In two recent studies at University of Toronto Scarborough, researchers tested people's willingness to behave badly.
"People are more likely to cheat and make immoral decisions when their transgressions don't involve an explicit action," says Rimma Teper, lead author on the study, "If they can lie by omission, cheat without doing much legwork, or bypass a person's request for help without expressly denying them, they are much more likely to do so."
In the first study, two groups of participants took a test on a computer. Group 1 were told if they pressed the space bar that the answer would appear on the screen. Group 2 were told the answer would appear if they didn't press the enter key within five seconds of the question.
They found that those who didn't have to actively do anything to see the answer, they were more likely to cheat.
In the second study, participants were asked if they would volunteer to help a student with a learning disability to complete part of the test. Group 1 had only the option of checking a 'yes' or 'no' box on the computer. Group 2 could follow a link at the bottom of the page to volunteer their help or press 'continue' to move on to the next page.
They found participants were more likely to volunteer when they had to pick either 'yes' or 'no.' They concluded that it is difficult for people to explicitly deny help to others and this was linked to emotion, proably either guilt or shame. Those that didn't have to explicitly make a 'yes/no' choice wouldn't feel these emotions as strongly so it didn't affect their decision making, meaning they were more likely to make the immoral choice.
It also has critical implications for those in the business of soliciting peoples' good will, money or time.
Link to Article
Showing posts with label emotion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label emotion. Show all posts
Wednesday, 24 November 2010
Thursday, 4 November 2010
How anger makes you want things more
Researchers found that associating an object with anger actually makes people want the object.
For the study participants watched a computer screen while images of common objects, like a mug or a pen, appeared on the screen. What they didn't realize was that immediately before each object appeared, the screen flashed either a neutral face, an angry face, or a fearful face. This subliminal image tied an emotion to each object. At the end of the experiment, the participants were asked how much they wanted each object. In a second version of the experiment, they had the person squeeze a handgrip to get the desired object -- those who squeezed harder were more likely to win it. People put more effort in action to obtain objects associated with angry faces.
When participants were asked why they worked harder to get it, they said, 'It's just because I like it.' That shows how little we know about our own motivations."
The study above into motivation shows how even emotions that we would usually consider to be undesirable and negative can actually be a driving force behind getting what we want - possibly without ever knowing that's the reason.
Think back to school, there would always but that smug class-mate that thought they were the best at everything. How much did they annoy you? (Or maybe they were you?) Didn't you want to beat this person at whatever you could, not necessarily because you wanted to win, and if there wasn't this rival perhaps you wouldn't even bother, but because of your anger you strive to achieve.
Maybe schools or universities or even jobs use this competition to their advantage? or maybe 'Angry-Advertising' could be the tv-commercials of the future!
Link to Article
For the study participants watched a computer screen while images of common objects, like a mug or a pen, appeared on the screen. What they didn't realize was that immediately before each object appeared, the screen flashed either a neutral face, an angry face, or a fearful face. This subliminal image tied an emotion to each object. At the end of the experiment, the participants were asked how much they wanted each object. In a second version of the experiment, they had the person squeeze a handgrip to get the desired object -- those who squeezed harder were more likely to win it. People put more effort in action to obtain objects associated with angry faces.
When participants were asked why they worked harder to get it, they said, 'It's just because I like it.' That shows how little we know about our own motivations."
The study above into motivation shows how even emotions that we would usually consider to be undesirable and negative can actually be a driving force behind getting what we want - possibly without ever knowing that's the reason.
Think back to school, there would always but that smug class-mate that thought they were the best at everything. How much did they annoy you? (Or maybe they were you?) Didn't you want to beat this person at whatever you could, not necessarily because you wanted to win, and if there wasn't this rival perhaps you wouldn't even bother, but because of your anger you strive to achieve.
Maybe schools or universities or even jobs use this competition to their advantage? or maybe 'Angry-Advertising' could be the tv-commercials of the future!
Link to Article
Monday, 27 September 2010
Teasing about weight and its affect on pre-teens
"We tend to think of adolescence as the time when kids become sensitive about their body image, but our findings suggest that the seeds of body dissatisfaction are actually being sown much earlier," said Timothy D. Nelson.
For the study, Nelson and his colleagues surveyed hundreds of public school students whose average age was 10.8 years. They collected participants' heights and weights and calculated their Body Mass Index, then examined the relationships between weight-related criticism and children's perceptions of themselves.
Their results showed that overweight pre-teens who endured weight-based criticism tended to judge their bodies more harshly and were less satisfied with their body sizes than students who weren't teased about their weight.
Because children who develop such negative views of their bodies are at higher risk for internalizing problems, developing irregular eating behaviors and ongoing victimization, researchers said these results should be a signal for more early identification and intervention efforts at schools.
"There's often a sense that overweight people 'deserve' it, or that if they are continually prodded about their weight, they'll do something about it," said Nelson
So what do you think?
Do children think about their body weight as much as this study suggests? Are weight-related criticisms found more in groups of girls or boys? Can pre-adolescent taunting really affect children for the rest of their lives?
