Attack, Disapproval, or Withdrawal? The Role of Honor in Anger and Shame Responses to Being Insulted Patricia M. Rodriguez Mosquera Brunel University Agneta H. Fischer University of Amsterdam Antony S. R. Manstead Cardiff University Ruud Zaalberg Eindhoven University of Technology (Cognition and Emotion, in press)
Attack, Disapproval, or Withdrawal? 2 Abstract Insults elicit intense emotion. This study tests the hypothesis that one's social image, which is especially salient in honor cultures, influences the way in which one reacts to an insult. Seventy- seven honor-oriented and 72 non-honor oriented participants answered questions about a recent insult episode. Participants experienced both anger and shame in reaction to the insult. However, these emotions resulted in different behaviors. Anger led to verbal attack (i.e., criticizing, insulting in return) among all participants. This relationship was explained by participants' motivation to punish the wrongdoer. Shame, on the other hand, was moderated by honor. Shame led to verbal disapproval of the wrongdoers behavior, but only among the honor-oriented participants. This relationship was explained by these participants' motivation to protect their social image. By contrast, shame led to withdrawal among non-honor oriented participants. Keywords: insult, honor, anger, shame, social image, verbal attack, disapproval, withdrawal
Attack, Disapproval, or Withdrawal? 3 Attack, Disapproval, or Withdrawal? The Role of Honor in Anger and Shame Responses to Being Insulted We all have experienced the pain of insult. An insult is a negative, derogatory comment or gesture about who we are, what we think, or what we do (Bond & Venus, 1991). Because an insult implies that another person does not value us, being the target of an insult often elicits intense feelings of anger and shame (see e.g., Averill, 1982, 1983; Cohen, Nisbett, Bowdle, & Schwartz, 1996; Mesquita, 2001; Ortony, Clore, & Collins, 1988; Rodriguez Mosquera, Manstead, & Fischer, 2002a). Earlier research on insult and emotion has mostly focused on the intensity of anger and shame feelings in response to insults (Rodriguez Mosquera et al., 2002a). In the present paper we examine what people are motivated to do and actually do when they feel anger and shame about an insult. Furthermore, research has shown that insults elicit anger and shame across cultural groups that differ in their cultural value orientation. People who endorse individualistic values (e.g., independence, autonomy, mastery) feel as angry and ashamed about an insult as people who endorse collectivistic values (e.g., honor; Rodriguez Mosquera et al., 2002a). However, do feelings of anger and shame lead to the same motivations and behaviors in different cultures? We address this question by comparing cultural groups that differ in their honor orientation. Honor is especially relevant to the study of insult. Because honor is based on the protection of social image, an insult needs to be confronted in order to prevent dishonor (Abu-Lughod, 1999; Cohen et al., 1996; Gilmore, 1987; Peristiany, 1965; Rodriguez Mosquera, Manstead, & Fischer, 2000; Stewart, 1994). Honor Cultures: The Protection of Social Image Honor is a form of collectivism based on social image or reputation (Abu-Lughod, 1999; Gilmore, 1987;