive and negative features. That is, it may make us ... (Read 54 times)

MGLQZ · **on:** Jun 22, 2018

Automatic processing appears to have both positive and negative features. That is, it may make us vulnerable to influence in ways that might detract from the best outcomes.

On the other hand, it might provide some special advantages. The best answer will very briefly describe negative aspects in terms of the interruption study and the elderly study, while the poster study may demonstrate positive aspects.
What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

What are ways in which cognition has an influence on affect? How do we know what we are feeling? In other words, what role does cognition play in regulating affect? Describe a key study by Schachter that talks about the use of distraction.

What will be an ideal response?

AngeliqueG · **Reply #1 on:** Jun 22, 2018

Answer to Question 1

Answer:
On the negative side, automatic processing allows for the influence of primes. In one study, a rudeness prime (vs. a politeness prime) resulted in participants being more likely to interrupt an experimenter. In another study, participants were primed (or not) with an elderly stereotype. Participants primed with the stereotype actually walked more slowly down a hallway at the end of the study. It is certainly a bit uncomfortable to imagine that such an influence could so easily be brought to bear without one's conscious knowledge, particularly if it involved a stereotype of a minority group. On the positive side, it appears that that some automatic processing is helpful. Participants indicated their preference for a poster based on an immediate exposure, a conscious exposure, or an exposure in which they did some anagrams after having seen some posters, but before they made their choice. The unconscious anagram condition resulted in them choosing posters that they ended up being most satisfied with. Thus, automatic processing (compared to conscious deliberation) may, in some cases, lead us to making judgments that are, in the long run, the best ones for us.

Answer to Question 2

Answer:
According to Schachter, we don't automatically know our own feelings. Rather we may need to infer them from whatever indicators we have available. That is, if we are aroused by, for example, exercise, we may confuse our arousal with a romantic attraction for another person. Another influence of cognition on affect is when we regulate our feelings. In one study, participants were put into a bad mood. Participants were told they would be able to manage their feelings or were told their feelings were frozen, and then were given distracting (attractive) materials or boring materials. Those in the able to manage condition who were given the option of attractive materials, very quickly engaged them in attempting to distract themselves from unpleasant feelings. Thus, cognition may be useful in preventing bad feelings.