Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin最新文献

Repeated exposure to information increases receptivity to it, even when prior knowledge is present, according to the illusory truth effect. Fazio et al. provided empirical support for this phenomenon and proposed a model that posited dominance of fluency cues, relative to knowledge utilization. This model better elucidated participants' behaviors than an alternative model assuming precedence of knowledge processes over fluency-related mechanisms. The present research builds on this by refining models and testing them with new and existing data. While reanalysis of existing data revealed comparable performance of both models, new data from two experiments (N = 324), introducing conditions conducive to discerning between the two models, uncovered compelling evidence in support of the model that assumes knowledge processes' precedence. The discrepancy between Fazio et al. and our findings is discussed, and we encourage future research to explore avenues for resolving the relative roles of knowledge and fluency.

Geographic disparities in household indebtedness present an economic puzzle that traditional models inadequately explain. We examine whether regional psychological traits-specifically courage-help explain these differences. Analyzing data from 836,184 individuals across 1,220 U.S. counties, we tested whether areas with higher collective courage (willingness to act despite fear) exhibit higher debt-to-income ratios. Using spatial regression techniques to account for geographic clustering and controlling for sociodemographic factors and Big Five personality traits, we found that courage significantly predicted county-level debt-to-income ratios. A one standard deviation increase in regional courage was associated with a 0.22 standard deviation increase in debt-to-income-an effect that persisted across different geographic scales and modeling approaches. Courage hotspots in western and southern regions showed corresponding patterns of higher indebtedness. These findings reveal that psychological traits traditionally viewed as virtuous may have unintended economic consequences, highlighting the importance of considering regional psychology when designing financial policies and interventions.

Individuals can construe the world around them more concretely or more abstractly, with consequences for their judgments and behaviors. With five studies involving 3,963 U.S. adult participants, we test whether people hold stereotypes about the tendency for different groups to think more concretely or more abstractly. Across Studies 1 to 3, individuals report explicit and consistent construal level stereotypes about social groups in various demographic, occupational, and non-human categories. In Studies 2 and 3, we provide evidence that construal level stereotypes are correlated with, yet distinct from, stereotypes about their competence, agency, and power. In Studies 4 and 5, we offer evidence of predictive validity with two experiments showing that individuals use construal level stereotypes to inform employee selection decisions. These findings integrate and advance two major topics in social cognition: construal level theory and stereotyping. We discuss societal implications of construal level stereotypes predicting behaviors associated with discrimination in resource allocation.

The adaptation account suggests that the persistence of some traditional values in modern society is due to their enduring adaptive utility. We tested this hypothesis by examining the change of filial piety in two Confucian societies, China and Japan. By analyzing natural language data, Study 1 found that Chinese people's concern about and liking for filial piety have increased since 1979, with falling birth rate and rising elderly population as the Granger causes. By analyzing survey data from 2006 to 2017 (N = 7,283) in China, Study 2 found that reciprocal filial piety was adaptive (i.e., conducive to well-being) and increasing, whereas authoritarian filial piety was maladaptive (i.e., detrimental to well-being) and decreasing. By analyzing both Japanese language data from 1989 to 2023 (Study 3a) and survey data from 2006 to 2018 (Study 3b: N = 4,763), Study 3 replicated the main findings from China. These findings support the adaptation account of cultural persistence.

Recent years have witnessed an increased interest in personality development in childhood and adolescence. However, population-based longitudinal studies that examine self-reported personality traits and their facets during these critical developmental periods are scarce. Here, we test the disruption hypothesis, which suggests deviations from standard patterns of personality maturation during adolescence in certain personality domains. Our study extends existing knowledge by examining development and sex differences in self-reported conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism, and their facets from childhood to adolescence. Utilizing the Big Five Inventory, we collected four waves of personality data (ages 10, 12, 14, and 16 years) from a representative birth cohort of Norwegian children (N = 805). Our results predominantly support the disruption hypothesis, showing declines in conscientiousness and agreeableness across sexes from age 12, with an increase in neuroticism observed solely for girls. The findings further demonstrate that maturation disruptions vary at the facet level, suggesting a complex developmental process.

