Looking for a good time
Emodiversity and Biomarkers of Inflammation
Anthony Ong et al.
Emotion, forthcoming
Abstract:
There is growing evidence that inflammatory responses may help to explain how emotions get "under the skin" to influence disease susceptibility. Moving beyond examination of individuals' average level of emotion, this study examined how the breadth and relative abundance of emotions that individuals experience - emodiversity - is related to systemic inflammation. Using diary data from 175 adults aged 40 to 65 who provided end-of-day reports of their positive and negative emotions over 30 days, we found that greater diversity in day-to-day positive emotions was associated with lower circulating levels of inflammation (indicated by IL-6, CRP, fibrinogen), independent of mean levels of positive and negative emotions, body mass index, anti-inflammatory medications, medical conditions, personality, and demographics. No significant associations were observed between global or negative emodiversity and inflammation. These findings highlight the unique role daily positive emotions play in biological health.
Fill up Your Senses: A Theory of Self-Worth Restoration through High-Intensity Sensory Consumption
Rishtee Batra & Tanuka Ghoshal
Journal of Consumer Research, forthcoming
Abstract:
It is well known that individuals engage in reactive consumption to address self-discrepancy and self-threat and that this consumption may either be symbolically related to the nature of the threat or occur in an unrelated domain. This research proposes a theory for self-worth restoration through the consumption of high-intensity sensory stimuli. Four studies demonstrate that not only do individuals facing self-threat prefer high-intensity sensory consumption (HISC) but also that this consumption restores their self-worth. This propensity for HISC is negated after individuals are allowed to engage in additional self-affirmation tasks. The findings are documented in both the visual domain (as evidenced by a preference for more intense and saturated colors) and the auditory domain (as evidenced by a preference for louder audio levels). The consumption of high-intensity sensory stimuli elevates individuals' arousal levels, which in turn minimizes rumination on thoughts related to the threat and thus restores one's self-worth. The distractive nature of HISC and its subsequent impact on self-worth restoration is shown to operate regardless of the valence of the sensory consumption. Finally, the propensity for HISC is negated after individuals experience an arousal-elevating threat, providing additional support for the underlying process.
Searching for Affective and Cognitive Restoration: Examining the Restorative Effects of Casual Video Game Play
Michael Rupp et al.
Human Factors: The Journal of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, forthcoming
Method: Participants completed a baseline affective and cognitive assessment (ACA), which included the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, shortened version of the Dundee Stress State Questionnaire, and backward digit-span. Next, participants completed a vigilance task, followed by another ACA. Participants were then assigned at random to complete a break or relaxation activity or play a casual video game, followed by a final ACA.
Results: Participants who played the casual video game exhibited greater engagement and affective restoration than the relaxation condition. The break condition slightly decreased affect and prevented cognitive restoration.
Increasing consumer well-being: Risk as potential driver of happiness
Nawel Ayadi, Corina Paraschiv & Eric Vernette
Applied Economics, Summer 2017, Pages 4321-4335
Abstract:
This article investigates the relation between risk and individual well-being. We propose a theoretical model of happiness that makes a distinction between ex ante evaluations of happiness and ex post assessments. The main assumptions of the model are tested through three studies based on anchoring vignettes. We show that, even if, ex ante, consumers fear high risk and do not associate it to a high level of happiness, their ex post evaluation of well-being is generally higher when identical consequences result from a high-risk situation than from a low-risk situation. Control over risk-taking reinforces the gap between ex ante and ex post measures of happiness. Thus, our article provides empirical evidence about a positive relation between risk and individual well-being, suggesting that risky experiences have the potential to increase consumer well-being.
Valuing Calm Enhances Enjoyment of Calming (vs. Exciting) Amusement Park Rides and Exercise
Louise Chim et al.
Emotion, forthcoming
Abstract:
Do people derive more enjoyment from activities that match how they ideally want to feel (their "ideal affect")? Affect valuation theory (AVT) predicts that they do; however, no study has directly examined whether this is the case. Therefore, the authors conducted 4 studies that examined whether valuing calm and other low arousal positive states (LAP) increased enjoyment of calming (vs. exciting) activities. In Study 1, the more participants valued LAP, the more enjoyment they recalled during calming (vs. exciting) episodes from their lives. In Studies 2-3, the more participants valued LAP, the more enjoyment they experienced during calming (vs. exciting) amusement park rides, both in the United States and Hong Kong. To assess causality, in Study 4, participants were randomly assigned to either a "value LAP" or control condition and then engaged in either low or high intensity exercise. Participants in the value LAP condition who engaged in low intensity exercise reported greater enjoyment than those who engaged in high intensity exercise; these differences did not emerge in the control condition. People's trait levels of experienced LAP ("actual LAP") were not related to their enjoyment of calming (vs. exciting) activities. Together, these findings provide evidence that people derive more enjoyment from activities that match their ideal affect. The authors discuss the implications of these findings for AVT as well as interventions aimed at enhancing well-being.
Dispositional Negativity in the Wild: Social Environment Governs Momentary Emotional Experience
Alexander Shackman et al.
Emotion, forthcoming
Abstract:
Dispositional negativity - the tendency to experience more frequent or intense negative emotions - is a fundamental dimension of temperament and personality. Elevated levels of dispositional negativity have profound consequences for public health and wealth, drawing the attention of researchers, clinicians, and policymakers. Yet, relatively little is known about the factors that govern the momentary expression of dispositional negativity in the real world. Here, we used smart phone-based experience-sampling to demonstrate that the social environment plays a central role in shaping the moment-by-moment emotional experience of 127 young adults selectively recruited to represent a broad spectrum of dispositional negativity. Results indicate that individuals with a more negative disposition derive much larger emotional benefits from the company of close companions - friends, romantic partners, and family members - and that these benefits reflect heightened feelings of social connection and acceptance. These results set the stage for developing improved interventions and provide new insights into the interaction of emotional traits and situations in the real world, close to clinically and practically important end-points.