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Scholars have shown that the Chinese Communist Party under Mao Zedong was highly attuned to the role of emotions in human thought and action, and developed sophisticated techniques to channel them toward its political aims. How did individuals experience the system of normative emotions that developed from these political projects? This article addresses this question from the perspective of one particular group, those whose families were classified as "landlords" or "rich peasants." It shows that those from such backgrounds were expected to renounce any filial emotion and to develop hostility toward their parents, an expectation that put most of them in a situation of acute emotional conflict. The article goes on to explore the ways in which people responded to this conflict, concluding that for the majority the conflict could be temporarily avoided but could not be resolved. It further argues that the larger-scale assault on the parent–child bond that took place during Cultural Revolution, which was widely denounced in post-Mao discourse, is best understood not merely as an extreme manifestation of the party's anti-traditionalism, but as the broadening of practices that had developed primarily in connection with rural class enemies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present project contributes to the literature on firefighters and spousal relationships through consideration of life satisfaction, marital satisfaction, and couple conflict for a sample of Canadian firefighters. Thirty four firefighter/spouse dyads completed measures of satisfaction, mental health, and conflict. Our results showed that firefighters self-reported more hostility than their spouses, but that there was no significant difference between firefighters and spouses with respect to life of marital satisfaction. Firefighters and spouses also differed in expression of dissatisfaction, in that firefighters were more likely to express dissatisfaction through physical or indirect expressions of aggression, and spouses were more likely to express dissatisfaction through anger. Understanding alternative presentations of dissatisfaction may be helpful to both the spousal couple, in terms of understanding one another, and also in therapeutic relationships where emotional expression may be interpreted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the association between divorce and aggression patterns (physical and verbal aggression and hostility) in Lebanese adolescents. This cross-sectional study enrolled 1810 (90.5%) students (January–May 2019) using a proportionate random sample of participants aged 12–17 years, drawn from private schools of all Lebanese districts. Parental divorce was significantly associated with more physical and verbal aggression and anger and hostility in adolescents. Significantly higher adjusted means of physical aggression (32.53 vs. 31.32; p =.013), verbal aggression (19.00 vs. 17.73; p <.001), anger (26.10 vs. 23.43; p <.001), and hostility (29.68 vs. 26.73; p <.001) were found among adolescents whose parents are divorced. Verbal and physical aggression, anger, and hostility were more shown in adolescents whose parents were divorced compared to adolescents whose parents are non-separated. Therefore, divorced parents must be motivated to provide their children with social, economic, and psychological needs to overcome these negative behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online discussions about politics and current events play a growing role in public life, and they can foster positive outcomes (e.g., civic engagement and political participation) and negative outcomes (e.g., hostility and polarization). The present research examines how the use of doubtful (vs. confident) language influences behavior in online discussions of current events. We examine the effects of doubtful language on comment popularity (i.e., recommendations from other users) and the use of emotional language in subsequent replies. We examine data from 1.9 million user comments from the New York Times website. Comments containing doubtful language were less popular, receiving fewer user recommendations. Additionally, replies to doubtful comments were less emotional (containing fewer positive emotions and fewer negative emotions). These results suggest that although doubtful authors are less likely to be recommended by other users, they may play an important role in helping to foster civility in online discussions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At least some forms of interpersonal violence could follow from a vision of the self as a fierce, dominant creature. This should be particularly true when psychopathic (more proactive, less reactive) tendencies are involved. Possible relations of this type were examined in two studies (total N = 278) in which college student samples were presented with a new, structured version of an old projective test typically used in psychotherapy contexts. Participants were presented with predator–prey animal pairs (e.g., lion–zebra) that were not explicitly labeled as such. For each pair, the person was asked to choose the animal that they would more prefer to be. Participants who desired to be predator animals more often, on this Revised Animal Preference Test (RAPT), tended toward psychopathy to a greater extent. In Study 1, such relations were manifest in terms of correlations with psychopathic traits and with an interpersonal style marked by hostile dominance. Further analyses, though, revealed that predator self-identifications were more strongly related to primary psychopathy than secondary psychopathy. Study 2 replicated the interpersonal style correlates of the RAPT. In addition, photographs were taken of the participants in the second study and these photographs