Differentiation of existential guilt and compassion in relation to responsibility induction: a film experiment

Feelings of existential guilt are assumed to depend on the perception of a causal relationship between one's own behavior or (privileged) situation and the disadvantages of others. By contrast, pity should not depend on such perceptions. This hypothesis, which has been supported so far only by correlational studies, was tested experimentally. Eighty students were shown a film about a developing country. The film was provided with four different comments, each representing one experimental condition (between-subjects design). Experimental factors were "amount of misery of the people shown" and "subject's responsibility for these peoples' conditions of life". As expected, subjects in the condition "misery and responsibility" reported higher feelings of guilt, though no more pity than subjects in the remaining three treatment conditions (experiment 1, n = 40). This mean difference, however, was statistically significant for men only. Contrary to our theoretical expectations--and to finding from other experiments on vicarious reparation--the induction of guilt had no effect on willingness to help a third party (experiment 2, n = 40). Possible reasons for this unexpected finding are suggested.     

The influence of status and sex-typing on assessments of occupational outcome

In order to investigate the relative strengths of status and sex-typing of occupations on evaluations of job outcomes, this study varied sex of subject, sex of stimulus person, status of occupation, sex-typing of occupation, and job outcome in a three-between, two-within factorial design. Contrary to previous research, subjects' beliefs about stimulus persons' affective reactions to job outcomes were not consistent with rigid sex-typing of jobs. Instead, the data suggest that crossing the sex-typing barrier in occupations is receiving growing acceptance, and that subjects are aware of sex segregation and discrimination in the labor force. Other data suggest that subjects' beliefs about job outcomes are influenced by belief in a just world.The authors wish to thank Walter G. Stephan for commenting on an earlier version of this article.