Examining the Vividness Controversy: An Availability-Valence Interpretation

Abstract

The effect of vividness on attitudinal judgments is a controversial issue. Experimental evidence indicates that vividness often has no effect on attitudinal judgments; however, there is also evidence that vividness can enhance or undermine the favorableness of attitudinal judgments. In this article, the authors introduce the availability-valence hypothesis to predict and explain the effects of vividness and to account for the frequent observation of a null effect.