Arousal and Attraction: Evidence for Automatic and Controlled Processes

  • Study Overview

    • Authors: Craig A. Foster, Betty S. Witcher, W. Keith Campbell, and Jeffrey D. Green
    • Published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (1998)
    • Examines the interplay between arousal and attraction through meta-analysis, reviews, and experiments.

  • Key Findings

    • Arousal influences attraction regardless of clarity about the source of arousal.
    • Ambiguous sources of arousal lead to stronger attraction effects.
    • Proposes a Judgment and Adjustment Model:
      • Arousal automatically influences attraction judgments.
      • Individuals may adjust their attraction assessments based on their awareness of the arousal source.

  • Theoretical Frameworks

    • Misattribution Theory (Dutton & Aron, 1974):
      • Physiological arousal can be misattributed to an individual, enhancing attraction.
    • Negative-Reinforcement Theory (Kenrick & Cialdini, 1977):
      • Attraction may increase when the presence of another person alleviates fear-based arousal.
    • Response-Facilitation Theory (Allen et al., 1989):
      • Arousal heightens dominant responses of attraction toward attractive individuals in an arousing context.

  • Example Experiment - Meyer on the Bridge

    • A story illustrating how arousal (fear from crossing a swaying bridge) heightened attraction to an attractive woman.
    • Original study by Dutton and Aron (1974) indicated heightened attraction to women in arousing scenarios.

  • Meta-Analysis Methodology

    • Analysis of 33 experiments involving 1,232 participants, examining the effects of arousal on attraction measures (romantic attraction, physical attractiveness, and liking).
    • Variables examined:
      • Arousal Source Ambiguity: Clarity about the arousal source influences attraction.
      • Target Attractiveness: Physical attractiveness of the subject influences feelings of attraction.
      • Arousal Type: Induction through fear, exercise, or sexual stimuli affects attraction differently.

  • Predictions by Theories

    • Misattribution Theory: Arousal should universally influence attraction and target sex should moderate attraction impacts.
    • Negative-Reinforcement Theory: Attraction should increase when negative feelings are reduced by an attractive target.
    • Response-Facilitation Theory: Arousal increases attraction no matter the type or clarity of source.

  • Results Overview

    • Arousal increased attraction to attractive targets; decreased attraction to unattractive targets.
    • Attraction effects held true in both ambiguous (fear, stress) and unambiguous contexts (exercising).
    • Distinct influences based on target sex and the specifics of how arousal was induced.

  • Judgment and Adjustment Model

    • Two stages:
      • Judgment Stage: Automatic attraction responses triggered by arousal.
      • Adjustment Stage: Cognitive corrections based on awareness of the arousal's influence.
    • Adjustment depends on awareness, motivation, and cognitive capability to evaluate attraction independently from arousal.

  • Conclusions

    • Arousal's effect on attraction is automatic, but cognitive adjustments can moderate this influence.
    • Provides a framework to reconcile findings from experiments with different arousal contexts.
    • Future research will further explore the complexities of the arousal-attraction link and refine existing theories.