Cross-cultural similarities and differences in motives to forgive: A comparison between and within cultures.

Recently, researchers have begun to explore people's motives to forgive those who have offended them. Using a recall method, we examined whether such motives (relationship-, offender- or self-focused) differ between and within cultures that are more collectivistic (Moluccan Islands in Indonesia) or more individualistic (the Netherlands) and whether this depends on people's relationship with the offender. More specifically, we examined the idea that other-focused motives should be more important in cultures that are more collectivistic and that self-focused motives should prevail in more individualistic cultures. We found that Moluccan participants indeed endorsed relationship- and offender-focused motives more than Dutch participants. Moluccan and Dutch participants did not, however, differ in the extent to which they endorsed self-focused motives. Furthermore, Dutch participants were more likely to endorse relationship motives (especially in close relations) than self-focused motives. For Moluccan participants, relationship-, offender- and self-focused motives were equally important and also did not depend on how close they were with the offender. Differences between the samples could not be explained by the extent to which people defined themselves as more independent or interdependent. The implications of these findings for future research on forgiveness motives are discussed.

Under the bridge: An in-depth examination of online trolling in the gaming context.

Trolling is a subject of apparent academic confusion; the few studies conducted thus far yielded a variety of conflicting definitions regarding what constitutes trolling behaviour and little information regarding trolling motivations. In order to shed further light on this phenomenon, the present study aimed to (1) determine which behaviours actual trolls consider as trolling, (2) explore the motivations behind trolling, and (3) examine the online community's response to trolling as perceived by the troll. After performing semi-structured interviews with 22 self-confessed trolls, we found that there is a variety of behaviours trolls consider trolling which can now be put in clear categories based on target and method. Three key motivations to troll emerged: personal enjoyment, revenge, and thrill-seeking. Trolling also appears to be a cyclical, self-perpetuating phenomenon enabled by the online community at large. Theoretical implications for future trolling research are also discussed.

Cross-cultural differences in emotion suppression in everyday interactions.

Previous research suggests that in collectivistic cultures, people tend to suppress their emotions more than in individualistic cultures. Little research, however, has explored cross-cultural differences in emotion regulation in everyday interactions. Using a daily social interaction method, we examined whether people from collectivistic backgrounds (Chinese exchange students and immigrants from the Moluccas, Indonesia) living in the Netherlands differed from those from individualistic backgrounds (Dutch natives) in emotion suppression during everyday interactions. We also examined whether this depended on their relationship with the interaction partner(s). We found that Chinese participants suppressed positive and negative emotions more than Dutch and Moluccan participants and that this was related to differences in interdependent and independent self-construal across the samples. We also found that Chinese participants suppressed positive emotions less in interactions with close others, whereas Dutch participants suppressed negative emotions more with non-close others. No such differences were found for Moluccans. Our findings support the idea that people from collectivistic cultures suppress emotions more than those from individualistic cultures, but they also suggest that this depends on who the interaction partner is. Furthermore, they suggest that emotion suppression may change when people with collectivistic backgrounds have been raised in individualistic cultures.

Global perceptions of state apologies for human rights violations.

State apologies for human rights violations are often seen as a key mechanism in reconciliation processes. Nevertheless, they are often contested as well and have not been embraced equally by countries around the world. This raises questions about their universal value and potential to address or redress past harmdoing by countries. In a study across 33 countries (n = 11,023), we found that people around the world consider apologies by states for human rights violations to be reasonably important but tend to be less supportive of the idea that their own country should apologize for past harmdoing. We found that this discrepancy was amplified in countries with stronger honour norms and a stronger collective sense of victim- rather than perpetratorhood. Moving beyond the decontextualized approach that has prevailed in previous psychological research on this topic, our findings show that people's attitudes towards apologies by their country do not exist in a cultural and social vacuum but depend on the extent to which the broader context affords a critical reflection on past harmdoing. As such, they help explain why some countries have been reluctant to offer apologies, and why such gestures may also be more controversial in some contexts than in others.

Meaningless gestures or pathway to healing and reconciliation? Comparing the perspectives on political apologies in victim and non-victim communities in El Salvador, the Republic of Korea and the United Kingdom.

Political apologies have been theorized to play an important role in healing and reconciliation processes in post-conflict settings. Whether they actually fulfil this function, however, remains unclear as the voices and perspectives of victim communities have largely been underrepresented in research. To address this, we examined the role of apologies that were offered for the El Mozote massacre (El Salvador), the Jeju 4.3 massacres (Republic of Korea) and Bloody Sunday (United Kingdom), according to members of these communities and the broader public. Although we anticipated that victim community members should find the apology more valuable and meaningful and should, therefore, be more positive about its role in healing and reconciliation processes, we found that this varies across countries. This variation could be explained by people's trust in the country's institutions. Across the samples, we found that the apology was seen as a relatively important gesture. For the apology to be perceived as impactful, however, it had to be seen as a meaningful (i.e. sincere) gesture. Our findings suggest that apologies have a role to play in the aftermath of human rights violations, but that it is essential to take the broader context into account.

