Incidental Haptic Stimulation in the Context of Flirt Behavior

Conducting Meta-Analyses Based on p Values: Reservations and Recommendations for Applying p-Uniform and p-Curve

Because of overwhelming evidence of publication bias in psychology, techniques to correct meta-analytic estimates for such bias are greatly needed. The methodology on which the p-uniform and p-curve methods are based has great promise for providing accurate meta-analytic estimates in the presence of publication bias. However, in this article, we show that in some situations, p-curve behaves erratically, whereas p-uniform may yield implausible estimates of negative effect size. Moreover, we show that (and explain why) p-curve and p-uniform result in overestimation of effect size under moderate-to-large heterogeneity and may yield unpredictable bias when researchers employ p-hacking. We offer hands-on recommendations on applying and interpreting results of meta-analyses in general and p-uniform and p-curve in particular. Both methods as well as traditional methods are applied to a meta-analysis on the effect of weight on judgments of importance. We offer guidance for applying p-uniform or p-curve using R and a user-friendly web application for applying p-uniform.

Embodied information affects judgements about politicians: The impact of haptic weight sensations and hand cleansing

Politicians' characteristics attract voters' attention and dominate impression formation. Thereby, social judgements are deduced from different information being available in a certain situation. The literature suggests that incidental bodily sensations can influence judgement processes. Here, two bodily treatments-the haptic sensation of weight and the act of hand cleansing-simultaneously contribute to judgements about politicians. This study expands previous works by (a) investigating potential interactions of two haptic information cues, (b) providing evidence for the significant role of conceptual closeness between embodied cues and judgement dimensions, (c) showing that hand cleansing leads to harsher moral judgements independently of whether a misconduct has been committed or not, and (d) showing that the familiarity of the target to be judged does not moderate the effect of embodied information. The results demonstrate that judgements can be modulated by basal sensorimotor experiences. We discuss implications and the important issue of result generalisation and replicability.

No Effect of Weight on Judgments of Importance in the Moral Domain and Evidence of Publication Bias from a Meta-Analysis

In different cultures, people use the concept of weight to refer to important matters. Recent studies in grounded cognition suggested that experiences of weight affect unrelated judgments of importance in metaphor-congruent ways. Theories in grounded cognition and prime-to-behavior effects state that sensations of weight activate concepts of importance, which may affect morality-related variables that are influenced by judgments of importance. The present research aimed to test the effect of carrying a heavy (or light) clipboard on the perceived importance of helping and on the judged severity of moral transgressions. After finding no significant effects in two experiments, a third study explored whether these results were due to a specific lack of effect of weight on morality-related variables or to the concept of importance not being grounded in sensations of weight in Brazilian samples. Specifically, in Study 3 we attempted to replicate two seminal studies but found no significant effects. Together with evidence of publication bias in a meta-analysis of published studies, the current results suggest that the concept of importance may not be as universally grounded in sensations of weight as previously assumed. We discuss the implications of these results for grounded cognition theories and methodological and statistical aspects of priming studies.

A weighty matter: heaviness influences the evaluation of disease severity, drug effectiveness, and side effects

Peoples' perception of diseases and pharmaceutical drugs is a critical issue in health research. Beliefs about disease severity influence the compliance with recommendations for convalescence and the motivation to perform proper health-behavior. The estimated effectiveness of drugs and severity of side effects influence medication adherence and contribute to placebo effects. The present paper closes the gap between these effects and the concept of embodied cognition from a metaphor-enriched perspective. In five studies, we demonstrate that the bodily sensation of weight influences our evaluations of diseases and drugs. The experience of heaviness enhanced the estimated seriousness of diseases and the estimated effectiveness of drugs. The perceived seriousness of drug side effects was also affected by weight but only when drug effectiveness was not attended to. Moreover, the incidental sensation of weight shows a novel effect when evaluating weight-related drugs. The results are in line with the idea of embodied metaphors and reveal important boundary conditions which contribute to a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms.