The impact of accuracy motivation on interpretation, comparison, and correction processes: accuracy x knowledge...

Four studies provide evidence for the notion that there may be boundaries to the extent to which accuracy motivation may help perceivers to escape the influence of fortuitously activated information. Specifically, although accuracy motivations may eliminate assimilative accessibility effects, they are less likely to eliminate contrastive accessibility effects. It was found that the occurrence of different types of contrast effects (comparison and correction) was not significantly affected by participants' accuracy motivations. Furthermore, it was found that the mechanisms instigated by accuracy motivations differ from those ignited by correction instructions: Accuracy motivations attenuate assimilation effects because perceivers add target interpretations to the one suggested by primed information. Conversely, it was found that correction instructions yield contrast and prompt respondents to remove the priming event's influence from their reaction to the target.