The MIME focuses on narratives that feature moral conflict (i.e., instances wherein one moral intuition must be violated to uphold another). The model describes how the comparative potency of narrative cues that exemplify these intuitions can make one more prominent than another. It refers to the relative potency of these narrative cues as comparative narrative intuition exemplar prominence (C-NIEP). According to the MIME, C-NIEP positively affects (increases) attention to more prominent (i.e., superordinate) intuitions and negatively affects (decreases) attention to less prominent (i.e., subordinate) intuitions. The model also distinguishes different degrees of C-NIEP, which it refers to as dominant (wherein the one intuition is so prominent that it blocks out the other) and overriding (where both intuitions are prominent, but one more than another). According to the model, dominant C-NIEP degree strengthens the positive and negative effects of C-NIEP on attention to superordinate and subordinate intuitions. Subsequently, attention to superordinate and subordinate intuitions affects various dimensions of appraisal.The current study presented a heuristic model describing that C-NIEP degree (dominant vs. overriding) moderated the effect of C-NIEP on attention to superordinate and subordinate intuitions (or, their exemplars), and attention subsequently effected narrative appraisal. The model was analyzed in two separate parts. The front half examined the MIME's prediction that C-NIEP and C-NIEP degree would interact to moderate audience attention to both superordinate and subordinate intuition exemplars. The back half explored the role of attention to superordinate and subordinate intuition exemplars in determining audience story appraisals.Findings provided initial support for assertions that C-NIEP degree moderates C-NIEP's ability to influence attention as predicted. Patterns indicated that dominant C-NIEP degree increased both the positive effect of C-NIEP on attention to superordinate intuition exemplars and the negative effect of attention to subordinate intuition exemplars. This finding is in line with the predicted model. These results provide first evidence supporting the MIME's description of how C-NIEP and C-NIEP degree interact to focus or curtail attention to exemplars germane to superordinate or subordinate intuitions in conflict. Consistent with expectations, dominant C-NIEP degree strengthened the positive effect of C-NIEP on gaze proportion (which is associated with the selection mechanism) and on recognition (which is associated with preconscious memory) for the superordinate intuition. Concurrently, in line with expectations, dominant C-NIEP degree strengthened the negative effect of C-NIEP on gaze proportion, such that under conditions of dominant intuition prominence, participants spent less time looking at regions of the screen associated with the subordinate intuition.The result of tests on the back half of the model provided several outcomes in line with predictions, however, the findings generally fail to provide strong support for this part of the model's predictions. Potential implications of this are detailed in the body of the manuscript. Finally, the direct effects of C-NIEP degree on attention and appraisal were examined. These findings focused mainly on attention. The current findings largely support expectations regarding attention, showing direct effects consistent with C-NIEP degree's expected influence. After discussing these and other findings of this study, application to theory and the potential social relevance of these outcomes are discussed.
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