Evaluative conditioning of high-novelty stimuli does not seem to be based on an automatic form of associative learning

Jonathan Dedonder (1) , Olivier Corneille (1) , Vincent Yzerbyt (1) , Toon Kuppens (1)

1 UCL - Université Catholique de Louvain = Catholic University of Louvain

Evaluative conditioning (EC) refers to the change in valence of initially neutral stimuli (conditioned stimuli, or CSs) as a result of their pairing with positive or negative stimuli (unconditioned stimuli, or USs). EC is critical to dual-attitudes models as it is often presented as an evaluative effect that results from a purely automatic form of associative learning. Although evidence suggests that EC does not occur without contingency awareness, Ruys and Stapel (2009) recently argued that contingency awareness is unnecessary for high-novelty stimuli. Researchers may thus be tempted to conclude that EC rests on an automatic form of associative learning, at least for CSs associated with little prior evaluative knowledge. Taking issue with this claim, the present study reveals that EC of high-novelty stimuli is dependent on attentional resources. The role of contingency awareness in EC of high-novelty stimuli is also discussed.

Mots clés: Social Sciences & Humanities

Domaines: Psychologie et comportements

Jonathan Dedonder, Olivier Corneille, Vincent Yzerbyt, Toon Kuppens. Evaluative conditioning of high-novelty stimuli does not seem to be based on an automatic form of associative learning. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 2010, 46 (6), pp.1118. ⟨10.1016/j.jesp.2010.06.004⟩. ⟨hal-00864369⟩