Pre- and Postinteraction Physical Attractiveness Ratings and Experience-Based Impressions. Jeffrey Hall & Benjamin Compton. Communication Studies, Summer 2017, Pages 260-277. www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10510974.2017.1317281
Abstract: This study examines the perceptions of an interaction partner's physical attractiveness and traits in relation to whether and how partners were evaluated prior to interacting. Sixty-five pairs of heterosexual strangers were randomly assigned to one of three conditions (i.e., prerate photos of opposite-sex strangers including conversation partner, prerate photos excluding partner, no prerate photos). Participants then had a 10-minute interaction, reported impressions of partner, and rated photos again including the partner. Compared to no preinteraction rating, rating conversation partners' attractiveness reduced impressions of partners' social attractiveness, fun/funniness, and charisma. Partner impressions were more strongly associated with postinteraction attractiveness ratings than preinteraction ratings. Impressions of social attractiveness and fun/funniness moderated attractiveness rating change, wherein less attractive partners showed more positive change than attractive partners.
Keywords: Impression Formation, Online Dating, Physical Attraction, Social Attraction
Saturday, July 29, 2017
Emotional Content in Wikipedia Articles on Negative Man-Made and Nature-Made Events
Emotional Content in Wikipedia Articles on Negative Man-Made and Nature-Made Events. Hannah Greving et al. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0261927X17717568
Abstract: Wikipedia emphasizes the objectivity of content. Yet, Wikipedia articles also deal with negative events that potentially elicit intense emotions. Undesirable outcomes (e.g., earthquakes) are known to elicit sadness, while undesirable outcomes caused by others' actions (e.g., terrorist attacks) are known to elicit anger. Internet users' emotional responses are likely to end up in Wikipedia articles on those events as characteristics of Internet users spill over to Wikipedia articles. Therefore, we expected that Wikipedia articles on terrorist attacks contain more anger-related and less sadness-related content than articles on earthquakes. We analyzed newly created Wikipedia articles about the two events (Study 1) as well as more current versions of those Wikipedia articles after the events had already happened (Study 2). The results supported our expectations. Surprisingly, Wikipedia articles on those two events contained more emotional content than related Wikipedia talk pages (Study 3). We discuss the implications for Wikipedia and future research.
Abstract: Wikipedia emphasizes the objectivity of content. Yet, Wikipedia articles also deal with negative events that potentially elicit intense emotions. Undesirable outcomes (e.g., earthquakes) are known to elicit sadness, while undesirable outcomes caused by others' actions (e.g., terrorist attacks) are known to elicit anger. Internet users' emotional responses are likely to end up in Wikipedia articles on those events as characteristics of Internet users spill over to Wikipedia articles. Therefore, we expected that Wikipedia articles on terrorist attacks contain more anger-related and less sadness-related content than articles on earthquakes. We analyzed newly created Wikipedia articles about the two events (Study 1) as well as more current versions of those Wikipedia articles after the events had already happened (Study 2). The results supported our expectations. Surprisingly, Wikipedia articles on those two events contained more emotional content than related Wikipedia talk pages (Study 3). We discuss the implications for Wikipedia and future research.
Witnessing Moral Violations Increases Conformity in Consumption
Witnessing Moral Violations Increases Conformity in Consumption. Ping Dong & Chen-Bo Zhong. Journal of Consumer Research, http://impactmap.anderson.ucla.edu/Documents/areas/fac/marketing/Ping_Dong_Job%20Market%20Paper.pdf
Abstract: Consumers frequently encounter moral violations (e.g., financial scandal, cheating, and corruption) in their daily lives. Yet little is known about how exposure to moral violations may affect consumer choice. By synthesizing insights from research on social order and conformity, we suggest that mere exposure to others' immoral behaviors heightens perceived threat to social order, which increases consumers' endorsement of conformist attitudes and hence their preferences for majority-endorsed choices in subsequently unrelated consumption situations. Five studies conducted across different experimental contexts and different product categories provided convergent evidence showing that exposure to moral violations increases consumers' subsequent conformity in consumption. Moreover, the effect disappears (a) when the moral violator has already been punished by third parties (study 4) and (b) when the majority-endorsed option is viewed as being complicit with the moral violation (study 5). This research not only demonstrates a novel downstream consequence of witnessing moral violations on consumer choice but also advances our understanding of how conformity can buffer the negative psychological consequences of moral violations and how moral considerations can serve as an important basis for consumer choice.
