The Effects of Locomotion, Assessment and Expertise on Judgments

Three studies are conducted to examine the moderating effect of expertise on the processing of information that is formatted either to convey a perception of movement from state to state (locomotion) or to allow comparisons and comprehensive evaluation (assessment). In Study 1, we find that experts are more favorable toward a target object when the presentation involves a locomotion (sequential presentation of information) rather than an assessment means of goal pursuit (same information presented all at once), whereas the opposite is observed for novices. This finding is robust across different manipulations of locomotion and assessment. These outcomes offer evidence that a fit between an individual's orientation and a means of goal pursuit prompts a subjective experience of feeling right that is transferred to the message advocacy.