Interpetative thinking and impression formation in a prisoner's dilemma game.

In three experiments we examined the notion that interpretative thinking guides impression formation when playing a prisoner's dilemma game. In a first experiment, we demonstrated that an interpretation goal is spontaneously triggered upon receiving ambiguous information about an interaction partner in the context of a prisoner's dilemma game. In Experiment 2, we examined whether in this context accessible knowledge is used as an interpretation frame for judging the interaction partner. Indeed, we found that subliminally primed extreme person exemplars led to an assimilation effect in person judgment in a prisoner's dilemma game, whereas they led to a contrast effect when person judgments were made in a control condition. Finally in experiment 3, priming a comparison goal before entering a prisoner's dilemma game led participants to use subliminally presented extreme exemplars again as a standard of comparison in the judgment of an interaction partner.Information; Knowledge;

Exploring the role of consistency of social value orientations : temporal stability, reciprocal cooperation, and forgiveness.

Many studies of social interaction have incorporated the nature of social value orientations (pro-social vs. pro-self) as an important factor. This paper extends this literature by showing that the effect of the nature of social value orientations is moderated by the consistency of social value orientations (high vs. low). In three studies, we examined this moderating influence. In Study 1, we investigated the temporal stability of social value orientations and found that high consistent orientations are more stable than low consistent orientations. In Studies 2 and 3, we found evidence for the moderating impact of consistency of social value orientations on reciprocal cooperation and forgiveness. High consistent individuals were more likely to follow the nature of their social value orientation than low consistent individuals.

Do not prime hawks with doves : the impact of dispositions and situation-specific features on the emergence of cooperative behavior in mixed-motive situations.

In four experiments, we examined the impact of the nature and consistency of people's social value orientations on the emergence of cooperative behavior in conditions of neutral, morality or might priming. In line with Van Lange (2000), we expected social value orientations to have a greater impact in ambiguous (neutral priming) than in unambiguous (morality and might priming) situations. We also expected the later moderation to be higher among participants low in consistency (see also Hertel and Fiedler, 1998). Overall, participants' behavior shifted in prime-consistent ways. However, cooperation was reduced among high consistent pro-selfs primed with morality concepts. Experiments 2-4 replicate and generalize these findings, and reveal that high consistent pro-selfs exploited partners believed to be cooperative as a result of morality priming. Implications of these results are discussed in the wider context of interdependence theory, and in the context of automatic behavior effects.

About prisoners and dictators: the role of other-self focus, social value orientation, and sterotype primes in shaping cooperative behavior.

Six experiments examined the effects of person factors (i.e., social value orientation and consistency) and situation factors (i.e., stereotype primes) on cooperative behavior in various experimental games. Results indicated that the main and joint influences of person and situation factors on cooperative choices depend on the nature of the game (i.e., prisoner's dilemma or dictator game). Social value orientation, consistency, and primes affect cooperative behavior only in a dictator game, while these factors also lead to rumination about partner's behavioral intentions and personality (and therefore to different cooperative choices) in a prisoner's dilemma game. Differences between these games were explained in terms of the impact they have on other- and self-focus.Choice; Consistency; Dictator game; Effects; Factors; Prisoner's dilemma game; Social Value Orientation; Stereotype Priming; Value;

Convergence towards a European strategic culture? A constructivist framework for explaining changing norms.

The article contributes to the debate about the emergence of a European strategic culture to underpin a European Security and Defence Policy. Noting both conceptual and empirical weaknesses in the literature, the article disaggregates the concept of strategic culture and focuses on four types of norms concerning the means and ends for the use of force. The study argues that national strategic cultures are less resistant to change than commonly thought and that they have been subject to three types of learning pressures since 1989: changing threat perceptions, institutional socialization, and mediatized crisis learning. The combined effect of these mechanisms would be a process of convergence with regard to strategic norms prevalent in current EU countries. If the outlined hypotheses can be substantiated by further research the implications for ESDP are positive, especially if the EU acts cautiously in those cases which involve norms that are not yet sufficiently shared across countries

