Do mindsets change cognitive processes following assumptions of the selective accessibility model

Abstract

The Selective Accessibility Model proposes that people commonly look at similarities or differences between a target (object they evaluate) and a standard (object to which they compare the target) while making evaluations of a target. The model suggests that people can experience a similarity or dissimilarity mindset that respectively triggers similarity or dissimilarity testing between the target and standard. However, previous research has not specifically tested these hypothesized similarity/dissimilarity testing process. Therefore, the current experiment aimed to test this presumed comparison process. Initially, participants were induced into a mindset that had them look for similarities or differences, then they took a modified change-detection task designed to have them focus on whether a stimulus changed or stayed the same, measuring reaction time, error rates, and response bias. Finally, participants were given 12 different pairs of objects and tasked with indicating the degree to which they were similar or different than one another. The results of this study are currently inconclusive as data from only 22 of the 382 required participants have been collected so far. Despite the lack of data, this paper discusses what the different trends in the data could suggest about the methods of comparative testing and whether it is as automatic (as claimed by the Selective Accessibility Model).