Journal of Social Psychology最新文献

Solitude is often stigmatized, yet research suggests intentional time alone can be beneficial. This research tests "Solitude Crafting," a novel two-part intervention to reshape emerging adults' experiences by de-stigmatizing solitude and guiding meaningful solitary activities. Pilot study (N = 120) assessed the intervention's feasibility and impact over five days. The full study (N = 75) tested the intervention, examining Solitude Crafting alongside a comparison time point in a staggered, within-subject design. Results indicated post-intervention improvements in emotional well-being, with participants attributing these benefits to the intervention. Our findings present Solitude Crafting as a promising avenue for reframing attitudes toward solitude and enhancing well-being when alone.

The Attachment Security Enhancement Model proposes that a romantic partner reassuring an anxiously attached person of their commitment can help deescalate negative feelings (i.e. an interpersonal process). However, this can be taxing on the partner and requires the anxious person to accurately detect the partner's buffering attempts. Instead, it may be beneficial for anxious people to consistently perceive greater partner commitment on their own (i.e. an intrapersonal process) to promote relationship quality. The current study incorporated a dyadic diary design. On days in which highly anxious participants perceived greater partner commitment, they reported greater positive relationship feelings; less anxious (i.e. secure) and avoidant participants did not exhibit this pattern. These results add to the existing literature on attachment buffering by providing preliminary evidence of daily perceived partner commitment as one possible defense against erosion of relationship satisfaction due to high levels of attachment anxiety.

The "Complexo de Vira-Lata" (CVL) is a unique, special, and extreme form of ingroup bias in which Brazilians behave as if they want to antithetically devalue their national ingroup. In this research, we investigate how the CVL contributes to understanding corruption perception among Brazilians. Across two studies (Study 1: n = 162; Study 2: n = 1200), we found that participants showed a CVL effect by consistently perceiving Brazil as more corrupt than European (Studies 1 and 2) and African countries (Study 2). Moreover, this effect was enhanced in participants who endorsed the "Brazilian jeitinho" (a behavioral strategy often used for social navigation) and diminished in participants with stronger national identification. These results suggest that CVL is relevant for understanding perceptions of corruption in Brazil.

Many Americans report having a concealable stigmatized identity (CSI) - when one belongs to a group that is devalued by society, but membership can be hidden - which is linked with poor health outcomes. One factor consistently linked with poor health among people with CSIs is anticipated stigma. The current study uses structural equation modeling to examine how responses to anticipated stigma (shame, spontaneous self-affirmation) explain the relationship between anticipated stigma and poor health. Using students from a large Midwestern University (N = 314), our model demonstrated that anticipated stigma was indirectly associated with poor health (i.e. psychological and physical quality of life, emotional eating) through shame. Spontaneous self-affirmation was associated with positive health outcomes but was not a significant mediator. This model illustrates the importance of shame and spontaneous self-affirmation as mechanisms of stigma to health relationship among individuals with CSIs, and provides potential targets (shame, spontaneous self-affirmation) for future work.

In a sample of White Americans, we employed a person-centered approach to identify patterns of stress-related appraisals that disentangle interracial anxiety from general social anxiety and help investigate the role of secondary appraisals in promoting positive interracial attitudes and interactions. Three latent profiles emerged: low stress, characterized by low stress-related appraisals across all contexts; high stress, characterized by heightened stress-related appraisals across all contexts; and discrepancy, which appraised the interracial interaction as less stressful than other contexts. Profiles differed in cognitive resources relevant to coping with interracial contact, performance orientation, and attitudes toward immigrants, but not interracial interaction frequency.

The current study investigated which causal beliefs for socioeconomic status (SES) attainment map onto endorsement of noblesse oblige ;(i.e. the belief that powerful others are obligated to give back). Noblesse oblige endorsement was positively associated with opportunity belief (i.e. opportunity drives SES attainment) but not merit belief (i.e. merit drives SES attainment) or chance belief (i.e. chance drives SES attainment) (Study 1; n = 562). Studies 2 (n = 679) and 3 (n = 327) likewise showed that characters who attained their SES through opportunity were perceived as more noblesse obliged than merited characters. These findings suggest that beliefs about status attainment shape perceptions of obligation, informing how public figures and institutions manage social expectations.

People's habitual cognitive emotion regulation (CER) strategies have been shown to affect well-being, but their role in naturalistic face-to-face interactions remains underexplored. The present study investigated the role of CER styles in predicting self-reported and observer-rated social and affective outcomes in a sample of 152 undergraduate students who interacted either with a friendly or unfriendly confederate. Results showed that participants with more adaptive CER strategies reported higher positive affect and social competence and showed more positive social behavior across conditions. Neither condition or emotion recognition ability (ERA) interacted with CER, but higher ERA appeared to intensify negative effects of maladaptive CER on affect in a three-way interaction with condition. Exploratory analyses of specific CER strategies, like positive refocusing, suggest that difficulties in applying distancing strategies could explain these findings. This study supports the beneficial impact of adaptive CER in naturalistic social interactions and implies intricate mechanisms of different emotional competencies.

Past research on tolerance has often focused on tolerance toward specific political or social groups. In the present research, we introduce a general tolerant attitude measure tapping tolerant attitudes toward dissenting others which can be used in wide variety of contexts. Moreover, we investigated for which individuals it is easier to have a tolerant attitude and compared different entitlement beliefs (the perception of having the same (i.e. self-respect), of having more and of having fewer rights than others) as predictors. Study 1, (N = 308) using a cross-sectional design, revealed that self-respect was positively associated with a tolerant attitude over and above other entitlement perceptions (having more or fewer rights). In Study 2 (N = 642), using a longitudinal cross-lagged panel model we demonstrated that self-respect predicted a tolerant attitude six months later. Unexpectedly, having a tolerant attitude toward dissenting others also predicted self-respect (i.e. one's perception of being equal to others) over time. We discuss the potential of fostering self-respect for individuals and societies, where self-respect and tolerant attitudes might reinforce each other.

To some, measures to curb COVID-19 were reasonable and prudent; to others, they were unacceptable signs of losing a more symbolic battle. We propose that such symbolic thinking is key to how people perceive reality. We report three studies (total N = 5535 across eight countries, conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic) linking what we term Symbolic Show of Strength (SSS) in the context of COVID (SSS-COVID) with several important outcomes. Across countries, SSS-COVID was the strongest predictor of perception of COVID-19's danger, attitudes toward vaccines, and belief in COVID-related misinformation in multiple regressions taking into a host of other reasoning and sociopolitical variables. In a fourth study (N = 430) we adapt the concept to attitudes toward cryptocurrency, with SSS-Crypto uniquely predicting perceived risk of cryptocurrency, general conspiracy beliefs, and preferences for autocratic government. Our results also suggest that SSS shapes perceptions of products, marketing ethics, and symbols more broadly.

We investigate whether exposure to a woman who expresses anger about gender inequality is negatively evaluated and undermines collective action for gender equality. Research suggests that women are derogated when they express anger because this emotion violates feminine social norms and communal gender roles. Across two studies (Study 1 N = 227; Study 2 N = 254), participants were exposed to a speech from a woman political candidate discussing gender inequality. Participants evaluated the candidate more negatively, and were less willing to engage in collective action with her when she expressed anger about gender inequality compared to no anger. We also examined whether this finding could be attenuated when the candidate expressed anger about gender inequality for communal reasons and found partial support. Our findings suggest that we need to tackle the narrow expectations of what it means to be a woman to facilitate collective action for greater gender equality.