Abstract: Consumers frequently encounter moral violations (e.g., financial scandal, cheating, and corruption) in their daily lives. Yet little is known about how exposure to moral violations may affect consumer choice. By synthesizing insights from research on social order and conformity, we suggest that mere exposure to others' immoral behaviors heightens perceived threat to social order, which increases consumers' endorsement of conformist attitudes and hence their preferences for majority-endorsed choices in subsequently unrelated consumption situations. Five studies conducted across different experimental contexts and different product categories provided convergent evidence showing that exposure to moral violations increases consumers' subsequent conformity in consumption. Moreover, the effect disappears (a) when the moral violator has already been punished by third parties (study 4) and (b) when the majority-endorsed option is viewed as being complicit with the moral violation (study 5). This research not only demonstrates a novel downstream consequence of witnessing moral violations on consumer choice but also advances our understanding of how conformity can buffer the negative psychological consequences of moral violations and how moral considerations can serve as an important basis for consumer choice.
The effects of age, gender, and gender role ideology on adolescents' social perspective-taking ability and tendency in friendships
The effects of age, gender, and gender role ideology on adolescents' social perspective-taking ability and tendency in friendships. Kaitlin Flannery and Rhiannon Smith. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, August 2017, Pages 617-635. http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0265407516650942
Abstract: Social perspective taking (SPT; i.e., the social-cognitive process of inferring another person's thoughts and feelings) is commonly thought to be essential for successful social relationships, yet the bulk of past work on the development of SPT does not consider youths' tendency to engage in SPT in the context of their close relationships. The current study of adolescents (ages 12-17, N = 158) helps move the field forward by distinguishing between adolescents' SPT ability (i.e., whether they are developmentally capable of SPT) and their tendency to apply this ability in their actual social relationships, namely, friendships, and considering the roles of gender and age. Results indicate that SPT ability and SPT tendency are distinct, suggesting that youths do not always put to use the SPT skills that they possess. Girls scored higher than boys on both SPT ability and SPT tendency. Boys and girls had significant gains in SPT ability across adolescence. Surprisingly, however, boys' SPT tendency decreased from early to later adolescence, indicating that older boys tend to engage in less SPT in their friendships despite increasing ability to do so. This is worrisome given the importance of SPT in promoting high-quality relationships. Importantly, gender role ideology predicted this tendency in boys, such that boys with more stereotypical gender beliefs tended to engage in less SPT with their friends. Thus, the current findings point to the importance of going beyond mean-level gender differences to consider gendered beliefs and suggest that interventions aimed at promoting egalitarian views may help foster SPT and successful friendships among boys.
Abstract: Social perspective taking (SPT; i.e., the social-cognitive process of inferring another person's thoughts and feelings) is commonly thought to be essential for successful social relationships, yet the bulk of past work on the development of SPT does not consider youths' tendency to engage in SPT in the context of their close relationships. The current study of adolescents (ages 12-17, N = 158) helps move the field forward by distinguishing between adolescents' SPT ability (i.e., whether they are developmentally capable of SPT) and their tendency to apply this ability in their actual social relationships, namely, friendships, and considering the roles of gender and age. Results indicate that SPT ability and SPT tendency are distinct, suggesting that youths do not always put to use the SPT skills that they possess. Girls scored higher than boys on both SPT ability and SPT tendency. Boys and girls had significant gains in SPT ability across adolescence. Surprisingly, however, boys' SPT tendency decreased from early to later adolescence, indicating that older boys tend to engage in less SPT in their friendships despite increasing ability to do so. This is worrisome given the importance of SPT in promoting high-quality relationships. Importantly, gender role ideology predicted this tendency in boys, such that boys with more stereotypical gender beliefs tended to engage in less SPT with their friends. Thus, the current findings point to the importance of going beyond mean-level gender differences to consider gendered beliefs and suggest that interventions aimed at promoting egalitarian views may help foster SPT and successful friendships among boys.
