Robert S. Wyer, Ph.D. - US grants

The proposed research is concerned with the basic processes that underlie the use of information in forming impressions and making inferences. The research is based in large part on a general theoretical formulation of social information processing. The work to be conducted in the proposed grant period will continue to investigate issues we have begun to explore in the preceding period, including: (1) the factors that determine how information about people and events is encoded into memory and the effects of this encoding o subsequent judgments, (2) the cognitive representation of persons, with particular emphasis on those formed from information conveyed in informal conversations, (3) the cognitive representation of social events, and (4) the cognitive representation of personal experiences. A multiplicity of procedures will be used, which range from judgment data to recall , recognition, and reaction time data, to assess the manner in which information is organized in memory and the ese of retrieving it for use in making judgments. The research to be conducted will generally bear on implications of the theoretical formulation we have proposed. On the other hand, the research will be germane to several fundamental questions related to the encoding, organization, and retrieval operations that are strongly emphasized in recent attempts to develop process models of social perception.

9311879 Clore ABSTRACT Across a variety of tasks, recent research has shown a surprisingly consistent tendency for social information processing to be affected by background mood states. The experience of positive affect appears to foster heuristic information processes (reliance on generalizations, stereotypes, schemata, expectations, but also creative thinking). Negative affect leads to more systematic processing (attention to detail, use of analytic thinking and logic). Several explanations for these effects have been advanced. This research will examine the social and nonsocial information processing conditions under which these effects occur and test predictions from the major explanations. Such new information about these pervasive tendencies promises a clearer picture of the processes by which emotional factors affect everyday thought and action.

9407058 Wyer ABSTRACT This research is part of a continuing investigation of the cognitive processes that mediate the use of information about people and events to make social judgments and decisions. Previous research has focused largely on the interpretation of and reactions to information that is presented out of its social context. Consequently, the factors that underlie the comprehension of and reactions to information that is exchanged in a conversation or in other social situations are not well understood. The present research addresses this question by investigating the determinants of reactions to a particular type of social information-- that which is intended to elicit humor. Specifically, the conditions in which such information has the intended effect as opposed to eliciting other types of reactions (anger, confusion, or no reaction at all) will be investigated. The results will contribute to the understanding of those factors that underlie the identification of statements as witticisms rather than serious attempts to criticize or to convey hostility or prejudice. In its initial stages, (1) the cognitive processes that underlie the comprehension of jokes will be identified, and the situational, informational and individual difference variables that influence these processes will be examined. Then, (2) the processes that underlie the identification of witticisms of the sort that occur in conversations will be investigated. In later phases of the research, the factors that govern the communication and identification of humor in actual social interaction situations will be determined. When information is exchanged in a conversation or in other social situations, its interpretation depends partly on perceptions of why the information is being conveyed (to persuade, to criticize, to entertain, to tease, or simply to transmit new knowledge). It also depends on recipients' prior knowledge about the referent of the information, other communications about the referent that have preceded it, and the communication's source. Depending on this knowledge, information can elicit several different reactions--anger, sadness, or amusement. The factors that determine whether communications, such as sexist or ethnic stories and comments, provoke anger rather than amusement are poorly understood. Yet, the nature of these reactions can be an important mediator of attitudes toward both the referent of the communications and their source. In addition to its theoretical implications for an understanding of humor elicitation and social perceptions, the results of this research will contribute to the understanding of how to minimize miscommunication in social interactions. ***