The Self-Promotion Boost: Positive consequences for observers of high-rank self-promoters.

This research examines how self-promotion conducted by relatively higher ranked individuals affects observers' affect and motivation. We developed and tested the idea of a Self-Promotion Boost-superior self-promoters inspire lower ranked observers by sharing achievement-related information that reflects opportunities to succeed in relevant domains, eliciting high-activation positive affect and greater motivation. Results from nine experimental studies (total N = 2,599) revealed that (1) interactions involving self-promotion by superiors (vs. peers or subordinates) lead observers to report greater experiences of high-activation positive affect (e.g., hope, inspiration), whereas peers and subordinates (vs. superiors) generate greater high-activation negative affect. (2) The positive effects of superiors' self-promotion go above and beyond effects elicited by superiors in interactions devoid of self-promotion. (3) Observers' inferences of self-promoters' earned success mediate the relationships between self-promoter rank and observer high-activation positive and negative affect. (4) High-activation positive affect elicited by superiors in turn leads to greater observer-reported motivation. Finally, (5) we found support for our theory that these effects are strengthened when observers view the self-promoting superiors as role models: Superiors elicit high-activation positive affect when they (a) are admired and respected by observers, (b) communicate what observers deem to be achievable successes, and (c) share accomplishments relevant to observers' own domain of success. Our findings illustrate the positive effects self-promotion can have on observers of this behavior, and how this behavior can consequently bolster observer motivation. We discuss implications for the literature on self-promotion, social comparison, and social motivation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Dual-hormone changes are related to bargaining performance.

In the present research, we found that endogenous testosterone and cortisol changes were jointly related to bargaining outcomes. In a face-to-face competitive negotiation (Study 1) and a laboratory-based bargaining game (Study 2), testosterone rises were associated with high earnings and high relationship quality, but only if cortisol dropped. If cortisol rose, testosterone rises were associated with low earnings and poor relationship quality. Conflict between financial and social goals was related to the financially costly dual-hormone profile (testosterone increase and cortisol increase), whereas the absence of such conflict was related to the financially adaptive dual-hormone profile (testosterone increase and cortisol decrease) [corrected].The findings suggest that when cortisol decreases, rising testosterone is implicated in adaptive bargaining behavior that maximizes earnings and relationship quality. But when cortisol increases, rising testosterone is related to conflict between social and financial motives, weak earnings, and poor relationship quality. These results imply that there are both bright and dark sides to rising testosterone in economic social interactions that depend on fluctuations in cortisol.

Preparatory power posing affects nonverbal presence and job interview performance.

The authors tested whether engaging in expansive (vs. contractive) "power poses" before a stressful job interview--preparatory power posing--would enhance performance during the interview. Participants adopted high-power (i.e., expansive, open) poses or low-power (i.e., contractive, closed) poses, and then prepared and delivered a speech to 2 evaluators as part of a mock job interview. All interview speeches were videotaped and coded for overall performance and hireability and for 2 potential mediators: verbal content (e.g., structure, content) and nonverbal presence (e.g., captivating, enthusiastic). As predicted, those who prepared for the job interview with high- (vs. low-) power poses performed better and were more likely to be chosen for hire; this relation was mediated by nonverbal presence, but not by verbal content. Although previous research has focused on how a nonverbal behavior that is enacted during interactions and observed by perceivers affects how those perceivers evaluate and respond to the actor, this experiment focused on how a nonverbal behavior that is enacted before the interaction and unobserved by perceivers affects the actor's performance, which, in turn, affects how perceivers evaluate and respond to the actor. This experiment reveals a theoretically novel and practically informative result that demonstrates the causal relation between preparatory nonverbal behavior and subsequent performance and outcomes.

The ergonomics of dishonesty: the effect of incidental posture on stealing, cheating, and traffic violations.

Research in environmental sciences has found that the ergonomic design of human-made environments influences thought, feeling, and action. In the research reported here, we examined the impact of physical environments on dishonest behavior. In four studies, we tested whether certain bodily configurations-or postures-incidentally imposed by the environment led to increases in dishonest behavior. The first three experiments showed that individuals who assumed expansive postures (either consciously or inadvertently) were more likely to steal money, cheat on a test, and commit traffic violations in a driving simulation. Results suggested that participants' self-reported sense of power mediated the link between postural expansiveness and dishonesty. Study 4 revealed that automobiles with more expansive driver's seats were more likely to be illegally parked on New York City streets. Taken together, the results suggest that, first, environments that expand the body can inadvertently lead people to feel more powerful, and second, these feelings of power can cause dishonest behavior.

Heritage-culture images disrupt immigrants' second-language processing through triggering first-language interference.

For bicultural individuals, visual cues of a setting's cultural expectations can activate associated representations, switching the frames that guide their judgments. Research suggests that cultural cues may affect judgments through automatic priming, but has yet to investigate consequences for linguistic performance. The present studies investigate the proposal that heritage-culture cues hinder immigrants' second-language processing by priming first-language structures. For Chinese immigrants in the United States, speaking to a Chinese (vs. Caucasian) face reduced their English fluency, but at the same time increased their social comfort, effects that did not occur for a comparison group of European Americans (study 1). Similarly, exposure to iconic symbols of Chinese (vs. American) culture hindered Chinese immigrants' English fluency, when speaking about both culture-laden and culture-neutral topics (study 2). Finally, in both recognition (study 3) and naming tasks (study 4), Chinese icon priming increased accessibility of anomalous literal translations, indicating the intrusion of Chinese lexical structures into English processing. We discuss conceptual implications for the automaticity and adaptiveness of cultural priming and practical implications for immigrant acculturation and second-language learning.

Power posing: brief nonverbal displays affect neuroendocrine levels and risk tolerance.

Humans and other animals express power through open, expansive postures, and they express powerlessness through closed, contractive postures. But can these postures actually cause power? The results of this study confirmed our prediction that posing in high-power nonverbal displays (as opposed to low-power nonverbal displays) would cause neuroendocrine and behavioral changes for both male and female participants: High-power posers experienced elevations in testosterone, decreases in cortisol, and increased feelings of power and tolerance for risk; low-power posers exhibited the opposite pattern. In short, posing in displays of power caused advantaged and adaptive psychological, physiological, and behavioral changes, and these findings suggest that embodiment extends beyond mere thinking and feeling, to physiology and subsequent behavioral choices. That a person can, by assuming two simple 1-min poses, embody power and instantly become more powerful has real-world, actionable implications.

The appraisal rebound effect: cognitive appraisals on the rebound.

Although there have been many demonstrations of ironic thought processes, no demonstration to date has examined the effect of suppressing appraisals. Ironic phenomena in this domain have tremendous theoretical and practical importance to person perception, trait attribution, and social cognition in general. The authors propose the appraisal rebound hypothesis, which states that the suppression of an appraisal paradoxically activates it. Appraisal rebound was demonstrated across three studies with three different appraisals: unfairness, agency-others, and perceived control. The appraisal rebound effect was also found to be specific only to the suppressed appraisal. These results add to the growing literature on the many ways in which ironic mental processes affect daily thinking and feeling. Specifically, the findings are discussed with regard to emotion regulation, normal chronic emotionality, and psychopathology.