Do textual features affect credibility judgment? It all depends on who is the judge

This study examined the moderating role of absorption (a disposition associated with vivid imagination and rich mental experiences) in the process of interpersonal reality monitoring. Seventy five participants were assessed for absorption, and read a text describing an event that was either rich or poor in perceptual-emotional-contextual detail. They were asked to assess the credibility of the narrator; that is, the likelihood that he or she had actually experienced the event. For a text poor in detail, high-absorption individuals believed the narrator more than low-absorption individuals, whereas for a text rich in detail, no group differences appeared. The data seem to suggest that for high-absorption individuals, credibility judgment depends on the degree to which the text can be assimilated into their own vivid imagination. Consideration of the judges' characteristics might therefore bring about a better understanding of the biases and errors involved in interpersonal reality monitoring.