Aging is a multifaceted, personal experience rather than a one-size-fits-all journey of universal longevity desires. This study explores the lived experiences of older adults in senior living facilities, focusing on their longevity aspirations and the factors shaping them. In-depth, semi-structured interviews with 20 older adults in four Malaysian senior living facilities were analyzed using Husserl's phenomenology and Giorgi's descriptive method. Four themes emerged: balancing the desire to live long versus living well, emotional and existential reflections, hidden emotional and physical adaptations, and shifting dynamics of control over priorities and values. Findings reveal that aging is an unpredictable journey, shaped by ambiguities and uncertainties, where fulfillment does not always stem from longevity. Tailored support that honors older adults' histories, emotions, and aspirations enables aging with dignity and autonomy, guiding providers, policymakers, and caregivers to enhance quality of life to meaningfully enhance quality of life by aligning care with longevity aspirations.

Five studies (total valid N = 1,781, primarily young adults from China, with one study involving residents of the United States) were conducted to investigate the link between relationship modes (exchange vs. communal) and meaning in life. Study 1 revealed significant associations among relationship modes, dehumanization, and meaning in life. Studies 2, 3a, and 3b showed that the priming of an exchange (vs. communal) mode led to lower meaning in life, with this effect mediated by the experience of dehumanization. Moreover, Study 3a also found that individuals with higher (vs. lower) relational-interdependent self-construal were more prone to feel dehumanized in exchange relationships. In Study 4, a causal relation between the experience of dehumanization and meaning in life was confirmed through a manipulation of dehumanization. The studies illustrate how relationship modes may influence our existence as human beings and shed light on the improvement of human experience and meaning in life.

Research involving self-report methods risks volunteer bias, which can undermine validity by attracting particular participant types. What is the risk of such bias when participants choose studies on online recruitment platforms? The current study (Study 1: N = 1,595; M_age = 28.45; Study 2: N = 2,777; M_age = 31.18) examined volunteer bias in online studies, using the context of recruiting individuals for singlehood and romantic relationship research. Participants were recruited via Prolific for a study about "people's lifestyles," or "singlehood [or romantic relationships] and people's lifestyles." We assessed and compared their demographics, individual differences, feelings about singlehood/partnership, and well-being. No consistent differences emerged across recruitment framings, suggesting that advertisement wording did not selectively attract distinct Prolific participants. These data support one aspect of the validity of online singlehood and relationship research, suggesting that low-effort studies conducted on online platforms may suffer less from volunteer bias than other research recruitment strategies.

In uncertain situations, people perform physical actions through rituals to attract good fortune. Five experiments (N = 725) investigated the impacts of rituals, uncertainty, physical actions, and psychological distance on luck perception. Experiments 1A-1C examined whether performing rituals under uncertain situations influenced luck perceptions. The results showed that performing rituals increased the feeling of luck only under conditions of uncertainty, and not certainty. Experiment 2 compared the equivalent roles of different ritual movements (pulling versus pushing) and tested the mediating role of psychological distance in different rituals affecting luck perception. Experiment 3 illustrated that pulling actions increased the feeling of luck even without the ritual attribute, whereas pushing actions did not, thus explaining the mediation mechanism. Our research proposed new functions of rituals in enhancing luck perceptions and their psychological mechanisms and underscored the role of uncertain situations and actions in rituals that influence luck perceptions.

The principle of impartial beneficence (IB) holds that we should strive to maximize others' well-being regardless of their relationship to us. But does endorsement of IB in principle translate to more uniform concern for others irrespective of relationship type? Three pre-registered studies in online samples of U.S. participants (total N=1,716) found IB endorsement predicts greater and more uniform concern for others across social relationships varying in social distance: in care prescriptions (Study 1), as well as blame judgments (Study 2) and guilt expressions (Study 3) when care norms are violated or care is not provided. Heightened concern for others in socially distant relationships was not "offset" by less concern for those in close ones. IB was not associated with a motive to be generally admired, but was linked to a motive to form communal relationships. Across different types of moral judgments, a commitment to IB thus entails caring much more than average about the well-being of socially distant others, while maintaining a high level of concern for socially close ones.