Wednesday, December 20, 2017

Wiser reasoning appeared in conjunction with greater (vs. lower) emotionality, especially the recognition of a greater number of present emotions and greater balance of intensity across experienced emotions

Grossmann, Igor, and Harrison Oakes. 2017. “Wisdom of Yoda and Mr. Spock: The Role of Emotions and the Self”. PsyArXiv. December 21. psyarxiv.com/jy5em

Abstract: A distanced perspective and downregulated emotions are commonly viewed as central to wiser reflection on adverse experiences. The latter belief stands in contrast to the possibility that recognizing and balancing emotional diversity conveys critical insights for navigating adversity. A series of experiments (N=1,574) addressed these hypotheses, examining how wise reasoning about experienced interpersonal conflict related to presence, intensity, and balance of emotions, experimentally varying participants’ perspective (3rd- vs. 1st-person). Across the studies, including pre-registered direct replications, a 3rd- (vs. 1st-) person perspective led to wiser reasoning. Notably, wiser reasoning appeared in conjunction with greater (vs. lower) emotionality, especially the recognition of a greater number of present emotions and greater balance of intensity across experienced emotions. Together, these results demonstrate wisdom boosts in the face of experienced adversity, simultaneously suggesting that wisdom does not require the elimination of emotions. Instead, wise reflection benefits from a rich and balanced emotional life.

Parents of daughters, whether unborn or recently born, are shown to be almost twice as risk-averse as parents of sons

Female Babies and Risk-Aversion. Ganna Pogrebna, Andrew J. Oswald, David Haig.
IZA Institute of Labor Economics, Discussion Paper No. 10717. http://legacy.iza.org/en/webcontent/publications/papers/viewAbstract?dp_id=10717

Abstract: Being told the sex of your unborn child is a major exogenous 'shock'. In the first study of its kind, we collect before-and-after data from hospital wards. We test for the causal effects of learning child gender upon people's degree of risk-aversion. Using a standard Holt-Laury criterion, the parents of daughters, whether unborn or recently born, are shown to be almost twice as risk-averse as parents of sons. The study demonstrates this in longitudinal ('switching') data and cross-sectional data. The study finds it for fathers and mothers, babies in the womb and recently born children, and for a West European nation and an East European nation.

Keywords: pregnancy, risk attitudes, daughters, child gender, Trivers-Willard hypothesis

Joy is a distinct positive emotion: Assessment of joy and relationship to gratitude and well-being

Joy is a distinct positive emotion: Assessment of joy and relationship to gratitude and well-being. Philip C. Watkins, Robert A. Emmons, Madeline R. Greaves & Joshua Bell. The Journal of Positive Psychology, https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2017.1414298

Abstract: In three studies we investigated joy and its relationship to subjective well-being (SWB). We developed measures of joy based on recent conceptualizations of joy in the humanities and social sciences. In Studies 1 and 2 we developed reliable measures of state and trait joy. In Study 3 we used a two-month prospective design to investigate the relationship of joy to gratitude and SWB. We found that dispositional gratitude predicted increases in state joy over time. We also found that trait joy predicted increases in state gratitude, providing evidence for an intriguing upward spiral between joy and gratitude. Finally, we found that trait joy was associated with increases in SWB over time. Factor analyses indicated that joy loaded separately from other positive emotions. We conclude that joy is a discrete positive emotion, it can be measured reliably with self-report instruments, and that it may be an important component of well-being.

Keywords: Joy, gratitude, subjective well-being, happiness

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We have seen that joy is not constrained to non-material pleasures. But what is the spiritual dynamic of joy? Much work remains to be done on this front, but in our studies we found small to moderate relationships between joy and spiritual well-being and gratitude to God. Thus, there is clearly a spiritual dimension to joy, in the words of C.S. Lewis, ‘Joy is the serious business of Heaven’ (1963, p. 93). The correlations between gratitude to God and joy support our suggestion that when a good object is experienced as a divine gift, joy is more likely, but clearly our results are far from definitive on this issue. We propose, along with Lewis (1955) and Nietzsche, that the spiritual dimension of joy may be in that it promotes spiritual longing – a longing for the transcendent. In Nietzsche’s words (2006, p. 264):
Yet all joy wants eternity –
    – Wants deep, deep, eternity.
In sum, we propose that the experience of joy is enhanced when there is a perceived spiritual purpose to the joy object, and that a spiritual thought/action tendency of joy is that it promotes a desire for the transcendent.

Assessing Intentional Resume Deception: Development and Nomological Network of a Resume Fraud Measure

Assessing Intentional Resume Deception: Development and Nomological Network of a Resume Fraud Measure. Christine A. Henle, Brian R. Dineen, Michelle K. Duffy. Journal of Business and Psychology, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10869-017-9527-4

Abstract: Resume fraud is pervasive and has detrimental consequences, but researchers lack a way to study it. We develop and validate a measure for empirically investigating resume misrepresentations purposely designed to mislead recruiters. In study 1, an initial set of items designed to measure three theorized resume fraud dimensions (fabrication, embellishment, omission) are rated for content validity. In study 2, job seekers complete the measure and its factor structure is evaluated. In study 3, another sample of job seekers is surveyed to verify the measure’s factor structure and to provide evidence regarding construct validity. In study 4, working adults who recently conducted a job search are surveyed to determine which individuals are more likely to commit resume fraud and whether resume fraud relates to critical work behaviors. We confirm the three-factor structure of our measure and offer evidence of construct validity by showing that socially desirable responding, Machiavellianism, moral identity, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and agreeableness are related to resume fraud. Additionally, we find that resume fraud predicts reduced job performance and increased workplace deviance beyond deceptive interviewing behavior. Resume fraud is rarely studied despite the negative impact it can have on job-related outcomes. Researchers can use this measure to explore further the antecedents and outcomes of resume fraud and to advise recruiters on how to minimize it. We develop a measure focusing on intentional resume misrepresentations designed to deceive recruiters. This is one of the first studies to examine the antecedents and outcomes of resume fraud.

Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beer Holder: An Initial Investigation of the Effects of Alcohol, Attractiveness, Warmth, and Competence on the Objectifying Gaze in Men

Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beer Holder: An Initial Investigation of the Effects of Alcohol, Attractiveness, Warmth, and Competence on the Objectifying Gaze in Men. Abigail R. Riemer et al. Sex Roles, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11199-017-0876-2

Abstract: Despite literature revealing the adverse consequences of objectifying gazes for women, little work has empirically examined origins of objectifying gazes by perceivers. Integrating alcohol myopia and objectification theories, we examined the effects of alcohol as well as perceived female attractiveness, warmth, and competence on objectifying gazes. Specifically, male undergraduates (n = 49) from a large U.S. Midwestern university were administered either an alcoholic or placebo beverage. After consumption, participants were asked to focus on the appearance or personality (counterbalanced) of pictured women who were previously rated as high, average, or low in attractiveness, warmth, and competence. Replicating previous work, appearance focus increased objectifying gazes as measured by decreased visual dwell time on women’s faces and increased dwell time on women’s bodies. Additionally, alcohol increased objectifying gazes. Whereas greater perceived attractiveness increased objectifying gazes, more perceived warmth and perceived competence decreased objectifying gazes. Furthermore, the effects of warmth and competence perceptions on objectifying gazes were moderated by alcohol condition; intoxicated participants objectified women low in warmth and competence to a greater extent than did sober participants. Implications for understanding men’s objectifying perceptions of women are addressed, shedding light on potential interventions for clinicians and policymakers to reduce alcohol-involved objectification and related sexual aggression.