Incidental Haptic Sensations May Not Influence Social Judgments: A Purely Confirmatory Replication Attempt of Study 1 by Ackerman, Nocera, & Bargh (2010)

This preregistered replication attempt focuses on the finding from Ackerman, Nocera, and Bargh (2010; ANB) that holding a heavy object triggers concepts related to importance. ANB reported that participants who were holding a heavy clipboard rated a job candidate as better overall and more seriously interested in the job than participants holding a light clipboard. We failed to replicate ANB's results; instead, Bayes factor hypothesis tests indicated evidence for the absence of a difference between the heavy and the light condition in the overall evaluation and perceived seriousness of the candidate, and in participants' perceived task importance. Our findings highlight the importance of conducting preregistered replication research and illustrate the theoretical and practical advantages of Bayesian inference in psychological research.