How do implicit effects of subliminal mere exposure become explicit? Mediating effects of social interaction

Abstract

Recent studies have shown that the mere exposure effect under subliminal conditions is more likely to occur for implicit attitudes than for explicit attitudes. We tested whether the implicit effects of subliminal mere exposure could spill over to the explicit level through social interaction. Preliminary experiment replicated the findings that the subliminal mere exposure effect occurs only for implicit attitudes, and not for explicit attitudes. Main experiment showed that this implicit effect could become explicit through discussion between two individuals who had been subliminally exposed to the same stimuli. However, this transformation of attitudes through social interaction did not occur when the two individuals were exposed to different stimuli. Implications were discussed in terms of justification through social interaction.