Individual Differences in Reliance on Intuition Predict Harsher Moral Judgments
Individual Differences in Reliance on Intuition Predict Harsher Moral Judgments. Sarah Ward & Laura King. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28627916
Abstract: The notion that intuition guides moral judgment is widely accepted. Yet, there is a dearth of research examining whether individual differences in reliance on intuition influence moral judgment. Five studies provided evidence that faith in intuition (FI) predicts higher condemnation of moral transgressions. Studies 1 and 2 (combined N = 543) demonstrated that FI predicted higher moral condemnation of strange actions characterized by ambiguous harm. This association maintained controlling for a host of relevant ideological and emotional "third" variables. Three experiments demonstrated this relationship to be robust in the face of manipulations. In Study 3 (N = 320), participants rated whether moral scenarios involved harm or victims prior to (vs. after) moral judgments. Although considering harm and victims prior to judgments lowered condemnation toward these actions, the manipulation did not moderate the association between FI and condemnation. FI related to moral condemnation of unconventional actions even after consideration of harm and victims. In Study 4 (N = 236), a manipulation designed to enhance deliberation lowered overall moral condemnation (vs. control group), but did not attenuate the relationship between FI and moral condemnation. In Study 5 (N = 204), participants quickly categorized actions according to whether or not they were immoral, harmful, or involved victims. FI predicted higher condemnation of ambiguously harmful actions even when these judgments were made rapidly. Implications for examining individual differences in intuition in the context of dominant theories in moral psychology (dyadic morality, Moral Foundations Theory) are addressed.
Abstract: The notion that intuition guides moral judgment is widely accepted. Yet, there is a dearth of research examining whether individual differences in reliance on intuition influence moral judgment. Five studies provided evidence that faith in intuition (FI) predicts higher condemnation of moral transgressions. Studies 1 and 2 (combined N = 543) demonstrated that FI predicted higher moral condemnation of strange actions characterized by ambiguous harm. This association maintained controlling for a host of relevant ideological and emotional "third" variables. Three experiments demonstrated this relationship to be robust in the face of manipulations. In Study 3 (N = 320), participants rated whether moral scenarios involved harm or victims prior to (vs. after) moral judgments. Although considering harm and victims prior to judgments lowered condemnation toward these actions, the manipulation did not moderate the association between FI and condemnation. FI related to moral condemnation of unconventional actions even after consideration of harm and victims. In Study 4 (N = 236), a manipulation designed to enhance deliberation lowered overall moral condemnation (vs. control group), but did not attenuate the relationship between FI and moral condemnation. In Study 5 (N = 204), participants quickly categorized actions according to whether or not they were immoral, harmful, or involved victims. FI predicted higher condemnation of ambiguously harmful actions even when these judgments were made rapidly. Implications for examining individual differences in intuition in the context of dominant theories in moral psychology (dyadic morality, Moral Foundations Theory) are addressed.
Misprediction Bias of Dating Behaviors: Do Men Overestimate or Women Underreport Their Sexual Intentions?