were rated for apparent hostility and dominance. As hypothesized, participants who wanted to be predator animals to a greater extent also appeared more hostile and dominant in their nonverbal behaviors. These studies suggest that projective preferences can be assessed in a reliable manner through the use of standardizing procedures. Furthermore, the studies point to some of the motivational factors that may contribute to psychopathy and interpersonal violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We aimed to assess whether hostility and coping self-efficacy are associated with psychological distress in obstructive sleep apnoea patients. Furthermore, we examined whether coping self-efficacy mediates the association between hostility and psychological distress. We included 150 obstructive sleep apnoea patients (Apnoea-Hypopnoea Index ⩾5; 68% male; mean age: 48.9 ± 9.5 years). Regression models showed that hostility and poor coping self-efficacy were strongly associated with psychological distress in obstructive sleep apnoea patients. All assessed coping self-efficacy dimensions mediated the association between hostility and psychological distress. Coping self-efficacy for stopping unpleasant emotions and thoughts showed the strongest association with a lower level of psychological distress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite its high prevalence, adverse impact, and potential significance in understanding the onset of physical partner violence (PV), there has been surprisingly scant research on psychological PV perpetration. The present research, guided by social learning and attachment theories, addresses this gap in the literature by examining overlapping and distinct correlates for psychological and physical PV perpetration in emerging adults. Undergraduates (N = 504) with current or recent dating experience were recruited to complete a self-report survey. The survey included measures of emotional and physical child maltreatment, witnessing physical family violence, insecure attachment, hostility, and anger. The sample was 63% female and racially and ethnically diverse (50% non-White, non-Hispanic, or Hispanic of any race). Insecure attachment and anger, but not hostility or child maltreatment, were uniquely correlated with psychological PV, whereas only physical child maltreatment and witnessing physical family violence were unique correlates for physical PV. Neither emotional nor physical child maltreatment potentiated relations between insecure attachment, hostility, or anger and either form of PV. Although females were more likely to perpetrate psychological and physical PV, correlates for each form of PV did not vary by gender. The relations between physical child maltreatment and physical PV are consistent with a social learning theory explanation for physical PV. Insecure attachment and anger appear to be particularly important correlates for psychological, but not physical, PV. Thus, psychological and physical PV may have distinct risk profiles and may require different intervention targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The total and indirect effect of hostility on systolic and diastolic blood pressure was compared as a function of religious and spirituality identity in a nationally representative sample of 2971 adults aged 46.44 years. Structural equation modeling uncovered an indirect path from hostility to diastolic blood pressure via unhealthy behaviors and hostility to unhealthy behaviors via social isolation. Compared to a non-religious/non-spiritual reference group, the effect for unhealthy behaviors on diastolic blood pressure was greater for those endorsing some form of religious identity. However, the direction of the effect for hostility on social isolation and social isolation on unhealthy behaviors was reversed in those endorsing spiritual and religious identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sexual assault and suicide are two serious public health concerns. Research has documented the relationship between sexual assault and suicidal thinking and attempts; however, limited research explores the more multifaceted relationships between posttraumatic stress reactions and suicidal ideation in college students through unsuccessful modulation of emotion. The authors hypothesized a mediation model where the relationship between sexual assault and suicidal ideation is mediated by dissociation and hostility. In total, 1,677 undergraduate students were administered modified versions of the Traumatic Life Events Questionnaire (TLEQ), Symptom Checklist–90–Revised (SCL-90-R), and Peritraumatic Dissociative Experiences Questionnaire (PDEQ). The results revealed both significant partial but equal mediators of hostility and dissociation. However, a portion of the direct effect between sexual assault and suicidal ideation remained unaccounted for by indirect effects. The current model supports previous work on dialectical behavior therapy that says either side of the dialectic between extreme expression and suppression of hostility increases the likelihood of suicidal thinking after sexual assault. With sexual assault survivors, practitioners should use strategies that emphasize both anger expression and healthy avoidance as a way to modulate emotion to potentially reduce suicidal thoughts. Future research should focus on different gender models, additional possible mediators such as alcohol use and guilt, and different forms of sexual assault. Limitations of the correlational, cross-sectional methodology are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To jointly examine isolation, loneliness, and cynical hostility as risk factors for cognitive decline in older adults. Method: Data came from the 2006 to 2012 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a longitudinal study of U.S. older