The Bright and Dark Side of Eudaimonic Emotions: A Conceptual Framework

Based on a review of eudaimonic emotion concepts, definitional and empirical overlaps between the concepts are identified and a framework of eudaimonic emotions is developed. The framework proposes that feelings of elevation, awe, tenderness, and being moved can be differentiated based on their feeling components, thus constituting the feeling-specific types of eudaimonic emotions. A variety of other emotion concepts rely on reference to their elicitors, such as moral elevation (i.e., being moved by moral virtue), aesthetic awe (i.e., being moved by beauty), kama muta (i.e., being moved by communal sharing) and admiration (i.e., being moved by achievements), thus constituting elicitor-specific types of eudaimonic emotions. Structuring eudaimonic emotions along these lines allows for integrating research on these emotions. This integration leads to the proposition of general eudaimonic effects and value-specific effects of positive eudaimonic emotions on behaviour. Considering these effects can enhance understanding of how positive eudaimonic emotions affect pro-social intentions—the bright side of being moved—as well as the manipulating effects of propaganda—the dark side of being moved

Perception of Climate Change in a Pacific Island City

According to the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC 2007) small island states (SIS) will be severely affected by global climate change. Especially a rising sea level, increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events and rising temperature will have serious impact on life on small islands in tropical regions. SIS hardly contribute to the emission of greenhouse gases, therefore their main challenge will be focussing on adaptation to prevent further damages

What are the causes of global inequality? An exploration of global inequality attributions in Germany and Argentina

In two studies, we explored explanations for global inequality in samples from Germany (N = 152) and Argentina (N = 138) using a qualitative approach. We visualized global inequality non-verbally through distorted world maps such that no causal attributions were inherent to the stimulus material. The maps depicted absolute poverty, child mortality, number of deaths due to floodings and access to drinking water. After the presentation of the maps, participants were asked to give explanations for the situations shown. The answers were coded and categorized using content analysis. We identified seven categories which were identical in both samples. The categories extend existing frameworks for poverty attribution and allow for a more fine-grained differentiation of the attribution dimensions. Moreover, we found differences in the frequencies with which the respective categories were mentioned. The German sample attributed more responsibility to the Global North, while the Argentinean sample focused more strongly on responsibilities of the Global South. The article presents a comprehensive set of qualitative data which can help to deepen our understanding of Global North as well as Global South citizens’ global inequality attributions and serves as a basis for future quantitative studies in this realm.

Antigen glycosylation regulates efficacy of CAR T cells targeting CD19

While chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells targeting CD19 can cure a subset of patients with B cell malignancies, most patients treated will not achieve durable remission. Identification of the mechanisms leading to failure is essential to broadening the efficacy of this promising platform. Several studies have demonstrated that disruption of CD19 genes and transcripts can lead to disease relapse after initial response; however, few other tumor-intrinsic drivers of CAR T cell failure have been reported. Here we identify expression of the Golgi-resident intramembrane protease Signal peptide peptidase-like 3 (SPPL3) in malignant B cells as a potent regulator of resistance to CAR therapy. Loss of SPPL3 results in hyperglycosylation of CD19, an alteration that directly inhibits CAR T cell effector function and suppresses anti-tumor cytotoxicity. Alternatively, over-expression of SPPL3 drives loss of CD19 protein, also enabling resistance. In this pre-clinical model these findings identify post-translational modification of CD19 as a mechanism of antigen escape from CAR T cell therapy

Third-party anger and being moved

Moralisches und unmoralisches Verhalten kann mit starken Emotionen verbunden sein. Beispielsweise kann das Beobachten einer Ungerechtigkeit echte Empörung auslösen (d. h. third-party anger). Außergewöhnliche Hilfsbereitschaft dagegen kann zu Gefühlen des Bewegtseins und der Überwältigung führen (d. h. being moved). Am Beispiel dieser Emotionen beleuchtet die vorliegende Dissertation wie Moral und Emotionen zusammenhängen. Dafür wurde die Rolle von Konsequenzen und Normen für emotionale Reaktionen und damit verbundene Verhaltensweisen anhand von sechs empirischen Studien untersucht. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass Gefühle des Bewegtseins das positive Pendent zu Ärger darstellen. Während Ärger durch Normverletzungen ausgelöst wird (z. B. Ungerechtigkeit oder Respektlosigkeit), werden Gefühle des Bewegtseins durch das Beobachten positiver Normabweichungen ausgelöst (z. B. ungewöhnliche Hilfsbereitschaft oder außergewöhnliche Leistung). Diese emotionalen Episoden scheinen wesentlich für ein soziales Zusammenleben zu sein, da sie mit Bestrafungsentscheidungen, politischen Wahlentscheidungen und ehrenamtlicher Arbeit verbunden waren. Wie diese Emotionen ausgelöst werden konnte wesentlich besser erklärt werden, wenn bestehende Methoden zur Erfassung von Appraisals (d. h. subjektiven Bewertungen) erweitert wurden. Zusammengenommen zeigen diese Befunde auf, wie Appraisaltheorien auf moralische Emotionen angewendet werden können und tragen dazu bei, Verbindungen zwischen moralischen Grundsätzen und Emotionen zu identifizieren. Sie weisen außerdem auf praktische Implikationen hin, wie der Auslösung von Ärger durch Medien und der Rolle von Gefühlen des Bewegtseins in Überzeugungsprozessen.Moral and immoral behavior can elicit strong emotions. For instance, people can get outraged when they witness unfair behavior (i.e., they experience third-party anger) and they can be intensely moved and overwhelmed by exceptional helpfulness (i.e., they experience feelings of being moved). Using these feelings of third-party anger and being moved as examples, this dissertation set out to clarify how morality and emotions are related. Specifically, the role of outcomes and norms for emotional reactions and behavioral consequences were investigated within six empirical studies. Results indicate that third-party anger and feelings of being moved are counterparts: whereas witnessing behavior that violates norms (e.g., unfairness or disrespect) elicits anger, witnessing behavior that surpasses norms (e.g., exceptional helpfulness or outstanding achievement) elicits feelings of being moved. These emotional episodes seem to be highly relevant for social life as they were associated with punishment decisions, voting intentions and voluntary work. Explaining the elicitation of these emotions was improved when expanding established appraisal assessment methods. Taken together, these findings provide a framework for applying appraisal research to moral emotions and contribute to identifying links between moral principles and emotions. In addition, they point to practical implications concerning anger-induction through the media and the role of being moved in persuasion processes

