Individual and culture-level components of survey response styles: A multi-level analysis using cultural models of selfhood.

Variations in acquiescence and extremity pose substantial threats to the validity of cross-cultural research that relies on survey methods. Individual and cultural correlates of response styles when using 2 contrasting types of response mode were investigated, drawing on data from 55 cultural groups across 33 nations. Using 7 dimensions of self-other relatedness that have often been confounded within the broader distinction between independence and interdependence, our analysis yields more specific understandings of both individual- and culture-level variations in response style. When using a Likert-scale response format, acquiescence is strongest among individuals seeing themselves as similar to others, and where cultural models of selfhood favour harmony, similarity with others and receptiveness to influence. However, when using Schwartz's (2007) portrait-comparison response procedure, acquiescence is strongest among individuals seeing themselves as self-reliant but also connected to others, and where cultural models of selfhood favour self-reliance and self-consistency. Extreme responding varies less between the two types of response modes, and is most prevalent among individuals seeing themselves as self-reliant, and in cultures favouring self-reliance. As both types of response mode elicit distinctive styles of response, it remains important to estimate and control for style effects to ensure valid comparisons.

Shame and guilt--do they really differ in their focus of evaluation? Wanting to change the self and behavior in response to ingroup immorality.

Shame and guilt are often theorized to differ on a self versus behavior focus. However, we propose that this is not true when taking a group perspective. In our field study, 196 communal participants were confronted with historical ingroup immorality. Results showed that participants who were old enough to have understood what happened in that time-period felt more guilt and shame than did those who were too young. Partly due to their ingroup anger, shame motivated an intention to change the ingroup self and behavior. In contrast, partly due to personal anger, guilt motivated an intention to change personal self and behavior. This suggests that the distinction between shame and guilt are not as clear-cut as previous research have assumed.

Refusing to tolerate ongoing prejudicial behavior toward immigrants: Together we can object to prejudicial flag displays.

Over recent years, immigrants have been met with unjust prejudiced behavior instead of warm welcome. However, not all citizens of a nation endorse such behavior, instead they try to oppose it through social mobilization. In the context of an ongoing situation where the national flag is used as a prejudiced means to exclude immigrants, individuals who felt attached with all members of the nation felt significantly more shame for the unjust than individuals who glorify their nation. Consequently, attached identifiers expressed a significantly greater motivation than glorified identifiers to start thinking about social mobilization to reclaim the meaning of the flag as a symbol of inclusion, not exclusion. The current study contributes to the growing debate on how immigrants are received, and it helps explain how national identification and feelings such as shame motivate individuals to start thinking about objecting to prejudicial flag displays.

Dropping Out of School: Explaining How Concerns for the Family's Social-Image and Self-Image Predict Anger.

As dropping out of school is considered a violation of moral norms, the family associated with the drop out can react with anger directed toward the pupil or with anger directed at others that might know of the drop out. In our vignette study (N = 129), we found that anger at others and anger at the pupil were significantly higher if our community participants imagined a drop out from a vocational education rather than a general education. As expected, anger directed at others was fully explained by a concern for the family's social-image (i.e., a concern for condemnation by others), while anger directed at the former pupil was fully explained by a concern for the family's self-image (i.e., a concern for their moral self-image). Thoughts for how to better understand family reactions in relation to drop out are discussed.

Exploring Responses to Body Weight Criticism: Defensive Avoidance When Weight Is Seen as Controllable.

In Western society, weight moralization is reflected in the belief that weight is controllable across the weight spectrum. However, the effect of holding such beliefs is unclear. We therefore propose that these beliefs affect people differently depending on their BMI. When confronted with negative, self-related feedback, people's coping strategies are often reflected in the ways they relate to their self. We examine three such self-to-self relations (i.e., reassured, inadequate, and hated self). Extending prior research, we predict that weight controllability beliefs are related to positive self-to-self relations for adults with a low, and to negative self-to-self relations for adults with a high BMI. Accordingly, we expected that weight controllability beliefs would be associated with defensive avoidance among people with a high, but not with a low BMI. We tested our hypotheses in a sample of 348 adults who participated in an online survey. Weight controllability beliefs were associated with increased defensive avoidance in people with high BMI, and with decreased defensive avoidance in adults with a low BMI. Forms of self-to-self relating fully mediated this association, demonstrating positive effects on adults with a low, and negative effects on adults with a high BMI. Additionally, in an open ending section, we found seven social settings that deprive people from satisfying their need to belong and to be accepted due to their weight. We discuss our findings against a call for a less moralized public discourse about overweight and obesity that is particularly relevant in the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Revisiting the "The Breakfast Club": Testing Different Theoretical Models of Belongingness and Acceptance (and Social Self-Representation).

