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Huneke, Mark

Psychology

2012

M.A.

Researchers have shown that I-Sharing, the belief that one has shared the same subjective experience as another, increases interpersonal attraction (Pinel, Long, Landau, Alexander, & Pyszczynski, 2006). Pinel and colleagues (2006) posited that simultaneous identical reactions to the same stimulus provide the most foolproof cue that one has had the same subjective experience as another. The current study tested whether delays in feedback affect the interpretation of subjective similarity information, and investigated the mechanism by which such an effect might occur. One hypothesized mechanism was that delays in feedback would put one in an altered subjective state as compared to what one's previous state was, thereby reducing feelings of subjective similarity. Another hypothesized mechanism was that delays in feedback would increase suspicions of a partner's deception, reducing the belief that one has truly I-Shared. The current study varied how subjectively similar an ostensible partner appeared, whether a participant received similarity feedback after a long delay or very brief delay, and whether his or her suspicions were reduced or not. Results showed support for the influence of I-Sharing in promoting interpersonal attraction, but did not provide support for either of the delay hypotheses.