Ulrich Kühnen

Assimilation and contrast in social comparisons as a consequence of self-construal activation

We extended existing research about self-construal activation to the study of social comparisons, specifically to self–other similarity ratings. Independent self-knowledge substantiates the notion of dissimilarity, whereas interdependent self-knowledge implies similarity with others. Therefore, perceived self–other similarity was predicted to decrease after independent and increase after interdependent self-knowledge priming. However, we expected such assimilation effects to occur only if the priming was subtle, but contrast effects if it was overt. In order to test this hypothesis, we developed a scrambled sentences test for priming the respective self-knowledge. The unscrambled sentences described the self either in terms of independence or interdependence. The subtlety of this priming was manipulated by having participants write down either the full sentences (overt priming) or only the remaining word in each item (subtle priming). Results confirmed the predictions. Underlying cognitive processes of the effects are discussed. Copyright

Cross-Cultural Variations in Identifying Embedded Figures Comparisons from the United States, Germany, Russia, and Malaysia

Previous studies have found cross-cultural variation in field dependence. In this study, cross-cultural differences were expected depending on the degree of individualism or collectivism of the respective cultures. Samples were taken from two prototypically individualist cultures, the United States and Germany, and two collectivist cultures, Russia and Malaysia. As predicted, field dependence did not differ between those samples that represented the same type of culture, either collectivist or individualist. However, a clear difference could be found between the two types of cultures; that is, U.S. and German participants were more field independent than were Russian and Malaysian participants.

Meta-Cognition about Biological Sex and Gender-Stereotypic Physical Appearance: Consequences for the Assessment of Leadership Competence

Previous findings are inconsistent with regard to whether men are judged as being more or less competent leaders than women. However, masculine-relative to feminine-looking persons seem to be judged consistently as more competent leaders. Can this different impact of biological sex and physical appearance be due to the disparate availability of meta-cognitive knowledge about both sources? The results of Study 1 indicated that individuals possess meta-cognitive knowledge about a possible biasing influence of persons’ biological sex, but not for their physical appearance. In Study 2, participants judged the leadership competence of a male versus female stimulus person with either masculine or feminine physical appearance. In addition, the available cognitive capacity was manipulated. When high capacity was available, participants corrected for the influence of stimulus persons’ sex, but they fell prey to this influence under cognitive load. However, the effect of physical appearance was not moderated by cognitive capacity.

Culture, context, and cognition: The Semantic Procedural Interface model of the self

Several studies have found evidence that social information processing is strongly influenced by the person either primarily defining his or her self as an autonomous entity (independent self-construal) or as related to other people (interdependent self-construal). In this chapter, we describe the psychological mechanisms by which independent and interdependent self-construals affect individual experience. We propose the Semantic Procedural Interface (SPI) model of the self, which distinguishes two such mechanisms. In addition to differences in the semantic content areas from which independent and interdependent self-construals arise (semantic application mechanism), there are also different procedural modes of thinking (procedural application mechanism) associated with them. Independent self-definitions coincide with the tendency to process stimuli unaffected by the context in which they appear. Relating the self to the social contexts within interdependent self-construals facilitates context-bounded thinking (i.e., processing stimuli by paying attention to their relation to the given context). The results of several experiments attesting to the value of the differentiation between both application mechanisms are presented. We discuss how far differences in information processing between members of different cultural groups can be traced back to the mechanisms described in the SPI model.

How Robust is the IAT? Measuring and Manipulating Implicit Attitudes of East-and West-Germans

We investigated consequences of priming East-West-German related self-knowledge for the strength of implicit, ingroup-directed positive evaluations among East- and West-Germans. Based on previous studies we predicted opposite effects of self-knowledge priming for East- and West-Germans. Since in general the East-German stereotype is regarded as more negative than the West-German one, bringing to mind East-West-related self-knowledge (relative to neutral priming) was expected to attenuate ingroup favoritism for East-Germans, but to increase it for West-Germans. After having fulfilled the priming tasks, participants worked on an IAT-version in which the to be classified stimuli were East- or West-German city names (dimension 1) and positive or negative adjectives (dimension 2). Results of Experiment 1 showed (a) that East- and West-German students implicitly evaluated their ingroups as more positive than the outgroups and (b) confirmed the predictions of the priming influence. Experiment 2 replicated these findings with more representative samples from East- and West-Germany. The results are discussed with regard to underlying processes of implicit attitudes in intergroup contexts.

Manipulation Checks as Manipulation: Another Look at the Ease-of-Retrieval Heuristic:

Previous findings suggest that individuals rely on ease of retrieval primarily under low judgment elaboration. However, in these previous studies the manipulation check (MC) has always been measured before the dependent variable (DV). It is argued that this sequence increases the likelihood that individuals rely on subjective experience particularly under conditions that prevent considering retrieved contents. Four conceptual replications of such previous findings are reported where the manipulation of the MC—DV order was added to the original design. In all four cases (Study 1 on accuracy motivation, Study 2 on cognitive capacity, Study 3 using a misattribution paradigm, and Study 4 on power), ease-of-retrieval effects under low-judgment-elaboration conditions were observed only if the MC measurement preceded the DV, but not with reversed order.

