The elusive weapons effect: Demand awareness, evaluation apprehension, and slightly sophisticated subjects.

Abstract

Predicted that the L. Berkowitz and A. Lepage weapons effect could be accounted for by awareness and cooperation with the aggression-revenge purpose of the guns. 2 replication attempts with male undergraduates (n = 88) failed. A 3rd experiment with 65 ss was successful. The effect was obtained only with slightly sophisticated ss who were aware of the purpose of the guns. Aware ss who were apparently experiencing little evaluation apprehension cooperated with the hypothesis. Those awares who did experience evaluation apprehension did not act in accordance with the hypothesis. It is concluded that there is a complex interplay between sophistication, demand awareness, and evaluation apprehension in experiments designed to study a negative behavior. The weapons experiment is not evidence for the conditioning theory and cannot be generalized to nonlaboratory situations. (23 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)