Emotions in the context of environmental protection: Theoretical considerations concerning emotion types, eliciting processes, and affect generalization

Emotions seem to be significant for pro-environmental behavior. Yet, questions about the differentiation, elicitation, and effects of emotions in the context of environmental protection remain. Specifically, current typologies of environmentally relevant emotions each cover only a subset of the relevant emotions. Furthermore, central environmental-psychological constructs such as emotional affinity towards nature are not explained well by current appraisal and emotion theories. Finally, the causal effects of emotions on pro-environmental behavioral intentions in experiments are rather weak and diminish over time, which conflicts with strong correlations between emotions and environmentally relevant intentions. The current work addresses these issues by (1) synthesizing types of environmentally relevant emotions, (2) differentiating paths to emotional reactions towards nature, and (3) considering the process of affect generalization for the consequences of emotion for environmentally relevant behavior. Partitioning affect along these dimensions helps capturing the broad range of environmentally relevant emotions, understanding how these emotions are elicited, and when they affect pro-environmental behavior

Direct and Indirect Empathy in Refugee Aid

People may sometimes bridge the emotional gap to dissimilar others by practicing indirect empathy: imagining how close others would feel in the situation of a person in need. The present study tests this claim in the context of refugee aid. Practitioners working with refugees (N = 119) reported how often they experienced direct empathy (i.e., imagining how they would feel in the situation of the refugees they were working with) and indirect empathy (i.e., imagining how their close ones would feel in the situation of the refugees). They also indicated the extent to which they perceived the refugees as similar to themselves and the extent to which they believed that the refugees they were working with had been forced to leave their country. Practitioners in refugee aid reported experiencing direct empathy more often than indirect empathy – but the prevalence of both was high. Perceived forcedness and perceived similarity positively predicted direct and indirect empathy with similar effect sizes. These findings shed light on a previously overlooked phenomenon: People working with refugees frequently experience indirect empathy. They imagine how their close ones would feel if they were forced to migrate. Knowing more about this process could contribute to improving training and coaching for people working in refugee aid

Emotions and Pro-Environmental Action – Common Misconceptions

Pro-environmental action is a multifaceted concept that includes saving energy, avoiding waste or protesting for climate protection (Barbett & Landmann, 2023). Emotions are one of the strongest predictors for these behaviors (Brosch, 2021). In my research on emotions and pro-environmental action, I have come across common assumptions about emotions and pro-environmental action that appear to be misconceptions when compared to the accumulating evidence from emotion research and pro-environmental psychology. I will describe these misconceptions and suggest implications for research and practice

When loneliness dimensions drift apart: Emotional, social and physical loneliness during the COVID-19 lockdown and its associations with age, personality, stress, and well-being

Previous research differentiated between emotional loneliness (perceived lack of emotional connection with others) and social loneliness (perceived lack of a broader social network). We argue that physical loneliness (perceived lack of physical contact) constitutes a third dimension of loneliness that is particularly relevant in times of physical distancing. We conducted a longitudinal experience sampling study (N = 578) during the first eight weeks of the COVID-19 lockdown in Germany to test this claim. The results indicate that loneliness has a three-dimensional structure encompassing emotional, social and physical loneliness. Each loneliness dimension explained unique variance in perceived stress and psychological well-being. However, the three loneliness dimensions differed in their prevalence during the contact restrictions and their associations with age and personality. Physical loneliness was higher during the contact restrictions whereas emotional and social loneliness remained on a normal level. Age was positively associated with social loneliness but negatively associated with physical loneliness. Extraversion was negatively associated with emotional and social loneliness but positively associated with physical loneliness. These findings expand loneliness models, enhance loneliness assessment and improve the prediction of vulnerability to loneliness

Group-specific Contact and Sense of Connectedness During the COVID-19 Pandemic and its Associations with Psychological Well-being, Perceived Stress, and Work-Life Balance

Theories of social cure, sense of community, and social identity suggest that feelings of connectedness affect how we have coped with the COVID-19 pandemic. Although people can feel connected to a variety of different groups, such as their family, friends, co-workers, neighbours, nation, or all humanity, previous research has focused on connectedness to only a subset of these groups. To examine the relative importance of connectedness to and contact with specific groups for well-being, stress, and work-life balance during the pandemic, we conducted a longitudinal experience sampling study (N = 578) during the first eight weeks of the Spring 2020 COVID-19 lockdown in Germany. Feeling connected to family members most strongly predicted psychological well-being (positively) and perceived stress (negatively) during the lockdown, followed by sense of connectedness with friends and neighbours. Sense of connectedness to other groups did not predict well-being, stress, or work-life balance when controlling for the respective other groups. Hence, it not only matters whether or not a person feels connected to a group but also to which specific group he or she feels connected