Decomposing the Cross-Sex Misprediction Bias of Dating Behaviors: Do Men Overestimate or Women Underreport Their Sexual Intentions? Isabelle Engeler & Priya Raghubir. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pspi0000105
Abstract: Men typically predict women's sexual intentions to be higher than women say they are (Haselton & Buss, 2000). It is debated whether this cross-sex bias is because of men overestimating women's intentions (Murray et al., 2017), women underreporting their own intentions (Perilloux & Kurzban, 2015, 2017), or both. To unify the current debate, we decompose the part of the bias attributable to women underreporting versus men overestimating by using a survey method intervention to reduce underreporting of sensitive information: eliciting estimates about others before sensitive self-reports. First, we calibrate the current measurement instrument to assess the overall size of the misprediction bias (Study 1). Then, we manipulate the order-of-elicitation of self- and other-reports (Studies 2 and 3): Women report significantly higher own sexual intentions when they are asked about other targets' intentions before their own, suggesting that 48 to 69% of the overestimation bias is attributable to women underreporting their own sexual intentions. Analogous analyses for the misprediction bias about men suggest that women's overestimation bias of men's sexual intentions is entirely because of men underreporting their own sexual intentions. The findings have important implications for the current debate in the literature on cross-sex misprediction biases and the literature on asking sensitive survey questions.
Abstract: Men typically predict women's sexual intentions to be higher than women say they are (Haselton & Buss, 2000). It is debated whether this cross-sex bias is because of men overestimating women's intentions (Murray et al., 2017), women underreporting their own intentions (Perilloux & Kurzban, 2015, 2017), or both. To unify the current debate, we decompose the part of the bias attributable to women underreporting versus men overestimating by using a survey method intervention to reduce underreporting of sensitive information: eliciting estimates about others before sensitive self-reports. First, we calibrate the current measurement instrument to assess the overall size of the misprediction bias (Study 1). Then, we manipulate the order-of-elicitation of self- and other-reports (Studies 2 and 3): Women report significantly higher own sexual intentions when they are asked about other targets' intentions before their own, suggesting that 48 to 69% of the overestimation bias is attributable to women underreporting their own sexual intentions. Analogous analyses for the misprediction bias about men suggest that women's overestimation bias of men's sexual intentions is entirely because of men underreporting their own sexual intentions. The findings have important implications for the current debate in the literature on cross-sex misprediction biases and the literature on asking sensitive survey questions.
The impact of power and powerlessness on blaming the victim of sexual assault
The impact of power and powerlessness on blaming the victim of sexual assault. Claire Gravelin, Monica Biernat & Matthew Baldwin. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1368430217706741
Abstract: Sexual assault is often described as motivated by power, yet there is relatively little experimental research investigating the effect of power (and powerlessness) on interpretations of a sexual assault. Two studies manipulated participants' feelings of power prior to a thought-listing task about sexual assault victims (Study 1) or an evaluation of a case of sexual assault (Study 2). Among men, feelings of powerlessness led to reduced victim blaming, while powerlessness tended to increase victim blaming among women (Study 2). These results indicate that powerlessness has different implications for men and women, increasing men's ability to take the perspective of a victim of sexual assault, but increasing women's sense of threat and defensiveness. Both studies support a default status explanation for men such that feelings of powerlessness - a state that deviates from men's typical high-power "default" status in society - increase perspective taking and thereby reduce victim blame. Among women, however, powerlessness may trigger a defensive response, resulting in greater blaming.
Abstract: Sexual assault is often described as motivated by power, yet there is relatively little experimental research investigating the effect of power (and powerlessness) on interpretations of a sexual assault. Two studies manipulated participants' feelings of power prior to a thought-listing task about sexual assault victims (Study 1) or an evaluation of a case of sexual assault (Study 2). Among men, feelings of powerlessness led to reduced victim blaming, while powerlessness tended to increase victim blaming among women (Study 2). These results indicate that powerlessness has different implications for men and women, increasing men's ability to take the perspective of a victim of sexual assault, but increasing women's sense of threat and defensiveness. Both studies support a default status explanation for men such that feelings of powerlessness - a state that deviates from men's typical high-power "default" status in society - increase perspective taking and thereby reduce victim blame. Among women, however, powerlessness may trigger a defensive response, resulting in greater blaming.
