Abstract
The present study explores the role of awareness in the processing of hedonically valent stimuli. We demonstrate that stimulus awareness is not necessary for stimulus valence either to elicit an affective response or to influence a subsequent cognitive decision. The results are interpreted as providing qualified support for Zajonc’s hypothesis regarding the independence of affective and cognitive processing systems. However, we suggest that this simple dichotomy is in need of revision.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Balota, D. A. (1983). Automatic semantic activation and episodic memory encoding. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 22, 88–104.
Birnbaum, M. H., & Mellars, B. A. (1979a). One-mediator model of exposure effects is still viable. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 391–394.
Birnbaum, M. H., & Mellars, B. A. (1979b). Stimulus recognition may mediate exposure effects. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 1090–1096.
Cheesman, J., & Merikle, P. M. (in press). Priming with and without awareness. Perception & Psychophysics.
Erdelyi, M. H. (1974). A new look at the new look: Perceptual defense and vigilance. Psychological Review, 81, 1–25.
Erickson, C. W. (1960). Discrimination and learning without awareness: A methodological survey and evaluation. Psychological Review, 67, 379–400.
Fowler, C. A., Wolford, G., Slade, R., & Tassinary, L. G. (1981). Lexical access with and without awareness. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 110, 341–362.
Kunst-Wilson, W. R., & Zajonc, R. B. (1980). Affective discrimination of stimuli that cannot be recognized. Science, 207, 557–558.
Lazarus, R. S. (1981). Thoughts on the relations between emotion and cognition. American Psychologist, 37, 1019–1024.
Marcel, A. J. (1983a). Conscious and unconscious perception: An approach to the relations between phenomenal experience and perceptual processes. Cognitive Psychology, 15, 238–300.
Marcel, A. J. (1983b). Conscious and unconscious perception: Experiments on visual masking and word recognition. Cognitive Psychology, 15, 197–237.
Merikle, P. M. (1983). Unconscious perception revisited. Perception & Psychophysics, 31, 298–301.
Moreland, R. I., & Zajonc, R. B. (1979). Exposure effects may not depend on stimulus recognition. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 811–821.
Nolan, K. A., & Caramazza, A. (1982). Unconscious perception of meaning: A failure to replicate. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 20, 23–26.
Purcell, D. G., Stewart, A. L., & Stanovich, K. E. (1983). Another look at semantic priming without awareness. Perception & Psychophysics, 34, 65–71.
Ross, L. E., Ferreira, C., & Ross, S. M. (1974). Backward masking of conditioned stimuli: Effects on differential and single-cue classical conditioning performance. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 103, 603–613.
Watts, F. N. (1983). Affective cognition: A sequel to Zajonc and Rach-man. Behavior Research and Therapy, 21, 89–90.
Zajonc, R. B. (1980). Feeling and thinking: Preferences need no inferences. American Psychologist, 35, 151–175.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
These data were reported at the meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association in Baltimore, MD, April 1984. We wish to thank Carol A. Fowler for her helpful criticisms and comments on an earlier version of this article.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Tassinary, L.G., Orr, S.P., Wolford, G. et al. The role of awareness in affective information processing: An exploration of the Zajonc hypothesis. Bull. Psychon. Soc. 22, 489–492 (1984). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03333887
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03333887