TY - JOUR
T1 - Responding to subliminal cues
T2 - Do if-then plans facilitate action preparation and initiation without conscious intent?
AU - Bayer, Ute C.
AU - Achtziger, Anja
AU - Gollwitzer, Peter M.
AU - Moskowitz, Gordon B.
PY - 2009/4
Y1 - 2009/4
N2 - Forming implementation intentions ("If I encounter cue X, then I will perform behavior Y!") is postulated to trigger action initiation without further conscious intent once the specified cue is encountered (Gollwitzer, 1999). In two experiments using an injustice paradigm or a categorization task, critical situations (specified in the if-component) were subliminally presented and it was tested whether these situations influenced the preparation (Study 1) and initiation (Study 2) of the planned goal-directed behavior (specified in the then-component). After the subliminal presentation of the critical situations, implementation intention participants showed stronger action preparation and a faster action initiation, as compared to control participants (Study 1) who had not formed any goal intention at all, and compared to participants (Studies 1 and 2) who had only formed goal intentions. These findings suggest that forming implementation intentions leads to automatic action initiation without further conscious intent.
AB - Forming implementation intentions ("If I encounter cue X, then I will perform behavior Y!") is postulated to trigger action initiation without further conscious intent once the specified cue is encountered (Gollwitzer, 1999). In two experiments using an injustice paradigm or a categorization task, critical situations (specified in the if-component) were subliminally presented and it was tested whether these situations influenced the preparation (Study 1) and initiation (Study 2) of the planned goal-directed behavior (specified in the then-component). After the subliminal presentation of the critical situations, implementation intention participants showed stronger action preparation and a faster action initiation, as compared to control participants (Study 1) who had not formed any goal intention at all, and compared to participants (Studies 1 and 2) who had only formed goal intentions. These findings suggest that forming implementation intentions leads to automatic action initiation without further conscious intent.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=65549164212&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=65549164212&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1521/soco.2009.27.2.183
DO - 10.1521/soco.2009.27.2.183
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:65549164212
SN - 0278-016X
VL - 27
SP - 183
EP - 201
JO - Social Cognition
JF - Social Cognition
IS - 2
ER -