The current work tests different theoretical models of belongingness and acceptance as fundamental needs for human motivation. In the current study, 372 participants were presented with 52 different items measuring five different theoretical models of belongingness (with a total of 32 items) and three different theoretical models of acceptance (with a total of 20 items). In a first step, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) failed to provide support for these eight theoretical models. In a second step, we therefore applied Exploratory Factor Analysis yielding three factors, which we interpreted as communicating: (1) Belongingness, (2) Emotion-Acceptance, and (3) Social Self-Representation. In a third step, these three factors were corroborated by a CFA. We discuss how these two factors of "belongingness," "emotion-acceptance" respond to the literature on the need to belong and be accepted, and we reflect on how 'social self-representation' seems to be an alternative motivation for how we present ourselves to our social relations to fulfill our needs.

Physical Couple and Family Violence Among Clients Seeking Therapy: Identifiers and Predictors.

INTRODUCTION: Couple violence (CV) affects many, and the consequences of those actions are grave, not only for the individual suffering at the hand of the perpetrator but also for the other persons in the family. Violence often happens among more than just the adults within one family. Even if CV has been thoroughly investigated in the general population very few studies have investigated this objective on a clinical sample, and none of these have included family violence. AIM: This article identifies and describes the group of clients that have issues of physical couple and family violence. It analyses a model that can help to discover physical violence and help therapists to assess what actions to take in therapy to prevent further physical violence. METHODOLOGY: Descriptive analysis, t-tests, and structural equation modeling (SEM) are used on a sample of clients receiving couple and family therapy (CFT) in Norway (N = 830). Family violence is modeled by the partner's expectations toward each other, levels of anger, sexual satisfaction, and self-control. RESULTS: One-in-five clients experienced physical CV in their current relationship and one-in-four experienced physical family violence. The group of clients who experienced CV differed from those without such experiences in having lower income, more prior experience with psychotherapy, more experience with alcohol abuse in childhood, and far more physical family violence in their current family. Our model predicting physical couple and family violence explained as much as 53% of family violence and had three positive, significant predictors (expectation, anger, and sexual satisfaction) and one, significant negative predictor (self-control). Somewhat unexpected, sexual satisfaction was a positive, and not a negative, predictor of violence. CONCLUSION: Our study identified one-in-four clients in CFT experience physical CV. Unreasonable expectation from one partner toward the other, anger and sexual satisfaction were positive predictors of physical violence, while self-control was found to be a negative predictor of physical violence. Implications for therapeutic work and the prevention of physical violence are discussed.

Weight Bias Internalization: The Maladaptive Effects of Moral Condemnation on Intrinsic Motivation.

Weight stigma typically focuses on suggestions that people with overweight and obesity are incompetent and immoral. Integrating so far unconnected lines of research, the current research presents two studies that examine the motivational relevance of these aspects of weight stigma. Specifically, we tested the proposition that people with overweight and obesity respond differently to the public viewing them as incompetent compared to immoral, as these aspects of weight stigma differ in reparability. We expect that threats to competence are more acceptable and thus related to a constructive response that is more effective in losing weight in the long-run. By contrast, we propose that threats to morality elicit an acute urge to defend one's moral image, thereby prompting responses that are more visible to the social environment, but potentially less effective for losing weight. Study 1 experimentally compared exposure to weight stigma focused on morality vs. weight stigma focused on competence in a sample of adults with overweight and obesity (N = 122; M BMI = 31.89, SD BMI = 4.39). We found that when exposed to weight stigma focused on morality, people with overweight and obesity respond by defending their moral social-image but that this is less effective for encouraging weight loss, while exposure to weight stigma focused on competence led to an increased likelihood of engagement in weight loss behaviors. Complementing and extending the findings, Study 2 (N = 348, M BMI = 26.78, SD BMI = 6.78) tested the notion that internalized weight bias predominantly revolves around moral concerns, and thus will lead to less self-determined behavioral regulation. We found strong support for the moral core of weight bias internalization. In line with our predictions, greater weight bias internalization was associated less self-determined and more other-determined regulation of dieting and exercising. This suggests that weight bias internalization operates as a facilitator of maladaptive behavioral regulation following weight stigma, contributing to lower psychological functioning and well-being of people with overweight and obesity. The current research presents novel findings about the underlying mechanisms of weight stigma and weight bias internalization and identifies strategies to avoid maladaptive and facilitate adaptive health behaviors.

Defend or repair? Explaining responses to in-group moral failure by disentangling feelings of shame, rejection, and inferiority.

Research on shame about in-group moral failure has yielded paradoxical results. In some studies, shame predicts self-defensive motivations to withdraw. In other studies, shame predicts pro-social motivations, such as restitution. We think that this paradox can be explained by disentangling the numerous appraisals and feelings subsumed under the label "shame." In 2 studies, we asked community samples of Norwegians about their in-group's discrimination against the Tater minority. Confirmatory factor analysis validated the measures of the appraisals and feelings used in Study 1 (N = 206) and Study 2 (N = 173). In both studies, an appraisal of the in-group as suffering a moral defect best predicted felt shame, whereas an appraisal of concern for condemnation of the in-group best predicted felt rejection. In both studies, felt rejection best predicted self-defensive motivation, whereas felt shame best predicted pro-social motivation. Implications for conceptualizing and studying shame are discussed.