Trolls Without Borders: A Cross-Cultural Examination of Victim Reactions to Verbal and Silent Aggression Online.

Trolling-the online exploitation of website, chat, or game mechanics at another user's expense-can and does take place all over cyberspace. It can take myriad forms, as well-some verbal, like trash-talking an opponent in a game, and some silent, like refusing to include a new player in a team effort during an in-game quest. However, despite this variety, there are few to no studies comparing the effects of these differing trolling types on victims. In addition, no study has yet taken into account users' offline cultural context and norms into the trolling victim experience. To fill this gap in the literature, the present study put participants from three culturally-distinct countries-Pakistan, Taiwan, and the Netherlands-in a simulated trolling interaction using the Cyberball game. Participants were either flamed (read: harshly insulted) or ostracized by a member of their own cultural group (ingroup) or a minority member (outgroup), and the participants' emotional responses, behavioral intentions toward the other players, and messages sent during the game were taken as indicators of their response to the trolling. Results showed that our Taiwanese sample used the most reactive aggression when trolled and our Dutch sample was the most passive. In addition, ostracism generally produced the desire to repair relationships, irrespective of cultural context, and perpetrator culture (ingroup or outgroup) only produced an effect in the behavioral intentions of our Pakistani sample. Overall, it would appear that online and offline culture interact to produce the variety of responses to trolling seen in extant literature. Additional implications for future research into computer-mediated communication and online aggression are also discussed.

Group-based shame, guilt, and regret across cultures.

To date, there has been no systematic examination of cross-cultural differences in group-based shame, guilt, and regret following wrongdoing. Using a community sample (N = 1358), we examined people's reported experiences of shame, guilt, and regret following transgressions by themselves and by different identity groups (i.e., family, community, country) in Burkina Faso, Costa Rica, Indonesia, Japan, Jordan, the Netherlands, Poland, and the United States. We assessed whether any variation in this regard can be explained by the relative endorsement of individualistic or collectivistic values at the individual level and at the country level. Our findings suggest that people's reported experience of these emotions mostly depends on the transgression level. We also observe some variation across individuals and countries, which can be partially explained by the endorsement of collectivistic and individualistic values. The results highlight the importance of taking into account individual and cultural values when studying group-based emotions, as well as the identity groups involved in the transgression.

An international survey of perceptions of the 2014 FIFA World Cup: National levels of corruption as a context for perceptions of institutional corruption.

We conducted a survey about the 2014 FIFA World Cup that measured attitudes about FIFA, players, and officials in 18 languages with 4600 respondents from 29 countries. Sixty percent of respondents perceived FIFA officials as being dishonest, and people from countries with less institutional corruption and stronger rule of law perceived FIFA officials as being more corrupt and less competent running the tournament than people from countries with more corruption and weaker rule of law. In contrast, respondents evaluated players as skilled and honest and match officials as competent and honest. We discuss the implications of our findings for perceptions of corruption in general.

Quality of life of residents with dementia in traditional versus small-scale long-term care settings: a quasi-experimental study.

BACKGROUND: The number of people living with dementia worldwide is increasing, resulting in a need for more residential care. In response to criticism of the traditional medical approach to residential dementia care, many large nursing homes are transforming their traditional care facilities into more home-like small-scale living facilities. OBJECTIVES: This study examined the assumed benefits of small-scale living for residents with dementia, compared to traditional long-term care in the Netherlands and Belgium. The primary outcome was quality of life, divided into nine different domains. DESIGN: The study had a longitudinal design within a one-year time interval. SETTINGS: Five long-term care settings in the Netherlands and Belgium containing four traditional and twelve small-scale living units participated in the study. PARTICIPANTS: Data were obtained from 179 residents with dementia (age>65 years) (Dutch small-scale N=51, traditional N=51, Belgian small-scale N=47, traditional N=30). METHODS: Nurses and nursing assistants were trained to fill in the questionnaires. RESULTS: In the Dutch sample, residents in small-scale settings had higher mean scores on 'social relations', 'positive affect', and 'having something to do' than residents in traditional settings. Moreover, mean scores on 'caregiver relation' and 'negative affect' remained stable over time among residents in small-scale settings, but decreased in traditional settings. These differences could not be explained by differences in behavioural characteristics, behavioural interventions, or social interaction. In the Belgian sample, fewer differences were found between traditional and small-scale settings. Nevertheless, residents in small-scale settings were reported to experience less 'negative affect' than those in traditional settings, which could be explained by differences in depression. Over time, however, residents 'felt more at home' in traditional settings, whereas no such increase was found for small-scale settings. Moreover, the mean quality of life scores on 'restless behaviour', 'having something to do' and 'social relations' decreased in small-scale settings, but remained stable in traditional settings. CONCLUSIONS: Both small-scale and traditional settings appear to have beneficial effects on different domains of quality of life of residents with dementia. Future research should focus more on the quality and content of the care provided, than on the effects of the scale and design of the environment in long-term care settings.