When the needs for affiliation and intimacy are frustrated: Envy and indirect aggression among German and Cameroonian adults

This article tests the hypothesis that a lack of experiences of relatedness is linked to negative outcomes such as envy and indirect aggression in particular if individuals are characterized by a high implicit affiliation-intimacy motive. Assumptions were examined in a sample of 273 adults from Germany and Cameroon. Components of the affiliation-intimacy motive, i.e., needs for affiliation and intimacy, were assessed with a picture story exercise. Additionally, participants reported on experiences of relatedness, indirect aggression, and envy. Low experiences of relatedness are associated with enhanced levels of envy and indirect aggression among individuals with a pronounced implicit affiliation-intimacy motive. Those effects hold true across cultural groups. Findings point to the prominent role of the implicit affiliation-intimacy motive for interpersonal emotions and behavior.     

Lean back and relax: Reclined seating position buffers the effect of frustration on anger and aggression

Frustration is a powerful instigator of anger‐based aggression. We hypothesized that the impact of a frustration on anger and aggressive behavior is reduced in a state of feeling relaxed, which is considered incompatible with the experience of anger. Seventy‐nine participants received frustrating feedback either when sitting upright or sitting in a reclined position and were then given a chance to act aggressively toward the frustrator. Feelings of anger and relaxation were assessed before and after the frustration. Participants in the reclined position felt more relaxed than those sitting upright, which indirectly predicted less aggressive behavior via lower anger. The results are consistent with theories of incompatible states and embodiment and have implications for using body‐related cues to mitigate anger‐based aggression.     

Public concerns about violent video games are moral concerns—How moral threat can make pacifists susceptible to scientific and political claims against violent video games

Public discussions about the harmfulness of violent media are often held in the aftermath of violent felony. At the same time, we know little about whether and how experiencing real‐life violence impacts the way laypersons perceive and evaluate debates about virtual violence. In Study 1, we provided data indicating that both real‐life violence and violent video games are perceived as morally threatening by people who regard nonviolence to be an important moral value (i.e., pacifists). In Study 2, we hypothesized and found that when pacifists perceive threat from the presence of real‐life violence, they are especially susceptible to scientific and political claims indicating that violent video games are harmful. Our findings are in line with the value protection model and research on the psychological consequences of threat. Implications of the present findings are discussed with regard to a better understanding of the violent video games debate in the general public.     

Qualités psychométriques d’une version francophone du « Displaced Aggression Questionnaire »

IntroductionThe Displaced Aggression Questionnaire is currently the only self-report instrument to measure individual tendency to displace aggression. It is composed of three factors, which assess an affective dimension (angry rumination), a cognitive dimension (revenge planning) and a behavioral dimension (displaced aggression).ObjectiveTo adapt a French translated version of the Displaced Aggression Questionnaire and test the psychometrics.MethodIn this study, we recruited 191 adults in the community. The questionnaire has been adapted and validated with respects to guidelines for the process of transcultural adaptation and validation of self-report measures. A principal component analysis has been used to assess the structure of the French version of the questionnaire.ResultsAfter taking into account one item that has not loaded onto any of the three expected factors, the principal component analysis confirmed the hypothesized three-factor structure for the French version of the questionnaire according to the original structure of the scale. It has been named Questionnaire d’Agression Déplacée in French. Results showed good psychometric qualities for the internal consistency, the discriminant and concomitant validity and the reliability.ConclusionBased on these positive results, this version can already be used by French speaking researchers.