Amparo Caballero

Mixed Emotional Appeals in Emotional and Danger Control Processes

Negative emotional appeals do not always help to reduce risk behaviors. We report two studies about a new strategy based on the presentation of appeals with mixed sequential emotions (e.g., sadness/fear–joy/relief). Study 1 shows that a mixed message generates lower post-message discomfort than an exclusively negative message; moreover, in this first study, reported probability of performing the risk behavior, binge drinking, in the future is also lower in the mixed condition. Study 2 replicates these results and relates them to the extended parallel process model (EPPM) (Witte, 1992). Here, the mixed emotional message again generates lower post-message discomfort than the negative one, and participants are motivated to control the danger (response efficacy is evaluated more positively in the mixed condition).

Comparing the Effects of Negative and Mixed Emotional Messages on Predicted Occasional Excessive Drinking

Nicotine, the addictive component of cigarette smoke has profound effects on the brain. Activation of its receptors by nicotine has complex consequences for network activity throughout the brain, potentially contributing to the addictive property of the drug. Nicotinic receptors have been implicated in psychiatric illnesses like schizophrenia and are also neuroprotective, potentially beneficial for neurodegenerative diseases. These effects of nicotine serve to emphasize the multifarious roles the drug, acting through multiple nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes. The findings also remind us of the complexity of signaling mechanisms and stress the risks of unintended consequences of drugs designed to combat nicotine addiction.

Future‐oriented emotions in the prediction of binge‐drinking intention and expectation: the role of anticipated and anticipatory emotions

The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) offers a parsimonious explanation of purposive behavior, but in the study of healthy and risk behaviors its sufficiency may be questioned. Working with binge-drinking, a very common risk behavior in Spanish undergraduate students, we used two strategies for improving predictions from TPB: using behavioral intention (BI) and behavioral expectation (BE) as proximal antecedents of behaviors and adding as new predictors two future-oriented emotions (anticipated and anticipatory). Hierarchical regression analyses show that while anticipated emotions improved TPB explanations of BI, anticipatory emotions improved the explanations of BE. The present results show the influence of future emotions in the prediction of behavioral intention and behavioral expectation.The version posted must contain the text: This is the accepted version of the following article: Carrera, P., Caballero, A. & Munoz, D. (2012). Future-oriented emotions in the prediction of binge-drinking intention and expectation: the role of anticipated and anticipatory emotions. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 53, 273–279, which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-9450.2012.00948.x/epdf

Construal level as a moderator of the role of affective and cognitive attitudes in the prediction of health‐risk behavioural intentions

In two preliminary control checks it was shown that affective attitudes presented greater abstraction than cognitive attitudes. Three further studies explored how construal level moderated the role of affective and cognitive attitudes in predicting one health-promoting behaviour (exercising) and two risk behaviours (sleep debt and binge drinking). There was a stronger influence of affective attitudes both when participants were in abstract (vs. concrete) mindsets induced by a priming task in Studies 1a and 1b, and when behavioural intentions were formed for the distant (vs. near) future in Study 2. In the case of concrete mindsets, the results were inconclusive; the interaction between construal level and cognitive attitudes was only marginally significant in Study 1b. The present research supports the assertion that in abstract mindsets (vs. concrete mindsets) people use more affective attitudes to construe their behavioural intentions. Practical implications for health promotion are discussed in the framework of construal-level theory.

Incidencia de la prototipicidad de los mensajes sobre la detección experimental de la mentira

ResumenPartiendo del supuesto que el conocimiento social sobre la mentira esta representado conceptualmente en categorias referidas a los escenarios en los que aparece la mentira en la vida cotidiana (con la familia, con los amigos, con desconocidos y en el trabajo), en el presente trabajo hemos analizado los efectos de tal conocimiento sobre los juicios de verdad y mentira.En el estudio 1 hemos comprobado que los jueces consideran mas prototipicos los mensajes que concuerdan con la respuesta esperada en situaciones sociales de mentira. Los resultados del estudio 2 muestran que las expectativas de los jueces influyen los juicios sobre si los emisores mienten o no.

