Says Who? Credibility Effects in Self-Verification Strivings. (May 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Szumowska, Ewa; Wójcik, Natalia; Szwed, Paulina; Kruglanski, Arie W.
• Is Part Of: Psychological science. Volume 33:Number 5(2022)
• Page Start: 699
• Page End: 715
• Publication Date: 2022-05
• Subjects: self-verification -- feedback -- credibility -- epistemic authority -- self-view -- open data -- open materials -- preregistered; Psychology -- Periodicals; 150.5
• DOI: 10.1177/09567976211049439
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0956-7976

Abstract

Research shows that people prefer self-consistent over self-discrepant feedback—the self-verification effect . It is not clear, however, whether the effect stems from striving for self-verification or from the preference for subjectively accurate information. We argue that people prefer self-verifying feedback because they find it to be more accurate than self-discrepant feedback. We thus experimentally manipulated feedback credibility by providing information on its source: a student (control condition) or an experienced psychologist (experimental condition). In line with our expectations, the results of two preregistered studies with 342 adults showed that people preferred self-verifying feedback only in the control condition. In the experimental condition, the effect disappeared (or reversed, in Study 1). Study 2 showed that individual differences in credibility (epistemic authority) ascribed to the self and to psychologists matter as well. These findings suggest that feedback credibility, rather than the desire for self-verification, often drives the self-verification effect.