The following processes are followed while forming impressions.
(A) The selected information is combined in a systematic manner
(B) The person who forms the impression is the perceiver and individual about whom the impression is formed is the target
(C) We draw conclusion about what kind of a person the target is
(D) We take into account only some bits of information about the target
Choose the correct answer from the options given below :
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → (B), (D), (A), (C)
(B) The person who forms the impression is the perceiver and individual about whom the impression is formed is the target — first come the two people involved: the perceiver gathers information about the qualities of the target, organises it and draws inferences.
(D) We take into account only some bits of information about the target — the first sub-process is selection: only some bits of information about the target person are taken into account.
(A) The selected information is combined in a systematic manner — the second is organisation: the selected information is combined in a systematic way.
(C) We draw conclusion about what kind of a person the target is — the third is inference: we draw a conclusion about what kind of person the target is.
Note: The section on impression formation was there in the chapter ‘Attitude and Social Cognition’ of the pre-rationalised NCERT, which NTA followed in 2023, and is not there in the NCERT book (2025-26).
NCERT (Pre-rationalised): “Impression Formation and Explaining Behaviour of Others Through Attributions … The person who forms the impression is called the perceiver. The individual about whom the impression is formed is called the target. The perceiver gathers information, or responds to a given information, about the qualities of the target, organises this information, and draws inferences about the target.…” “Impression Formation … The process of impression formation consists of the following three subprocesses :
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