adults (age ⩾ 65 years, n = 6,654). Measures included frequency of contact with social network (objective isolation), the Hughes Loneliness Scale (loneliness), a modified version of the Cook–Medley Hostility Inventory (cynical hostility), and a modified version of the Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status (cognitive function). Multilevel modeling (random slope + intercept) was used to examine the association between these factors and trajectories of cognitive function. Results and Discussion: After controlling for demographic characteristics, self-reported health, and functional limitations, loneliness (β = −.34, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [−0.56, −0.11), and cynical hostility (β = −.14, 95% CI = [−0.24, −0.04) correlated with lower cognitive function, but none predicted change in cognitive function. Objective social isolation was associated with lower cognitive function (β = −.27, 95% CI = [−0.41, −0.12]) and steeper decline in cognitive function (β = −.09, 95% CI = [−0.16, −0.01]). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been a decade since the 2008 xenophobic attacks in South Africa. Reflecting on these, this article rethinks xenophobia in the country by positioning it as an inevitable and unavoidable symptom of the nation-building project. By connecting the 2008 attacks to similar violence in 2015, it traces socially and politically embedded attitudes that contribute to an environment of hostility and intolerance. The article suggests that these perspectives and policies are fundamentally connected to the necropower that defines South Africanness. It links the violence to historical trends and decisions, and shows that discourses of denialism and exceptionalism are necropolitical in that they render certain bodies as worthy of life in the country, and relegate migrant bodies to zones of figurative and literal death. As such, the article implies that a perspective beyond the confines of nationhood is needed to effect change. In this, a necropolitical lens provides intersectional insight into the last decade of violence and works towards a critique of a simple binary of inclusion/exclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hostile attribution bias (HAB), the tendency to perceive hostility in ambiguous situations, has been linked to aggressive outcomes, such as reactive aggression. HAB has been connected to personality types involving hostile beliefs and reactive aggression, including narcissism and psychopathy. Specifically, secondary psychopathy is associated with HAB and reactive aggression. Despite research and theory connecting these constructs, few studies have examined if HAB mediates the relationships among psychopathy, narcissism, and aggression. The current study explores this possible mediation in an urban college sample. Narcissism was associated with aggression but not hostile aggression or HAB. Reactive aggression and HAB were both associated with psychopathy, but there were no mediation relationships. The associations with aggression may be, therefore, due to underlying traits of secondary psychopathy rather than the hostile attributions to which the traits contribute; consequently, treatments focused on reducing aggressive responses by correcting interpretations of social situations may not be successful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is widely assumed that narcissists are envious. Nevertheless, evidence supporting this claim has remained elusive. In five studies (N = 1,225), we disentangle how grandiose narcissism predicts divergent envious inclinations. Specific facets of narcissism and forms of envy shared the same underlying motivational orientations (Study 1) and distinctively related to each other (Studies 1 to 5) via differences in emotional appraisal (Study 4). Moreover, envy was linked to opposing social consequences of different narcissism facets (Study 5). Specifically, hope for success related to narcissistic admiration, predicting benign envy, which entails the motivation to improve performance, translating into the ascription of social potency by the self and others. In contrast, fear of failure related to narcissistic rivalry, predicting malicious envy, which entails hostility, translating into the ascription of a proneness for social conflict by others. These results converged with envy measured as a trait (Studies 1 and 5) or state in recall tasks (Studies 2 and 4) and as response to an upward standard in the situation (Study 3). The findings provide important insights into narcissists' emotional complexities, integrate prior isolated and conflicting evidence, and open up new avenues for research on narcissism and envy. Copyright © 2016 European Association of Personality Psychology [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the theoretical conceptualization of parental psychological control as a multidimensional construct, the majority of previous studies have examined psychological control as a unidimensional scale. Moreover, the conceptualization of shaming and its associations with love withdrawal and guilt induction are unclear. The current study aimed to fill these gaps by evaluating the latent factor structure underlying 18 items from Olsen et al. (2002) that were conceptually relevant to love withdrawal, guilt induction, and shaming practices in a sample of 169 mothers of Chinese-American preschoolers. A multidimensional three-factor model and bi-factor model were specified based on our formulated operational definitions for the three dimensions of psychological control. Both models were found to be superior to the unidimensional model. In addition, results from the bi-factor model and an additional second-order factor model indicated that psychological control is essentially empirically isomorphic with guilt induction. Although