TY - JOUR

T1 - What is learned in approach-avoidance tasks? On the scope and generalizability of approach-avoidance effects

AU - Hütter, Mandy

AU - Genschow, Oliver

N1 - Funding Information: This work was supported by a Heisenberg grant from the German Research Foundation awarded to Mandy Hütter (HU 1978/7-1). Parts of this work were presented at the Transfer of Knowledge conference of the European Social Cognition Network (ESCON) in September 2018 and at the Small Group Meeting “Social Cognition & Decision Sciences” held at the University of Tübingen in July 2019. Funding Information: This work was supported by a Heisenberg grant from the German Research Foundation awarded to Mandy H?tter (HU 1978/7-1). Parts of this work were presented at the Transfer of Knowledge conference of the European Social Cognition Network (ESCON) in September 2018 and at the Small Group Meeting "Social Cognition & Decision Sciences" held at the University of T?bingen in July 2019. Publisher Copyright: © 2019 American Psychological Association.

PY - 2020/8/1

Y1 - 2020/8/1

N2 - Previous research has shown that approaching a stimulus makes it more positive, while avoiding a stimulus makes it more negative. The present research demonstrates that approach-avoidance behaviors have the potential to charge stimulus attributes such as color with evaluative meaning. This evaluation carries over to other stimuli with that feature. We address the latter point by assessing the influence of colors that were approached or avoided on the perceived attractiveness of persons wearing those colors. We show that wearing a certain color makes people appear more attractive when this color is associated with approach rather than avoidance. In line with a self-perception account of these effects, we obtained approach-avoidance effects on stimulus attributes only when participants carried out approach-avoidance behaviors toward these colors or imagined doing so. This set of experiments adds to the evaluative learning literature by demonstrating approach-avoidance effects on stimulus attributes and that these effects carry over to new classes of stimuli and new tasks. Moreover, we systematically investigated boundary conditions for these effects. Finally, with this research we introduce an ontogenetic perspective to research into colors and their influence on psychological functioning.

AB - Previous research has shown that approaching a stimulus makes it more positive, while avoiding a stimulus makes it more negative. The present research demonstrates that approach-avoidance behaviors have the potential to charge stimulus attributes such as color with evaluative meaning. This evaluation carries over to other stimuli with that feature. We address the latter point by assessing the influence of colors that were approached or avoided on the perceived attractiveness of persons wearing those colors. We show that wearing a certain color makes people appear more attractive when this color is associated with approach rather than avoidance. In line with a self-perception account of these effects, we obtained approach-avoidance effects on stimulus attributes only when participants carried out approach-avoidance behaviors toward these colors or imagined doing so. This set of experiments adds to the evaluative learning literature by demonstrating approach-avoidance effects on stimulus attributes and that these effects carry over to new classes of stimuli and new tasks. Moreover, we systematically investigated boundary conditions for these effects. Finally, with this research we introduce an ontogenetic perspective to research into colors and their influence on psychological functioning.

KW - Approach-avoidance

KW - Attitudes

KW - Color

KW - Generalization

KW - Interpersonal attraction

KW - Business psychology

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85078593825&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1037/xge0000728

DO - 10.1037/xge0000728

M3 - Journal articles

C2 - 31916835

AN - SCOPUS:85078593825

VL - 149

SP - 1460

EP - 1476

JO - Journal of Experimental Psychology: General

JF - Journal of Experimental Psychology: General

SN - 0096-3445

IS - 8

ER -