ONLINE AND MEMORY-BASED ASPECTS OF INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP TARGET JUDGMENTS

Ss were given instruction sets to induce either on-line or memory-base d processing while reading behavioral statements about individual and group targets. Impression-set instructions induced on-line judgments, and comprehensibility-set (comp) instructions induced memory-based jud gments regardless of target type. More important, with nondirective in structions (memory set), natural differences in processing information about individuals and groups were observed, with more on-line judgmen ts for individuals. As expected, illusory correlations between minorit y targets and infrequent behaviors (a memory-based product) emerged wi th comp instructions (which induced memory-based judgments for both ta rget types) and in the memory-set condition for group targets only. Th ese data provide insights into the differences in impression formation for groups and individuals and furnish direct evidence of the process es responsible for illusory correlations.