Las emociones y el género en la conducta sexual de riesgo en adolescentes

Resumen En este estudio se ha analizado la experiencia sexual de una muestra de adolescentes de entre 14 y 16 años y en qué medida la incorporación de las emociones anticipadas mejora la predicción de la intención de mantener relaciones sexuales sin preservativo, en comparación con las predicciones hechas desde la Teoría de la Conducta Planificada, prestando especial atención a las diferencias de género. Los resultados indican que, en el caso de los varones, la consideración de las emociones anticipadas no mejora la predicción; por el contrario, en las mujeres la incorporación de la experiencia emocional anticipada ante la posibilidad de mantener relaciones sexuales de riesgo mejora hasta un 17 por ciento la predicción de la intención de mantener relaciones sexuales sin preservativo. En general, los varones muestran una actitud menos negativa que las mujeres hacia la conducta sexual de riesgo, y las mujeres anticipan más emociones negativas, como miedo y culpa, y menos alegría.

Efectos culturales de las normas perversas

ResumenSegun el concepto de «norma perversa» (Fernandez-Dols, 1993), la importancia de los amigos y los conocidos en la sociedad espanola no es debida a un mayor colectivismo sino a graves disfunciones en las organizaciones burocraticas que impulsan a buscar conocidos cuando debemos gestionar una cuestion formal pero no en contextos informales. El presente estudio trato de comprobar esta hipotesis comparando el grado en que sujetos espanoles y britanicos percibian que era necesario el recurso a conocidos en contextos burocraticos y contextos informales. De acuerdo con la prediccion, los conocidos son tan importantes o incluso mas importantes para los britanicos en contextos informales pero los espanoles valoran de forma significativamente mas alta a los conocidos para la gestion de asuntos burocraticos.

Educación para la paz y la convivencia: implicaciones para la gestión de conflictos escolares

Resumen A partir de una breve revisión de algunas de las experiencias e hitos fundamentales que a lo largo del siglo XX han servido para construir la noción actual de educación para la paz y la convivencia, se abordan algunas de las alternativas que, desde un enfoque psicosocial, han demostrado mayor utilidad en el tratamiento y prevención de los conflictos en contextos educativos. Todo ello desde una concepción integradora de lo que significa educar para la convivencia, considerando que ésta no será posible si no se parte de una reflexión y análisis de las causas estructurales de los conflictos, ya sean éstos relativos a las relaciones cotidianas entre las personas, los grupos o los pueblos.

Kama Muta: Conceptualizing and Measuring the Experience Often Labelled Being Moved Across 19 Nations and 15 Languages

English-speakers sometimes say that they feel “moved to tears,” “emotionally touched,” “stirred,” or that something “warmed their heart;” other languages use similar passive contact metaphors to refer to an affective state. The authors propose and measure the concept of kama muta to understand experiences often given these and other labels. Do the same experiences evoke the same kama muta emotion across nations and languages? They conducted studies in 19 different countries, 5 continents, 15 languages, with a total of 3,542 participants. They tested the construct while validating a comprehensive scale to measure the appraisals, valence, bodily sensations, motivation, and lexical labels posited to characterize kama muta. The results are congruent with theory and previous findings showing that kama muta is a distinct positive social relational emotion that is evoked by experiencing or observing a sudden intensification of communal sharing. It is commonly accompanied by a warm feeling in the chest, moist eyes or tears, chills or piloerection, feeling choked up or having a lump in the throat, buoyancy, and exhilaration. It motivates affective devotion and moral commitment to communal sharing. Although the authors observed some variations across cultures, these 5 facets of kama muta are highly correlated in every sample, supporting the validity of the construct and the measure.

Abstractness and Messages Describing Consequences Promote Healthier Behavioral Intentions

Abstract Many health-risk behaviors present a self-control conflict in which the short-term outcomes of an action conflict with its long-term consequences. Across three studies, we find that an abstract construal level leads people to focus on long-term rather than short-term consequences when both are described in a message (vs. no message). Studies 1 and 2 explore this hypothesis through a risk behavior (snacking on sugary products), and Study 3 does the same through a health behavior (physical exercise). In Study 1, the Behavioral Identification Form scale is used to measure the construal level as a personal disposition; Studies 2 and 3 use a priming task designed by Freitas, Gollwitzer, and Trope to manipulate the construal level. All these studies show that, under an abstract mindset, people who have read a mixed-outcome message (vs. no message) tend to base their behavioral plans on long-term outcomes. Individually or in small groups (e.g. school class, therapy groups) health messages can be presented along with protocols to change construal level and thus, promote healthier intentions.