Bored and better: Finding a boring person results in people feeling not only superior to the boring individual, but also to others

Bored and better: Interpersonal boredom results in people feeling not only superior to the boring individual, but also to others. Jonathan Gallegos,Karen GasperORCID Icon &Nathaniel E. C. Schermerhorn. Self and Identity, Aug 16 2022. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298868.2022.2111341

Abstract: Four experiments tested the hypothesis that meeting someone new who is boring would result in people feeling superior to the boring individual, which would then result in people viewing themselves as better than others and increased confidence. Respondents reported greater feelings of superiority, meaninglessness, and difficulty paying attention when they wrote about meeting a new, boring individual than a new or manipulative individual. Feeling superior, but not meaninglessness and attention, mediated the effect of interpersonal boredom on viewing oneself as better than others, but not on confidence. These finding did not occur when people wrote about a boring task or a disliked, manipulative individual. The experiments elucidate how interpersonal boredom, albeit a negative experience, can enhance people’s sense of self.

Keywords: Interpersonal boredomsuperiorityself-enhancementmeaninglessness