Keywords: emotion, gratitude, social dilemma, cooperation / The emergence of the positive psychology movement has inspired research on positive emotions over the years; yet, several constructs have received limited attention. One of such is gratitude. Research has demonstrated that gratitude leads to prosocial behaviors, such as the engagement in effortful assistance to others, or involving in gift-exchanges in dyadic relationships. However, few studies have directly examined the effects of gratitude on cooperation, particularly, in a social dilemma context. Therefore, the current research aims at investigating the impact of gratitude on cooperative behaviors in a public good game. Traditional methodology in emotion research induces emotions exogenously, i.e. with the use of recall procedures, imagination of scenarios or video clips. Here, a new methodology is introduced where the emotion of gratitude is induced endogenously, within a public good game. Using this new induction procedure, it was found that endogenous gratitude motivated cooperative behaviors. In addition, it was also of interest to investigate the potential influences of contextual factors on the gratitude-cooperation linkage. Studies were systematically conducted to examine three contextual variables, namely; human contact through handshaking, threat of exclusion, and perspective-taking through empathy induction. Results across the four studies suggest that the emotion of gratitude acts as a motivator for cooperative behaviors in the presence of an exclusion option and empathy induction. / Leung, Hildie. / Advisers: Winton Wing-tung Au; Darius Kwan-shing Chan. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 73-06, Section: B, page: . / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2011. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 72-85). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [201-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese.

Appraisal theory posits that the addition of new, relevant, information can alter the outcome of the appraisal process for a given emotional elicitor, such as an animal. The current study aimed to explore whether the addition of animal movement would sufficiently influence the intensity of emotional reactions and action motivation ratings for animals. The current study compared self-reported emotional reactions and self-reported action motivations for still images and videos for six animal categories (snakes, spiders, cockroaches, tortoises, deer, and ducks). Our findings indicate that movement increases the intensity of relevant emotional reactions to cockroaches, tortoises, deer, and ducks, but not snakes or spiders. Action motivation ratings indicate that movement increases approach motivations for the positively associated animals but does not alter avoidance motivations for the negatively associated animals. The implications for our understanding of the perception of and reactions to animals are discussed. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2019. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Zhang, Xin. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 44-49). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Chapter CHAPTER ONE: --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / What Is Poignancy? --- p.1 / Socioemotional Selectivity Theory and Poignancy --- p.3 / Influential Psychosocial Factors --- p.4 / The Present Study --- p.9 / Chapter CHAPTER TWO: --- STUDY ONE --- p.10 / Method --- p.10 / Results and Discussion --- p.15 / Chapter CHAPTER THREE: --- STUDY TWO --- p.23 / Method --- p.23 / Results and Discussion --- p.26 / Chapter CHAPTER FOUR: --- GENERAL DISCUSSION --- p.37 / Theoretical Implications for Aging and Emotion --- p.37 / Practical Implications for Psychological Well-being of Older Adults --- p.40 / Limitation and Future Directions --- p.42 / References --- p.44 / Footnote --- p.50

M.A. (Psychology) / Research investigating the connection between Functional Hemispherical Asymmetry (FHA) and perception of affect in clinical as well as normal populations, is characterised by contradictory findings with regard to the role of the different hemispheres, especially as regards the perception of various valencies of emotions. Although a majority of studies indicates that the right hemisphere (RH) is superior in the perception of all valencies and emotions - positive as well as negative - there are numerous studies indicating a possible differential processing of positive and negative emotions by the hemispheres. Although various researchers try to lay the above contradictory findings and the general lack of consensus at the door of methodological problems/inequalities or error variances, the literature is increasingly pointing to the existence of evidently reliable individual differences between people as regards their hemispherical functioning. The problem investigated in the current study, is to determine the possible role of the organismic variables in FHA, i e variables seated in the individual who is making the observation. In this study, the focus is specifically on the role of sex and the temperament dimension of introversion-extraversion. The objectives of this study are to determine whether there are significant differences in the direction of these hemispherical differences, as well as the relative performance, of groups divided according to sex and temperament characteristics, and whether the relevant organismic variables offer a possible means of explaining the contradictions in research results on FHA and the perception of emotion. In this study, the measuring of FHA is operationalised in terms of the differential performance, measured in terms of accuracy and speed of observation (response latency) of the hemispheres in the perception of different valencies of emotional stimuli (positive versus negative, and approach versus avoidance emotions).. The subject population comprised a group of students selected in terms of sex and temperament (introversion-extraversion). Selection in terms of introversion-extraversion was done on the basis of subjects' performance in the Personality Questionnaire Form B (Schepers, 1991): persons falling in the lower and upper three stanines of the scale respectively were identified as introverts and extraverts. Only right-handed subjects with no history of brain injury were used for the study. Differential hemispherical performance in terms of response accuracy and latency was determined by means of the Divided Visual Field Technique (DVFT). Although the reliability data of this technique are generally not entirely satisfactory when measured in terms of psychometric test standards, an effort was made to enhance the reliability of the technique in this study by controlling specific stimulus and response variables (inter alia the exposure time and the use of both hands for a response) during the experimental design.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / This study examined the roles of commitment and attributions in uninvolved partner responses to imagined sexual infidelity. Undergraduate students (N = 298) in dating relationships participated in a hypothetical sexual infidelity scenario in which they imagined their romantic partner engaged in sexual intercourse with someone else. Measured-variable path analysis was used to evaluate the predictive ability of commitment and attributions on negative emotional responses and predicted relationship continuation. The hypothesized conceptual model demonstrated poor fit to sample data. Through exploratory model building, an alternative model was generated that demonstrated good fit to sample data. A subset of commitment, investment, predicted negative affect. In addition, attributions predicted predictions of relationship continuation. Negative emotional responses were highly endorsed on a validated measure for emotional responses, the PANAS-X (Watson & Clark, 1994). Further, study findings highlight the importance of the use of a compliance check in assessing successful participant completion of imagined infidelity scenario. Unique study contributions include directions for further conceptual model development for this area of research as well as support for the use of compliance checks and careful selection of infidelity scenario.