Impression Formation
Each concept that is in play in a situation has a transient affective meaning in addition to an associated sentiment. The transient corresponds to an impression created by recent events.
Events modify impressions on all three EPA dimensions in complex ways that are described with non-linear equations obtained through empirical studies.
Here are two examples of impression-formation processes.
- An actor who behaves disagreeably seems less good, especially if the object of the behavior is innocent and powerless, like a child.
- A powerful person seems desperate when performing extremely forceful acts on another, and the object person may seem invincible.
A social action creates impressions of the actor, the object person, the behavior, and the setting.
Read more about this topic: Affect Control Theory
Famous quotes containing the words impression and/or formation:
“Each of us is full of too many wheels, screws and valves to permit us to judge one another on a first impression or by two or three external signs.”
—Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)
“It is because the body is a machine that education is possible. Education is the formation of habits, a superinducing of an artificial organisation upon the natural organisation of the body.”
—Thomas Henry Huxley (1825–1895)