Resisting Temptation for the Good of the Group: Binding Moral Values and the Moralization of Self-Control
Resisting Temptation for the Good of the Group: Binding Moral Values and the Moralization of Self-Control. Marlon Mooijman et al. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28604018
Abstract: When do people see self-control as a moral issue? We hypothesize that the group-focused "binding" moral values of Loyalty/betrayal, Authority/subversion, and Purity/degradation play a particularly important role in this moralization process. Nine studies provide support for this prediction. First, moralization of self-control goals (e.g., losing weight, saving money) is more strongly associated with endorsing binding moral values than with endorsing individualizing moral values (Care/harm, Fairness/cheating). Second, binding moral values mediate the effect of other group-focused predictors of self-control moralization, including conservatism, religiosity, and collectivism. Third, guiding participants to consider morality as centrally about binding moral values increases moralization of self-control more than guiding participants to consider morality as centrally about individualizing moral values. Fourth, we replicate our core finding that moralization of self-control is associated with binding moral values across studies differing in measures and design - whether we measure the relationship between moral and self-control language across time, the perceived moral relevance of self-control behaviors, or the moral condemnation of self-control failures. Taken together, our findings suggest that self-control moralization is primarily group-oriented and is sensitive to group-oriented cues.
Abstract: When do people see self-control as a moral issue? We hypothesize that the group-focused "binding" moral values of Loyalty/betrayal, Authority/subversion, and Purity/degradation play a particularly important role in this moralization process. Nine studies provide support for this prediction. First, moralization of self-control goals (e.g., losing weight, saving money) is more strongly associated with endorsing binding moral values than with endorsing individualizing moral values (Care/harm, Fairness/cheating). Second, binding moral values mediate the effect of other group-focused predictors of self-control moralization, including conservatism, religiosity, and collectivism. Third, guiding participants to consider morality as centrally about binding moral values increases moralization of self-control more than guiding participants to consider morality as centrally about individualizing moral values. Fourth, we replicate our core finding that moralization of self-control is associated with binding moral values across studies differing in measures and design - whether we measure the relationship between moral and self-control language across time, the perceived moral relevance of self-control behaviors, or the moral condemnation of self-control failures. Taken together, our findings suggest that self-control moralization is primarily group-oriented and is sensitive to group-oriented cues.
Processing the Word Red can Enhance Women's Perceptions of Men's Attractiveness
Processing the Word Red can Enhance Women's Perceptions of Men's Attractiveness. Adam Pazda & Andrew Elliot. Current Psychology, June 2017, Pages 316-323. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12144-016-9420-8
Abstract: Prior research has shown that for women viewing men, perceiving the color red can enhance attractiveness judgments in some contexts. Additionally, an association exists between the processing of color words and the perception of color stimuli. The present studies examined whether processing the word red would lead to similar psychological effects of perceiving color stimuli. Specifically, we tested whether reading a description of a man wearing a red shirt (relative to other colors) can enhance women's perceptions of the man's attractiveness. Experiments 1, 2, and 3 provided support for this effect for red-gray and red-green contrasts. The findings are discussed with regard to grounded theories of cognition, which suggest that knowledge about color and experience of perceiving color are integrated in a multimodal fashion. Practical implications of the red effect for interpersonal perception and interaction are discussed along with general implications in the domain of color psychology.
Keywords: Color, Red, Cognitive processing, Attractiveness
Abstract: Prior research has shown that for women viewing men, perceiving the color red can enhance attractiveness judgments in some contexts. Additionally, an association exists between the processing of color words and the perception of color stimuli. The present studies examined whether processing the word red would lead to similar psychological effects of perceiving color stimuli. Specifically, we tested whether reading a description of a man wearing a red shirt (relative to other colors) can enhance women's perceptions of the man's attractiveness. Experiments 1, 2, and 3 provided support for this effect for red-gray and red-green contrasts. The findings are discussed with regard to grounded theories of cognition, which suggest that knowledge about color and experience of perceiving color are integrated in a multimodal fashion. Practical implications of the red effect for interpersonal perception and interaction are discussed along with general implications in the domain of color psychology.
