Framing effects: An analytic-holistic perspective

Under what conditions, why, and for whom are framing effects most likely? In this paper, we build on the existing literature (e.g., Chaiken, 1987; Epstein, Lipson, Holstein, & Huh, 1992; Evans & Over, 1996; Fiske & Neuberg, 1990; Payne, Bettman, & Johnson, 1988; Simon, 1956; Sloman, 1996; Stanovich & West, 2000), in providing answers to these questions. We hypothesized that individuals who engage a decision task with an analytic/systematic versus holistic/heuristic processing style are especially insensitive to the influence of framing effects. Therefore, we predicted that the way in which a decision is framed should have a relatively weak influence on those who were either induced (Experiment 1) or predisposed (Experiment 2) to adopt a predominantly analytic/systematic versus holistic/heuristic processing style. The results of both experiments supported this position.     

Task performance and perceptions of anxiety: averaging and summation in an evaluative setting

Suggests that individuals' "stage fright," or perceptions of anxiety and performance, is a function of tendencies to both average and summate the impact of audience members. We found that under certain conditions adding an evaluative member to an audience decreased anxiety, whereas in other conditions the addition of evaluative members increased anxiety. These results are not expected from social impact theory or social facilitation research and suggest that individuals do not react to groups of individuals in a manner analogous to the way in which trait information is typically averaged in forming impressions of individuals (Anderson, 1981). An averaging-summation model that does account for these findings is presented. This research has implications for research on crowding, stress, social influence, and affective responses.     

Self-Relevance as a Moderator of Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification

We examined the influence of self-esteem on reactions to favorable or unfavorable feedback. We also varied the relevance of this information for participants' self-image—the information was either low or high in self-relevance. When asked how important it was to personally perform well, low self-esteem persons were more likely to engage in self-enhancement in the low than in the high self-relevant context. This finding supports predictions derived from Swann and Schroeder's (1995) analysis. Furthermore, low self-esteem participants engaged in self-enhancement strategies to a greater extent than high self-esteem participants in the low self-relevant condition, whereas an opposite pattern was obtained in the high self-relevant condition. Our analysis bridges the gap between two opposing schools of thought—one that believes that low self-esteem persons will evidence especially strong self-enhancement tendencies and the other that believes that it is high not low self-esteem persons that will demonstrate especially strong self-enhancement tendencies. We discuss the importance of self-relevance for determining when self-enhancement and self-verification will and will not occur.     

Averaging and summation: Positivity and choice as a function of the number and affective intensity of life events

Six experiments were reported that investigated individuals’ perceptions of positive life events and their preferences for options presenting different combinations of positive event frequency and magnitude. Results revealed that individuals often responded to the average level of positivity and preferred less (versus more) positive events and supported the averaging/summation model of life event integration. Results revealed, for example, that participants felt more positive affect when they were exposed to a highly positive event than a highly positive plus mildly positive one. When the events had similar affective intensities, however, summation effects were obtained—more was better. In demonstrating averaging and summation effects, we delineated situations in which more positive life events can be better (summation effects) and situations in which more can be worse (averaging effects). Results also ruled out several alternative accounts, including the peak-end rule, economic, affective forecasting, and an assimilation/contrast interpretation.     

Attributional biases in the service of stereotype maintenance: a schema-maintenance through compensation analysis

Six experiments were conducted to test assumptions of a schema-maintenance through compensation analysis. The results of these experiments indicated that perceivers can compensate for the inconsistent action of one individual (the target) by altering their attribution concerning the action of a fellow group member. When the target performed an inconsistent behavior, perceivers compensated by making especially extreme stereotypically consistent attributions concerning a fellow group member's subsequent action. In addition, in Experiment 5, perceivers compensated via a fellow group member for a target's inconsistent action while maintaining their general view of group members. Experiments also provided tests of the capability and motivation assumptions of the schema-maintenance through compensation analyses.     

Effects of paradigm and inter-stimulus interval on age differences in eyeblink classical conditioning in rabbits

The aim of this study was to examine parameters affecting age differences in eyeblink classical conditioning in a large sample of young and middle-aged rabbits. A total of 122 rabbits of mean ages of 4 or 26 mo were tested at inter-stimulus intervals (ISIs) of 600 or 750 msec in the delay or trace paradigms. Paradigm affected both age groups dramatically, with superior performance in the delay paradigm. ISI was salient as middle-aged rabbits were significantly impaired in 750-msec compared with 600-msec delays, and young rabbits were significantly less impaired in 600-msec than in 750-msec trace. Young rabbits performed equally well at both delay ISIs, and consequently, there were significant age differences in 750-msec but not in 600-msec delays. Middle-aged rabbits performed poorly at both 600- and 750-msec trace, resulting in significant age differences in 600-msec but not in 750-msec trace. Timing of the conditioned response has been associated with cerebellar cortical function. Normal aging of the cerebellar cortex likely contributed to the magnitude of the effect of ISI in delay conditioning in middle-aged rabbits. Results demonstrate that the magnitude of age differences in eyeblink conditioning can be enlarged or eliminated by ISI and paradigm.     

Lateralized goal framing: How health messages are influenced by valence and contextual/analytic processing

The effectiveness of health messages has been shown to vary due to the positive or negative framing of information, often known as goal framing. In two experiments we altered, the strength of the goal framing manipulation by selectively activating the processing style of the left or right hemisphere (RH). In Experiment 1, we found support for the contextual/analytic perspective; a significant goal framing effect was observed when the contextual processing style of the RH – but not the analytic processing style of the left hemisphere (LH) – was initially activated. In Experiment 2, support for the valence hypothesis was found when a message that had a higher level of personal involvement was used than that in Experiment 1. When the LH was initially activated, there was an advantage for the gain- vs. loss-framed message; however, an opposite pattern – an advantage for the loss-framed message – was obtained when the RH was activated. These are the first framing results that support the valence hypothesis. We discuss the theoretical and applied implications of these experiments.     

Commonalities and Differences Among Frames: A Unification Model

We provide a review and a theoretically unifying model of framing effects. Beginning with a review of findings that prospect theory, fuzzy‐trace theory, and traditional dual process models do and do not explain, we develop a model of framing based partly on Bless and Schwarz's (2010) inclusion/exclusion model of assimilation and contrast. Our model is the first of its kind to be applied to all three valence framing manipulations and presents common mechanisms explaining findings in the framing literature that were previously difficult to conceptualize within a single theory (e.g., matching effects and cognitive effort). The model also accounts for why all three framing manipulations are influenced by differences between holistic/contextual versus analytic processing as well as the presence, absence, and direction of effects produced by different versions of framing manipulations. It also predicts contrast effects (Implications and Future Directions section) and applies to manipulations involving a frame and judgmental target. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.