Search

Building on recent psychological research showing that power increases self-focused attention, we propose that having power increases accuracy in perception of bodily signals, a phenomenon known as interoceptive accuracy. Consistent with our proposition, participants in a high-power experimental condition outperformed those in the control and low-power conditions in the Schandry heartbeat-detection task. We demonstrate that the effect of power on interoceptive accuracy is not explained by participants’ physiological arousal, affective state, or general intention for accuracy. Rather, consistent with our reasoning that experiencing power shifts attentional resources inwards, we show that the effect of power on interoceptive accuracy is dependent on individuals’ chronic tendency to focus on their internal sensations. Specifically, we show that the effect of having power on interoceptive accuracy is stronger (vs. weaker) among individuals with a lower (vs. a higher) chronic tendency to focus on internal sensations. Finally, we demonstrate that individuals’ chronic sense of power also predicts interoceptive accuracy similar to, and independent of, how their situationally induced feeling of power does. We, therefore, provide further support on the relation between power and enhanced perception of bodily signals. Our findings provide initial evidence for the causal connection between social power and interoceptive accuracy and offer a novel perspective – a psychophysiological account- on how power might affect judgments and behavior. We highlight and discuss some of these intriguing possibilities for future research in the general discussion of this article.

Traditional clinical perspectives consider body-oriented approaches controversial, in particular the ones using physical contact. In the present work, among the several reasons for such credit, we investigated the one concerning non-specific effect. The aim was achieved by analysing what 36 adults familiar with bodyoriented works reported about their affective state and their body consciousness levels, recorded both at the beginning and at the end of two classes planned to enhance their levels of well-being. At the end of each class, most of the participants’ responses tended to be affected by the nature of the technique, and by the index, the responses assessed differ. Results suggested that specific techniques may affect specific psychological domains.

Purpose This study developed a measure of physical post traumatic growth (physical post traumatic growth inventory; P-PTGI) in men with prostate cancer. Methods A pool of items was created from themes identified in a qualitative study. A quantitative study was then conducted to assess the psychometric properties of the P-PTGI in a sample of 693 prostate cancer survivors. Results Tests of dimensionality revealed that the 20-item P-PTGI contained two factors: Health Autonomy and Health Awareness. Results demonstrated that scale score reliability for the P-PTGI and its subscales was excellent. In support of the scale's convergent validity, scores on the P-PTGI correlated positively with mindfulness and quality of life, and correlated negatively with depression and anxiety. A statistically significant correlation between the P-PTGI and another robust indicator of post traumatic growth attests to its concurrent validity. Conclusions While further investigation of the P-PTGI's psychometric properties is required, preliminary findings are promising.