And what should be done to try and stop this happening in schools?
Are weight issues a problem generated by the media? e.g. super skinny people in magazines and on the tv.
Or are they now being generated by the Health Authority by chastising those who are overweight?
What's your opinion?
Link to Article
For the study, Nelson and his colleagues surveyed hundreds of public school students whose average age was 10.8 years. They collected participants' heights and weights and calculated their Body Mass Index, then examined the relationships between weight-related criticism and children's perceptions of themselves.
Their results showed that overweight pre-teens who endured weight-based criticism tended to judge their bodies more harshly and were less satisfied with their body sizes than students who weren't teased about their weight.
Because children who develop such negative views of their bodies are at higher risk for internalizing problems, developing irregular eating behaviors and ongoing victimization, researchers said these results should be a signal for more early identification and intervention efforts at schools.
"There's often a sense that overweight people 'deserve' it, or that if they are continually prodded about their weight, they'll do something about it," said Nelson
So what do you think?
Do children think about their body weight as much as this study suggests? Are weight-related criticisms found more in groups of girls or boys? Can pre-adolescent taunting really affect children for the rest of their lives?
And what should be done to try and stop this happening in schools?
Are weight issues a problem generated by the media? e.g. super skinny people in magazines and on the tv.
Or are they now being generated by the Health Authority by chastising those who are overweight?
What's your opinion?
Link to Article
Thursday, 16 September 2010
Perception of Emotion Is Culture-Specific
An interesting study of other cultures, Tanaka's study shows how we don't necessarily all perceive emotion in the same way:
"A new study examines how Dutch and Japanese people assess others’ emotions and finds that Dutch people pay attention to the facial expression more than Japanese people do."
Most of the research on understanding the emotional state of others has been done on facial expression; Tanaka and his colleagues in Japan and the Netherlands wanted to know how vocal tone and facial expressions work together to give you a sense of someone else’s emotion.
For the study, Tanaka and colleagues made a video of actors saying a phrase with a neutral meaning —“Is that so?”— two ways: angrily and happily.
Then they edited the videos so that they also had recordings of someone saying the phrase angrily but with a happy face, and happily with an angry face.
They found that Japanese participants paid attention to the voice more than Dutch people did — even when they were instructed to judge the emotion by the faces and to ignore the voice.
Akihiro Tanaka: "I think Japanese people tend to hide their negative emotions by smiling, but it’s more difficult to hide negative emotions in the voice.” Therefore, Japanese people may be used to listening for emotional cues. This could lead to confusion when a Dutch person, who is used to the voice and the face matching."
"Our findings can contribute to better communication between different cultures."
Indeed! The study may also affect therapy sessions, as what may seem to be an obvious emotion to one person, may not be so obvious to another. More specifically, one method of therapy that works in the west may not be as effective in the east.
In any case, it shows how our culture can directly influence our perception of the world and this brings us one step closer to understanding each other.
Link to Article
"A new study examines how Dutch and Japanese people assess others’ emotions and finds that Dutch people pay attention to the facial expression more than Japanese people do."
Most of the research on understanding the emotional state of others has been done on facial expression; Tanaka and his colleagues in Japan and the Netherlands wanted to know how vocal tone and facial expressions work together to give you a sense of someone else’s emotion.
For the study, Tanaka and colleagues made a video of actors saying a phrase with a neutral meaning —“Is that so?”— two ways: angrily and happily.
Then they edited the videos so that they also had recordings of someone saying the phrase angrily but with a happy face, and happily with an angry face.
They found that Japanese participants paid attention to the voice more than Dutch people did — even when they were instructed to judge the emotion by the faces and to ignore the voice.
Akihiro Tanaka: "I think Japanese people tend to hide their negative emotions by smiling, but it’s more difficult to hide negative emotions in the voice.” Therefore, Japanese people may be used to listening for emotional cues. This could lead to confusion when a Dutch person, who is used to the voice and the face matching."
"Our findings can contribute to better communication between different cultures."
Indeed! The study may also affect therapy sessions, as what may seem to be an obvious emotion to one person, may not be so obvious to another. More specifically, one method of therapy that works in the west may not be as effective in the east.
In any case, it shows how our culture can directly influence our perception of the world and this brings us one step closer to understanding each other.
Link to Article
Wednesday, 15 September 2010
The Pain of Discrimination
"In a new study, researchers found that adolescents from Latin American and Asian backgrounds experienced more discrimination than their peers from European backgrounds and that the discrimination came not only from other adolescents but from adults as well. The level of discrimination also impacted these teens' grade-point averages and their health and was associated with depression, distress and lower levels of self-esteem.
601 Teens (equal males and females) kept a daily diary for 2 weeks to record any discriminatory events or comments they experienced. They were also asked to separately record on a four-point scale any physical symptoms, such as headaches, stomach-aches or general pain.
Among the teens in the study, nearly 60% reported experiencing discrimination from other teens, and 63% reported discrimination from adults; 12% reported experiencing discrimination on a daily basis.