Keywords: Color, Red, Cognitive processing, Attractiveness
Online Networks and Subjective Well-Being
Online Networks and Subjective Well-Being. Fabio Sabatini and Francesco Sarracino. Kyklos, August 2017, Pages 456-480. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/kykl.12145/abstract
Abstract: We test the relationship between the use of social networking sites (SNS) and a proxy of utility, i.e. subjective well-being (SWB), using instrumental variables. Additionally, we disentangle the indirect effects of SNS on well-being mediated by face-to-face interactions and social trust using a structural equation model. Results suggest that the use of SNS hampers people's well-being directly and indirectly, through its negative effects on social trust. However, the use of SNS also has a positive impact on well-being because it increases the probability of face-to-face interactions. Yet, the net effect of the use of SNS for SWB remains negative.
Abstract: We test the relationship between the use of social networking sites (SNS) and a proxy of utility, i.e. subjective well-being (SWB), using instrumental variables. Additionally, we disentangle the indirect effects of SNS on well-being mediated by face-to-face interactions and social trust using a structural equation model. Results suggest that the use of SNS hampers people's well-being directly and indirectly, through its negative effects on social trust. However, the use of SNS also has a positive impact on well-being because it increases the probability of face-to-face interactions. Yet, the net effect of the use of SNS for SWB remains negative.
Does Federal Disaster Assistance Crowd Out Flood Insurance?
Does Federal Disaster Assistance Crowd Out Flood Insurance? Carolyn Kousky, Erwann Michel-Kerjan & Paul Raschky. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0095069617303479
Abstract: We empirically analyze whether federal disaster aid crowds out household purchase of disaster insurance. We combine data on annual household flood insurance purchases for the United States over the period 2000–2011 with data from the two main U.S. post-disaster federal aid programs (FEMA's Individual Assistance grants and SBA's low interest disaster loans). Estimating both fixed-effects and instrumental variable models to account for the endogeneity of disaster assistance grants, we find that receiving individual assistance grants decreases the average quantity of insurance purchased the following year by between $4,000 and $5,000. The reduction we find is roughly 3% of the mean insurance coverage in the sample but larger than the average flood-related IA grant in our sample, which is $2,984. IA is currently limited and larger grants could have different impacts. The crowding out is on the intensive margin; we find no impact on take-up rates, likely because there is a requirement that recipients of disaster aid purchase an insurance policy. We do not know how take-up rates might change without such a requirement. Low interest post-disaster government loans have no systematic effect on insurance purchases.
Keywords: Natural Disasters and Extreme Events, Flood Insurance, Disaster Relief
Abstract: We empirically analyze whether federal disaster aid crowds out household purchase of disaster insurance. We combine data on annual household flood insurance purchases for the United States over the period 2000–2011 with data from the two main U.S. post-disaster federal aid programs (FEMA's Individual Assistance grants and SBA's low interest disaster loans). Estimating both fixed-effects and instrumental variable models to account for the endogeneity of disaster assistance grants, we find that receiving individual assistance grants decreases the average quantity of insurance purchased the following year by between $4,000 and $5,000. The reduction we find is roughly 3% of the mean insurance coverage in the sample but larger than the average flood-related IA grant in our sample, which is $2,984. IA is currently limited and larger grants could have different impacts. The crowding out is on the intensive margin; we find no impact on take-up rates, likely because there is a requirement that recipients of disaster aid purchase an insurance policy. We do not know how take-up rates might change without such a requirement. Low interest post-disaster government loans have no systematic effect on insurance purchases.
Keywords: Natural Disasters and Extreme Events, Flood Insurance, Disaster Relief
Digitally connected, socially disconnected: The effects of relying on technology rather than other people
Digitally connected, socially disconnected: The effects of relying on technology rather than other people. Kostadin Kushlev, Jason Proulx & Elizabeth Dunn. Computers in Human Behavior, November 2017, Pages 68-74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.07.001
Highlights
• We assessed the costs and benefits of relying on smartphones for information.
• People were randomly assigned to look for a building with or without their phones.
• People relying on their phones found the building faster and felt happier.
• Participants using phones talked to fewer people and felt less socially connected.