Less is not more

Less is not more Vera Hoorens & Eddy Van Avermaet Katholieke Universiteit Leuven Theoretical framework and hypotheses When people describe differences between two groups or individuals (X and Y), they may say that X possesses a characteristic more than Y or that Y possesses the characteristic less than X. We examined whether these logically equivalent statements are also psychologically equivalent. Do people evaluate them equally and do people agree or disagree as much with each of them? These questions are important because if (X > Y) and (Y Y) and (Y < X) may provide speakers with a simple tool for impression management. Methodologically, it has implications for the development of questionnaire that use comparative questions or statements. Various studies suggest that (X > Y) and (Y Y) and (Y Y) provoking more favorable responses than (Y < X) statements. Study 1 Study 1 tested how people evaluate (X > Y) and (Y Y) or how the inferior gender was less good than the superior gender (Y Y) statement (M = -0.06, SD = 0.91) than to a (Y Y) statement (M = 0.08, SD = 0.73) than to the speaker of a (Y < X) statement (M = -0.72, SD = 0.91), F(1,96) = 27.31, p < .001. In Study 1, then, participants responded more favorably to the (X > Y) statement and to the individual who had made it than to the (Y < X) statement and its source. However, Study 1 was limited in that the statement was always about one single desirable characteristic so that the generalizability of its results remained to be shown. Study 2 Study 2 examined whether people differentially agree with (X > Y) and with (Y < X) statements. Belgian Dutch-speaking student participants (234 women, 86 men, aged 17 to 24) responded to a ‘survey on views of men and women’. The questionnaire consisted of 104 comparative statements. Half of the statements were of the type (X > Y), half were of the type (Y Y) statements (M = 3.81, SD = 0.34) than with (Y < X) statements (M = 3.43, SD = 0.36), F(1,318) = 92.6, p < .001. This effect of statement did not depend on the statements’ stereotype-consistency nor on the valence of the statements that these statements described. Study 2 thus replicated and extended the findings of Study 1. Conclusion Statements of the type (X > Y) and the type (Y Y) statements and to the individuals who make them than to (Y Y) than with (Y Y) to (Y Y) than with (Y Y) described the target desirably, and when the comparison dimension was unfavorable, so that (X > Y) described the target undesirably (Study 2). In the methodological domain, our work suggests that it may be fruitful to examine the effect of various types of comparative wordings on respondents’ questionnaire scores. In the domain of person perception, it shows that how people describe others affects how readers and listeners view them. In the domain of persuasion, our findings suggest that messages of the (X > Y) type may be more convincing than messages of the (Y < X) type. References Beike, D.R., & Sherman, S.J. (1998). Framing of comparisons in research and practice. Applied and Preventive Psychology, 7, 161-180. Higgins, E. (1977). The varying presuppositional nature of comparatives. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 6, 203-222. Hodges, S.D., & Hollenstein, T. (2001). Direction of comparison in typicality judgments. Social Cognition, 19, 601-623. Houston, D.A., Sherman, S.J., & Baker, S.M. (1989). The influence of unique features and direction of comparison on preferences. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 25, 121-141. Keywords Comparativesstatus: publishe

Interpetative thinking and impression formation in a prisoner's dilemma game

In three experiments we examined the notion that interpretative thinking guides impression formation when playing a prisoner's dilemma game. In a first experiment, we demonstrated that an interpretation goal is spontaneously triggered upon receiving ambiguous information about an interaction partner in the context of a prisoner's dilemma game. In Experiment 2, we examined whether in this context accessible knowledge is used as an interpretation frame for judging the interaction partner. Indeed, we found that subliminally primed extreme person exemplars led to an assimilation effect in person judgment in a prisoner's dilemma game, whereas they led to a contrast effect when person judgments were made in a control condition. Finally in experiment 3, priming a comparison goal before entering a prisoner's dilemma game led participants to use subliminally presented extreme exemplars again as a standard of comparison in the judgment of an interaction partner.status: publishe

Exploring the role of consistency of social value orientations : temporal stability, reciprocal cooperation, and forgiveness

Many studies of social interaction have incorporated the nature of social value orientations (pro-social vs. pro-self) as an important factor. This paper extends this literature by showing that the effect of the nature of social value orientations is moderated by the consistency of social value orientations (high vs. low). In three studies, we examined this moderating influence. In Study 1, we investigated the temporal stability of social value orientations and found that high consistent orientations are more stable than low consistent orientations. In Studies 2 and 3, we found evidence for the moderating impact of consistency of social value orientations on reciprocal cooperation and forgiveness. High consistent individuals were more likely to follow the nature of their social value orientation than low consistent individuals.status: publishe

The impact of intergroup comparisons on ingroup and outgroup perceptions of entitativity and homogeneity

no ISBNedition: IVstatus: publishe

Do not prime hawks with doves : the impact of dispositions and situation-specific features on the emergence of cooperative behavior in mixed-motive situations

In four experiments, we examined the impact of the nature and consistency of people's social value orientations on the emergence of cooperative behavior in conditions of neutral, morality or might priming. In line with Van Lange (2000), we expected social value orientations to have a greater impact in ambiguous (neutral priming) than in unambiguous (morality and might priming) situations. We also expected the later moderation to be higher among participants low in consistency (see also Hertel and Fiedler, 1998). Overall, participants' behavior shifted in prime-consistent ways. However, cooperation was reduced among high consistent pro-selfs primed with morality concepts. Experiments 2-4 replicate and generalize these findings, and reveal that high consistent pro-selfs exploited partners believed to be cooperative as a result of morality priming. Implications of these results are discussed in the wider context of interdependence theory, and in the context of automatic behavior effects.status: publishe