The researchers found that teens who reported higher levels of peer or adult discrimination also reported more aches, pains and other symptoms, as well as a lower overall grade-point average. Thus, discrimination may not only tax adolescents' physical and psychological resources but may also affect their ability to achieve in school, the researchers said.
"Discrimination significantly predicted lower GPAs, higher levels of depression, higher levels of distress, lower self-esteem and more physical complaints," Fuligni said. "So the bottom line? Discrimination is harmful."
____________________________________________________________
This interesting study highlights the link between the personal world, i.e. one's own wellbeing and health, and the social world. This link can be good, in terms of positive interactions and suppport, but, as this study shows, negativity in the social world can create bad results in the personal world.
Although people may think the discrimination is only small, it can mount up on a single individual, much like in the story 'An Inspector Calls' by J.B Preistley, and can manifest itself in a number of physical and psychological problems.
The modern world already seems to be accelerating the number of people that are being diagnosed with depression and ADHD and personality disorders etc, and people are quick to blame the fast paced life and music and videogames. This study is an interesting wake-up call that shows how our interactions with each other, although seemingly harmless, may be commiting more pain than we realise.
Link to article
601 Teens (equal males and females) kept a daily diary for 2 weeks to record any discriminatory events or comments they experienced. They were also asked to separately record on a four-point scale any physical symptoms, such as headaches, stomach-aches or general pain.
Among the teens in the study, nearly 60% reported experiencing discrimination from other teens, and 63% reported discrimination from adults; 12% reported experiencing discrimination on a daily basis.
The researchers found that teens who reported higher levels of peer or adult discrimination also reported more aches, pains and other symptoms, as well as a lower overall grade-point average. Thus, discrimination may not only tax adolescents' physical and psychological resources but may also affect their ability to achieve in school, the researchers said.
"Discrimination significantly predicted lower GPAs, higher levels of depression, higher levels of distress, lower self-esteem and more physical complaints," Fuligni said. "So the bottom line? Discrimination is harmful."
____________________________________________________________
This interesting study highlights the link between the personal world, i.e. one's own wellbeing and health, and the social world. This link can be good, in terms of positive interactions and suppport, but, as this study shows, negativity in the social world can create bad results in the personal world.
Although people may think the discrimination is only small, it can mount up on a single individual, much like in the story 'An Inspector Calls' by J.B Preistley, and can manifest itself in a number of physical and psychological problems.
The modern world already seems to be accelerating the number of people that are being diagnosed with depression and ADHD and personality disorders etc, and people are quick to blame the fast paced life and music and videogames. This study is an interesting wake-up call that shows how our interactions with each other, although seemingly harmless, may be commiting more pain than we realise.
Link to article
Wednesday, 7 July 2010
Rudeness 'increases mistakes risk'
Rudeness 'increases mistakes risk'
If you are rude to colleagues, they are rude to you or you witness rudeness, mistakes are far more likely to occur, studies have shown.
Writing in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), Rhona Flin, professor of applied psychology at the University of Aberdeen, said being the victim of rudeness can impact on how people perform tasks.
Human attention "is powerfully driven by emotion", she wrote.
In one study, students who were insulted by a professor on the way to the test performed worse on a series of memory tasks than others who had not been spoken to rudely.
"This reaction is probably caused by the emotional arousal caused by the rudeness, which resulted in a switchover of cognitive capacity to deal with the required emotional processing, or it may, more simply, be caused by distraction," Prof Flin said.
In other research, a student who was late for a group experiment apologised, but was told by the person in charge: "What is it with you? You arrive late, you are irresponsible, look at you, how do you expect to hold down a job in the real world?"
The level of rudeness was not extreme and the comment was said at normal volume.
However, students who witnessed the exchange went on to perform more poorly on tasks than a control group which had not witnessed rudeness.
Prof Flin said the link between performance and rudeness was particularly worrying when it comes to healthcare, with patients potentially being put at risk.
Link to Article
If you are rude to colleagues, they are rude to you or you witness rudeness, mistakes are far more likely to occur, studies have shown.
Writing in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), Rhona Flin, professor of applied psychology at the University of Aberdeen, said being the victim of rudeness can impact on how people perform tasks.
Human attention "is powerfully driven by emotion", she wrote.
In one study, students who were insulted by a professor on the way to the test performed worse on a series of memory tasks than others who had not been spoken to rudely.
"This reaction is probably caused by the emotional arousal caused by the rudeness, which resulted in a switchover of cognitive capacity to deal with the required emotional processing, or it may, more simply, be caused by distraction," Prof Flin said.
In other research, a student who was late for a group experiment apologised, but was told by the person in charge: "What is it with you? You arrive late, you are irresponsible, look at you, how do you expect to hold down a job in the real world?"
The level of rudeness was not extreme and the comment was said at normal volume.
However, students who witnessed the exchange went on to perform more poorly on tasks than a control group which had not witnessed rudeness.
Prof Flin said the link between performance and rudeness was particularly worrying when it comes to healthcare, with patients potentially being put at risk.
Link to Article
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