FEELING WITHOUT THINKING: LESSONS FROM THE ANCIENTS ON EMOTION AND VIRTUE-ACQUISITION

Abstract: By briefly sketching some important ancient accounts of the connections between psychology and moral education, I hope to illuminate the significance of the contemporary debate on the nature of emotion and to reveal its stakes. I begin the essay with a brief discussion of intellectualism in Socrates and the Stoics, and Plato's and Posidonius's respective attacks against it. Next, I examine the two current leading philosophical accounts of emotion: the cognitive theory and the noncognitive theory. I maintain that the noncognitive theory better explains human behavior and experience and has more empirical support than the cognitive theory. In the third section of the essay I argue that recent empirical research on emotional contagion and mirroring processes provides important new evidence for the noncognitive theory. In the final section, I draw some preliminary conclusions about moral education and the acquisition of virtue.     

Predicting change in relationship insecurity: The roles of compassionate and self‐image goals

It was hypothesized that self‐image goals to construct, defend, and maintain desired images of the self enhance relationship insecurity, whereas compassionate goals to support others diminish relationship insecurity. Study 1 followed 115 new college roommates for 3 weeks; Study 2 followed 230 new college roommates across a semester. Both studies assessed self‐image and compassionate goals for and anxiety and avoidance in the roommate relationship. Self‐image goals predicted increased relationship anxiety and avoidance across 3 weeks (Study 1) and within weeks, from week to week, and across 3 months (Study 2). Compassionate goals consistently predicted decreased relationship anxiety and avoidance across studies and analyses. These results suggest that through their interpersonal goals, people contribute directly to their own relationship insecurity.     

Staying friends with ex‐romantic partners: Predictors,reasons, and outcomes

In two studies, we identified predictors of staying friends with an ex‐partner, developed and validated a measure for reasons to stay friends with exes, and examined the outcomes of staying friends. We identified four reasons to stay friends with exes: Security, Practical, Civility, and Unresolved Romantic Desires. Sex, sexual orientation, attachment styles, personality traits, time since breakup, and reasons for breakup all predicted staying friends. Staying friends due to Unresolved Romantic Desires resulted in negative outcomes, whereas staying friends due to Security and Practical reasons resulted in more positive outcomes. Staying friends due to Practical or Civility reasons resulted in the friendship being less likely to last in the long term. Implications for future research and clinical work are discussed.     

UNDERSTANDING RESPONSES TO MULTI-SOURCE FEEDBACK: THE ROLE OF CORE SELF-EVALUATIONS

This longitudinal study examines the role of core self-evaluations in responses to multisource feedback. Consistent with past research, feedback recipients were most satisfied when others' ratings were high. Core self-evaluations was not related to satisfaction with feedback, but was positively linked to goal commitment 4 months after feedback. Polynomial regression results reveal a complex pattern of associations among core self-evaluations, ratings, satisfaction, and commitment to developmental goals. Specifically, individuals with high core self-evaluations were most committed to developmental goals when self and others' ratings were discrepant. In contrast, individuals with low core self-evaluations were most committed to developmental goals when self and others' ratings were in agreement. Our results question the notion that satisfaction with feedback affects motivation to improve and highlight the importance of personality in motivation to improve following feedback. We discuss practical and theoretical implications of our findings and provide a theoretical framework for future research.     

Why Do Fools Fall in Love (at Work)? Factors Associated With the Incidence of Workplace Romance1

We conducted 2 Web‐based survey studies to examine factors associated with the incidence of workplace romance. In Study 1, results based on data collected from 197 employees indicate that their degrees of perceived workplace sexualization and task interdependence were related to their observations of workplace romance. In addition, employees were most likely to report participating in a workplace romance when workplace sexualization and male–female social contact were high. In Study 2, results based on data collected from 80 employees indicate that their degrees of perceived workplace sexualization was related to their observations of workplace romance. Taken together, the results of the 2 studies suggest that work context is associated with the incidence of workplace romance.     

Boundless Creativity: Evidence for the Domain Generality of Individual Differences in Creativity

This study investigated correlates of domain‐general and domain‐specific components of creativity. 158 college students completed a questionnaire that assessed their motivational and personality traits (i.e., intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, creative personality, and originality in word association) as well as intellectual abilities (SAT verbal and quantitative scores). Under two different instruction conditions (standard instruction or explicit “be creative” instruction), students also took a battery of multi‐item, product‐based tests of creativity in three domains (artistic, verbal, and mathematical creativity). Factor analyses showed evidence of domain‐generality of creativity. Furthermore, results from structural equation models showed that motivational and personality traits and intellectual abilities were associated with the domain‐general component of creativity. Only one variable (SAT quantitative score) was found to be associated with the domain‐specific component of mathematical creativity under the explicit “be creative” instruction condition. These results affirm the domain‐generality of creativity and challenge researchers to identify correlates of domain‐specific components of creativity.