The evaluation-behavior link revisited: It depends on the question you have in mind

Abstract

The existence of a close, if not direct, link between evaluation and action is widely assumed in the literature. Supporting this view, studies have shown that approach movements are executed faster in response to positive than negative stimuli, whereas avoidance responses are faster in response to negative than to positive stimuli (the often called “Approach/Avoidance—AA—compatibility effect”). However, this view has been challenged by proposals suggesting that this effect could be at least partially due to the use of affective information to answer the prevalent question individuals have in mind during the task. Consistent with these proposals, we report four preregistered studies showing that the AA compatibility effect can be moderated and even reversed by manipulating the question participants have in mind while doing an approach/avoidance task. In addition, results of a fifth experiment revealed that the AA compatibility effect emerged essentially among participants who reported simplifying the task by asking themselves whether they should approach (vs. not). These results suggest that the evaluation-action link is less direct than assumed and may be underlain by high-level cognitive processes.