love withdrawal and shaming factors were also fairly strong indicators of psychological control, each exhibited important additional unique variability and mutual distinctiveness. Implications for the conceptualization of love withdrawal, guilt induction, and shaming as well as directions for future studies are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Hostility and chronic stress are known risk factors for heart disease, but they are costly to assess on a large scale. We used language expressed on Twitter to characterize community-level psychological correlates of age-adjusted mortality from atherosclerotic heart disease (AHD). Language patterns reflecting negative social relationships, disengagement, and negative emotions—especially anger—emerged as risk factors; positive emotions and psychological engagement emerged as protective factors. Most correlations remained significant after controlling for income and education. A cross-sectional regression model based only on Twitter language predicted AHD mortality significantly better than did a model that combined 10 common demographic, socioeconomic, and health risk factors, including smoking, diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. Capturing community psychological characteristics through social media is feasible, and these characteristics are strong markers of cardiovascular mortality at the community level. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The primary aim of this study was to assess the moderating role of emotion regulation in the relationship between some components of social information processing (hostile interpretation and anger) and aggressive behavior. The secondary aim was to assess whether emotion regulation, hostile interpretation, and anger account for gender differences in aggressive behavior. A total of 1,125 adolescents (627 girls) filled out the social information processing questionnaire to assess hostile interpretation, anger, and emotion regulation. Reactive and proactive aggressive behaviors were assessed by self- and peer reports. The results showed that adaptive regulation negatively predicted aggressive behavior and moderated the relationship between anger and reactive aggressive behavior. Boys’ higher scores for aggressive behavior were accounted for by their higher scores for anger and lower scores for emotion regulation. However, the strength of the relationships among variables was similar for both boys and girls. Findings of this study indicate the importance of emotion regulation as a target for aggressive behavior interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study assessed the effects of clinician-assisted emotional disclosure (CAED), an integration of emotion focused therapy (Greenberg, Rice, & Elliott, 1993) and emotional disclosure, in ameliorating distress experienced by survivors of sexual assault. A total of 670 female university students were screened for both histories of sexual victimization and clinically significant levels of global psychological distress. Twenty-eight females entered the treatment phase of the study and were randomly assigned to participate in either treatment or no-treatment control conditions. Participants completed a battery of instruments at each evaluation to assess interpersonal, global, and traumatic stress symptoms. At termination and 1-month follow-up, there were no significant differences between CAED and control group on any of the outcome variables. However, there were several differences between the CAED treatment and control groups at 3 month posttreatment. Specifically, individuals in the CAED group reported significant reductions in interpersonal distress, namely, hostility and dependency and reductions in avoidance symptoms associated with posttraumatic stress disorder. These findings are useful for the development of emotion-focused therapies and, specifically, toward psychotherapy integration strategies that combine imaginal exposure with experiential techniques for emotional processing of previously avoided experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The psychometric properties of a Dutch version of Buss and Perry's Aggression Questionnaire (AQ) were examined in a sample of violent forensic psychiatric inpatients and outpatients and a sample of secondary vocational students. The internal consistency, interitem correlations, and item-scale correlations of the subscales Physical Aggression, Anger, and Hostility were good but turned out to be unsatisfactory for the subscale Verbal Aggression. The four-factor structure of the AQ could not be confirmed, but the four-factor structure of a 12-item version (short form) of the AQ, the AQ-SF, produced an acceptable fit. The test-retest reliability of the AQ and AQ-SF total scores was good, although the test-retest reliability of the AQ-SF subscale Physical Aggression was not satisfactory. The validity of both the AQ and AQ-SF could be demonstrated by meaningful correlations with alternative measures of aggression and personality, but inpatients were not found to display higher scores on the AQ or AQ-SF than the students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What motivates individuals to regulate their emotions? One answer, which has been highlighted in emotion-regulation research, is that individuals are motivated by short-term hedonic goals (e.g., the motivation to feel pleasure). Another answer, however, is that individuals are motivated by instrumental goals (e.g., the motivation to perform certain behaviors). We suggest that both answers have merit. To demonstrate the role instrumental goals may play in emotion regulation, we pitted short-term hedonic motives and instrumental motives against each other, by testing whether individuals were motivated to experience a potentially useful, albeit unpleasant, emotion. We