Contrast Effects in Knowledge Activation: The Case of Inhibition Effects Due to Competing Constructs or Goal Fulfillment.

The authors observe that, like the operation of correction and adjustment in producing contrast (described in earlier chapters, this volume), inhibition at an early stage of information processing can play an important role. In particular, the strength of the motivation to work on a task, the completion of a goal, or the parallel operation of competing goals can render certain kinds of information inaccessible so it is not used for judgments and behavior. Such (unconscious) inhibitory processes may prevent assimilation effects. Also, because different factors mediate inhibition than anchoring or correction, failures to find assimilation effects in the laboratory may be due to the fact that the process of inhibition was given insufficient consideration. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)