Appreciation of achievement and a behavioural preference to view failure (Schadenfreude online): Poorer decision makers prefer that high achievers fail

Appreciation of achievement and a behavioural preference to view failure: Schadenfreude online. James G.Phillips, C. Erik Landhuis, Jay Wood. Personality and Individual Differences, Volume 172, April 2021, 110597. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2020.110597

Highlights

• Tall Poppy Scale used to assessed appreciation of high achievers.

• Poorer decision makers prefer that high achievers fail.

• Interest/pleasure in others' failures (Schadenfreude) shown behaviorally online.

• Group membership predicts Reality TV voting preferences.

Abstract: The Tall Poppy Scale was used to examine individual differences in: 1) the appreciation of high achievers; 2) associated online behaviours. A sample of 165 New Zealand Europeans completed a decisional self-esteem scale and the Favour Reward and Favour Fall scales. Participants were then offered a debrief screen providing information about achievements or failures, and their interactions with the debrief screen were tracked. Participants with lower decisional self-esteem preferred that high achievers failed. Those expressing an interest in the failure of high achievers spent more time and clicked more on the debrief screen. Schadenfreude – interest (or pleasure) in the misfortune of others - was demonstrated behaviourally online.

11 children (6-13 years old) diagnosed with disorders known to be receptive to placebos and suggestion entered an inactive MRI scanner which they were told could help their brain heal itself through the power of suggestion

Olson, Jay A., Michael Lifshitz, Amir Raz, and Samuel P. L. Veissière. 2020. “Super Placebos: A Feasibility Study Combining Contextual Factors to Promote Placebo Effects.” PsyArXiv. December 26. doi:10.31234/osf.io/sh4f6

Abstract: Ample evidence demonstrates that placebo effects are modulated by contextual factors. Few interventions, however, attempt to combine a broad range of these factors. Here, we explore the therapeutic power of placebos by leveraging factors including social proof, positive suggestion, and social learning. This study aimed to test the feasibility of an elaborate "super placebo" intervention to reduce symptoms of various disorders in a pediatric population. In a single-arm qualitative study, participants entered an inactive MRI scanner which they were told could help their brain heal itself through the power of suggestion. The sample included 11 children (6-13 years old) diagnosed with disorders known to be receptive to placebos and suggestion (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Tourette Syndrome, chronic skin picking, and migraines). The children were given positive suggestions before entering the scanner for 2 to 4 sessions over the span of approximately one month. We assessed open-ended treatment outcomes via recorded interviews and home visits. The procedure was feasible and no adverse events occurred. Ten of the eleven parents reported improvements in their children after the intervention, ranging from minor transient changes to long-term reductions in subjective and objective symptoms (e.g., migraines and skin lesions). These preliminary findings demonstrate the feasibility and promise of combining a broad range of contextual factors in placebo studies. Future research is needed to assess the causal effects of such interventions.

Political humor increases the likelihood to share political information with others & enhances people’s memory for information; also increases brain response in regions associated with understanding other people’s mental states

Political Humor, Sharing, and Remembering: Insights from Neuroimaging. Jason C Coronel, Matthew B O’Donnell, Prateekshit Pandey, Michael X Delli Carpini, Emily B Falk. Journal of Communication, jqaa041, December 22 2020. https://doi.org/10.1093/joc/jqaa041

Abstract: Over the last two decades, news-oriented comedy programs have risen to compete with traditional hard news media as sources of information about politics. To the extent that a politically knowledgeable electorate is necessary for a thriving democracy, understanding the mechanisms underlying the extent to which political comedy facilitates or inhibits a well-informed citizenry is critical. Across two studies, we use behavioral experiments and neuroimaging to examine the causal effects of humor on the desire to share and the capacity to remember political information. We find that humor increases the likelihood to share political information with others and enhances people’s memory for information. Humor also increases brain response in regions associated with understanding other people’s mental states (i.e., mentalizing), which advances a theoretical framework that humor may facilitate considerations of others’ views (e.g., how other people will respond to shared political information).