found that (a) individuals preferred activities that would increase their level of anger (but not their level of excitement) when they were anticipating confrontational, but not nonconfrontational, tasks and that (b) anger improved performance in a confrontational, but not a nonconfrontational, task. These findings support a functional view of emotion regulation, and demonstrate that in certain contexts, individuals may choose to experience emotions that are instrumental, despite short-term hedonic costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined predictors and outcomes of women's hostility toward other women. Based on a projection model, we hypothesized and tested the theory via structural equation modeling that women's sense of personal inadequacy, the tendency to stereotype, and general anger would predict hostility toward women, and hostility toward women would predict blaming victims of violence and poor relationships with a female friend. Participants were 464 college women with an average age of 28.08. All measures were pencil and paper. Women's hostility toward women served as an intervening variable between a personal sense of inadequacy, tendency to stereotype, blaming women victims of violence, and intimacy with one's best female friend. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grounded in the theory of ambivalent sexism, this study tested the speculation that women's benevolent sexist attitudes may be, in part, a self-protective response to environments they perceive as hostile to women. Data that have indirectly supported this conjecture thus far have been correlational. The current study involved a more powerful, experimental test of the hypothesis. Women ( N= 105) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions, which differed only in what participants were told about research findings on men's attitudes toward women (negative or positive attitudes, or no information). As predicted, benevolent sexist attitudes—but not hostile sexist attitudes—were strongest for women told that men hold negative attitudes toward women. This effect is consistent with a benevolent sexism-as-protest explanation and was statistically significant even while controlling for attitudes toward feminism. The differential effect of beliefs about men's attitudes on these two types of sexism lends further support to the idea that, although hostile and benevolent sexism are related, they may serve different functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the emotions module of the 1996 General Social Survey, we examine strategies that individuals use to express emotion. We focus on anger, one of the emotions most problematic or potentially disruptive to human interaction. Relying on insights from three theoretical approaches to emotion—the cultural perspective, the structural perspective, and affect control theory—we explore not only whether the expression of anger is affected by the social domain in which anger occurs (home or work) and the status difference between the individual experiencing anger and the actor triggering the emotion, but also the degree to which these effects are independent of individual characteristics such as gender, race, and education. Analyses indicate that social domain and status differences are such powerful predictors of emotional expression that they eclipse the influence of other individual characteristics, most notably the gender of both the individual and the target of the anger. Moreover, the status mechanism governing emotional expression does not vary across work and family settings. This study supplements previous research by disentangling the relative effects of domain, relative status, and individual characteristics. It also suggests that a more complementary approach, which integrates different theoretical paradigms, may be necessary for a fuller appreciation of the social constraints governing emotional expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated relationships between hostility, Zuckerman's sensation seeking, and Eysenck and Eysenck's personality scales within a prison population, to explore whether they could be conceptualized in terms of two socialized and unsocialized sensation seeking factors. Participants included 79 incarcerated adult male offenders (age range = 18-62). Findings support the distinction between socialized and unsocialized sensation seeking and suggest that these factors represent more overarching personality factors. Psychoticism was a clear marker of the more broad impulsive, unsocialized sensation seeking factor, rather than representing a supertrait in its own right. This factor was also represented by lie, disinhibition, and boredom susceptibility scales. Findings relating to hostility also supported such a reformulation, as unsocialized scales did cluster together to predict the unsocialized hostility factor, whereas unsocialized scales did not. The results demonstrate the need for a theoretical reformulation of the two given theories of personality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigates the presence of negative emotions and Type A behavior in a group of 40-year men and women. Correlation between hostility and total cholesterol; Questions on the assessment of hostility; Role of psychological stress; Why hostility has become the focus of research.

The proposition that doctors find the process of litigation stressful is hardly counter-intuitive. After all, stress is an inherent part of the legal process for any litigant. A doctor's emotional response to the stress of litigation not infrequently manifests itself as anger, hostility and resentment. Although this may be both a natural and an understandable response to an allegation of negligence or professional misconduct, it is hardly conducive to the calm and orderly conduct of a defence case.