• On-the-go information is useful but has a hidden cost: missed social opportunities.
Abstract: In less than a decade, smartphones have transformed how, when, and where people access information. We propose that turning to technology for information may lead individuals to miss out on opportunities to cultivate feelings of social connection. Testing this hypothesis, we asked participants to find an unfamiliar building and randomly assigned them to solve this everyday problem either with or without their smartphones. Compared to those who could not rely on technology, participants who used their smartphones found the building more easily but ended up feeling less socially connected. Although having access to smartphones improved participants’ mood by making their task easier, this beneficial effect was diminished by the costs to social connection. Our findings provide the first experimental evidence that the benefits of pervasive connectivity may be undercut when technology supplants social interactions.
Keywords: Happiness, Human-computer interaction, Cyberpsychology, Social behavior, Well-being, Ubiquitous computing, Pervasive connectivity
Highlights
• We assessed the costs and benefits of relying on smartphones for information.
• People were randomly assigned to look for a building with or without their phones.
• People relying on their phones found the building faster and felt happier.
• Participants using phones talked to fewer people and felt less socially connected.
• On-the-go information is useful but has a hidden cost: missed social opportunities.
Abstract: In less than a decade, smartphones have transformed how, when, and where people access information. We propose that turning to technology for information may lead individuals to miss out on opportunities to cultivate feelings of social connection. Testing this hypothesis, we asked participants to find an unfamiliar building and randomly assigned them to solve this everyday problem either with or without their smartphones. Compared to those who could not rely on technology, participants who used their smartphones found the building more easily but ended up feeling less socially connected. Although having access to smartphones improved participants’ mood by making their task easier, this beneficial effect was diminished by the costs to social connection. Our findings provide the first experimental evidence that the benefits of pervasive connectivity may be undercut when technology supplants social interactions.
Keywords: Happiness, Human-computer interaction, Cyberpsychology, Social behavior, Well-being, Ubiquitous computing, Pervasive connectivity
Reciprocal Influences Between Loneliness and Self-Centeredness
Reciprocal Influences Between Loneliness and Self-Centeredness: A Cross-Lagged Panel Analysis in a Population-Based Sample of African American, Hispanic, and Caucasian Adults. John Cacioppo, Hsi Yuan Chen & Stephanie Cacioppo. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, August 2017, Pages 1125-1135. http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0146167217705120
Abstract: Loneliness has been posited to increase the motivation to repair or replace deficient social relationships and, seemingly paradoxically, to increase the implicit motivation for self-preservation. In the current research, we report a cross-lagged panel analysis of 10 waves of longitudinal data (N = 229) on loneliness and self-centeredness (as gauged by Feeney and Collins's measure of chronic self-focus) in a representative sample of middle-aged and older adults. As predicted by the proposition that loneliness increases the implicit motivation for self-preservation, loneliness in the current year predicts self-centeredness in the subsequent year beyond what is explained by current-year demographic variables, self-centeredness, depressive symptomatology, and overall negative mood. Analyses also show that self-centeredness in the current year (net covariates) predicts loneliness in the subsequent year, a reciprocal relationship that could potentially contribute to the maintenance of loneliness. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Abstract: Loneliness has been posited to increase the motivation to repair or replace deficient social relationships and, seemingly paradoxically, to increase the implicit motivation for self-preservation. In the current research, we report a cross-lagged panel analysis of 10 waves of longitudinal data (N = 229) on loneliness and self-centeredness (as gauged by Feeney and Collins's measure of chronic self-focus) in a representative sample of middle-aged and older adults. As predicted by the proposition that loneliness increases the implicit motivation for self-preservation, loneliness in the current year predicts self-centeredness in the subsequent year beyond what is explained by current-year demographic variables, self-centeredness, depressive symptomatology, and overall negative mood. Analyses also show that self-centeredness in the current year (net covariates) predicts loneliness in the subsequent year, a reciprocal relationship that could potentially contribute to the maintenance of loneliness. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
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