FlashReport The effect of distance-dependent construals on schema-driven impression formation Tal Eyal a, ⁎, Gina M. Hoover b , Kentaro Fujita b , Shiri Nussbaum c a Ben Gurion University, Israel b The Ohio State University, USA c The Open University, Israel abstract article info Article history: Received 25 July 2010 Revised 2 October 2010 Available online 8 October 2010 Keywords: Primacy effect Trait aggregation Impression formation Schematic processing Construal level Temporal distance Two experiments examine how distance-dependent construal can affect trait aggregation in impression formation. We propose that, because higher- versus lower-level construals promote the tendency to impose schematic structure on information processing, higher-level construals should enhance schema-driven trait aggregation. We test this by examining a classic impression formation phenomenon: the primacy effect (Asch, 1946). Increasing temporal distance (Study 1a) and priming higher-level construals (Study 1b) led participants to form more favorable impressions of targets described initially as intelligent versus envious. Decreasing temporal distance and priming lower-level construals, in contrast, reversed the primacy effect. Thus, the distance of a target, with its associated construal, can impact the aggregation of traits and consequently impacts people's evaluations of others. © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. We all form impressions of others frequently and with ease (Asch, 1946; Fiske, Cuddy, & Glick, 2007). These impressions are often based on bits of information, usually about a person's traits. Knowing, for example, that a person is intelligent yet impatient may be sufficient in creating a coherent (although not necessarily accurate) impression. Much of impression formation research examines how people combine trait information to form general impressions of others (Anderson, 1965; Asch, 1946; Hamilton & Zanna, 1974). This research indicates that trait aggregation processes are often schema-driven. That is, they begin with the activation of a schema, which guides subsequent information processing about target individuals. In this research, we examine a classic schema-driven trait aggregation phenomenon: the primacy effect. We propose that, as distance-dependent construal systematically impacts schematic versus piecemeal information processing, the primacy effect should be sensitive to changes in construal. Primacy effect The primacy effect refers to the tendency to form impressions that are more sensitive to the valence of the first (versus last) trait of a sequence. In classic studies by Asch et al. (Asch, 1946; Hamilton & Zanna, 1974), when positive traits (e.g., intelligent) were presented first followed by less positive traits (e.g., envious), participants formed a more favorable impression of the target than when the order was reversed. Several accounts have been offered to explain the effect. According to a “change of meaning” interpretation (Asch, 1946), initially encountered traits establish a preliminary impression which then shifts the meaning of the other traits to be consistent with the meaning of the initial traits. Thus, when positive traits are presented first, they make the more negative traits that follow seem less negative, and when negative traits are presented first, they make the following positive traits seem less positive (Hamilton & Zanna, 1974). Another interpretation attributes primacy effect to inconsistency discounting (Anderson & Jacobson, 1965). Perceivers give lower weight to traits (e.g., envious) that are inconsistent with preceding traits (e.g., intelligent). A third interpreta- tion suggests a progressive decrease in attention over traits presented in a series (Anderson, 1981; Dreben, Fiske, & Hastie, 1979). Once perceivers feel they have formed an accurate impression, they tend to pay less attention to subsequent information. Notably, this interpreta- tion can also account for the reversed effect (i.e., recency effect)—when attention is drawn to each trait separately, people tend to be more sensitive to the last (versus first) trait (Hendrick & Costantini, 1970). Although these three interpretations propose different cognitive processes, all imply that trait order effects in impression formation are schema-driven. Traits encountered initially create schematic expecta- tions about targets (Brewer, Feinstein, & Harsty, 1999; Edwards & Weary, 1993; Taylor, Crocker, & D'Agostino, 1978; Schul, 1983; White & Carlston, 1983). These expectations further organize remaining traits into a coherent impression, imbuing meaning to these traits and shifting attention to some traits over others. Piecemeal processing, by contrast, proceeds by a “bottom-up” approach, leading to a more attribute-by- attribute analysis and better recall of traits encountered last. We propose that, as a schema-driven phenomenon, the primacy effect should be sensitive to distance-dependent construals. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 47 (2011) 278–281 ⁎ Corresponding author. Ben Gurion University, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel. Fax: + 972 8 647 2070. E-mail address: taleyal@bgu.ac.il (T. Eyal). 0022-1031/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2010.10.007 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Experimental Social Psychology journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jesp