Events are topics of discussion in many conversations. We focus on what occurred, who did what to whom, and how the event affected our feelings. Combining all of these pieces of information helps us form overall impressions, this is referred to as impression formation. Impression formation is crucial in understanding relationships, alongside understanding the social world we live in.

 Research has tried to understand whether individuals form impressions of events algebraically or based on schemas. Anderson (1965) proposed impressions are formed algebraically by assigning numeric values to a person’s traits, adding the scores and combining them to decide on the overall likeability of the person. In contrast, Hansen (1989) proposed impressions are formed based on schemas; as an individual seeks to form an impression of another person, the impression made previously influences the individual’s interpretation of the later information.

The aim of the study is to explore both theories to understand whether people form impressions of events based algebraically or on schemas.