Der Einfluss independenter und interdependenter Selbstkonstruktion auf die Informationsverarbeitung im sozialen Kontext

Zusammenfassung. Zahlreiche Studien belegen, dass Personen in Abhangigkeit davon, ob sie sich selbst vor allem als eine autonome, von anderen unabhangige Einheit definieren (independente Selbstkonstruktion) oder aber ihre Identitat vorwiegend in ihrer Verbundenheit mit anderen Menschen sehen (interdependente Selbstkonstruktion), soziale Information unterschiedlich verarbeiten. Im vorliegenden Aufsatz gehen wir der Frage nach, auf welche Weise Selbstkonstruktionen das Denken, Fuhlen und Handeln von Menschen beeinflussen. Wir schlagen das Semantisch-Prozedurale Interface-Modell des Selbst (SPI) vor, in dem zwei relevante Verarbeitungsmechanismen miteinander verknupft werden. Neben Unterschieden in den semantischen Inhalten independenter und interdependenter Selbstkonstruktionen (semantischer Mechanismus) gehen beide Formen der Selbstkonstruktion auch mit unterschiedlichen Modi der Informationsverarbeitung einher (prozeduraler Mechanismus). Independente Selbstkonstruktionen begunstigen einen kontextunabhangi...

Inter- vs. independentes Selbstwissen als Determinante von Assimilation und Kontrast bei kontextuellem Priming

Zusammenfassung: Wenn eine Person bei der Beurteilung eines sozialen Stimulus einen verzerrenden Kontexteinflus vermutet, kann sie ihr Urteil in der dem angenommenen Einflus entgegengesetzten Richtung an die Kontextinformation assimilieren bzw. von dieser kontrastieren. Im vorliegenden Papier wird diese Annahme auf den speziellen Fall selbstbezogener Urteile angewendet. Hier sollte die Wahrscheinlichkeit, mit der eine Person zu korrigieren versucht, von ihrer Selbstdefinition abhangig sein. Personen mit independenter Selbstdefinition sollten Kontexteinflusse auf selbstbezogene Urteile fur verzerrend halten und ihnen entgegensteuern. Personen mit interdependenter Selbstdefinition sollten hingegen Kontextinformationen fur eine angemessene Grundlage zur Bildung selbstbezogener Urteile halten und entsprechend Assimilationseffekte produzieren. In den beiden berichteten Studien zeigte sich erwartungsgemas, das Personen mit interdependenter Selbstdefinition sich in selbstbezogenen Urteilen von einem Priming selb...

Kultur, Selbstkonzept und Kognition

Zusammenfassung. Mitglieder individualistischer Kulturen definieren ihr Selbst vor allem als eine autonome, von anderen unabhangige Einheit (independente Selbstkonstruktion). Demgegenuber sehen Mitglieder kollektivistischer Kulturen ihre Identitat vorwiegend in ihrer Verbundenheit mit anderen Menschen (interdependente Selbstkonstruktion). Fruhere Autoren haben postuliert, dass Personen in Abhangigkeit ihrer Selbstkonstruktion soziale Information unterschiedlich verarbeiten. Auf welche Weise Selbstkonstruktionen das Denken, Fuhlen und Handeln von Menschen beeinflussen, war bislang jedoch nur ungenau spezifiziert. Ein Grund hierfur kann darin gesucht werden, dass kausale Annahmen uber den Einfluss beider Selbstwissensarten in rein kulturvergleichenden Studien nicht uberpruft werden konnen. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird ein Modell des Selbst dargestellt, das die kulturvergleichende Perspektive und kognitionspsychologische Annahmen uber die Dynamik der menschlichen Informationsverarbeitung zu integrieren ve...

Independente und interdependente Selbstkonzepte als Determinanten des Selbstwerts

Zusammenfassung: Fruhere Untersuchungen zeigen hohere Selbstwertscores fur Personen mit independenter als fur Personen mit interdependenter Selbstdefinition. Wir argumentieren, dass sich hierin nicht notwendig ein tatsachlicher Selbstwertunterschied abbildet: (1) Herkommliche Selbstwertinstrumente erfassen lediglich fur independente Personen bedeutsame Inhaltsdomanen. Daher wird in Studie 1 eine Selbstwertskala (Sozial-Autonome Selbstwertskala, SAS) eingefuhrt und gezeigt, dass diese starker als konventionelle Selbstwertskalen sowohl independente als auch interdependente Inhaltsdomanen erfasst. (2) Beide Gruppen verfolgen unterschiedliche Selbstdarstellungsmotive. Deshalb werden in Studie 2 die SAS sowie ein implizites, von Selbstdarstellungsmotiven unbeeinflusstes Selbstwertmas verwendet und differentielle Zusammenhange dieser beiden Mase fur independente und interdependente Personen nachgewiesen.