Gratitude as Elicitor of Reciprocity and Social Capital

越来越多的共识将情绪视为旨在塑造认知和行为以应对适应性挑战的心理机制。 尽管许多负面情绪在引导行为中的功能作用已经得到充分证实，但关于积极情绪在以适应性方式塑造判断和行为方面的重要性的类似证据才刚刚开始出现。 新出现的证据表明，积极情绪的功能可能集中于与社交互动相关的挑战（例如，建立社会支持、信任、地位）。秉承这一观点，当前项目的目标是研究感恩作为一种独特的积极情绪在应对社会交换和关系建设带来的挑战方面的功能。 为了适应功能，人类必须定期参与社会和经济交换。事实上，相互给予和接受资源和支持，无论是身体上的、心理上的还是财政上的，都是社会繁荣的基本必要条件。 然而，尽管人们可以通过交换或合作行动获得所有潜在的好处，但参与此类行为的决定却充满了风险。 任何资源交换不仅需要接受货物或援助，还需要提供货物或援助，这样做会增加不对称损失或收益的可能性。 为了解释为什么人类会进行如此危险和/或代价高昂的交换行为，心理学家历来指出互惠社会规范的发展。 然而，鉴于社会交换的高适应性价值，此类行为也可能受到特定情绪反应的影响。 理论上，感恩尤其对成本/效益比敏感。 如果这是真的，那么将感恩视为此类行为的中介因素将成为证明存在一种离散的积极状态的第一个证据，这种积极状态旨在应对与社会资本建设（即支持性社会关系）相关的挑战。 为了研究这一理论，当前的项目包括五个实验，其中感恩和其他积极情绪将通过人际互动来操纵。 将评估这些操纵对互惠（例如，向捐助者提供昂贵的援助）和建立关系的措施（例如，信任、为了支持捐助者而减少自身利益）的影响，以确定感恩的独特作用。 除了科学贡献外，该项目还将通过本科生和研究生参与科学会议上的数据收集、分析和演示来促进本科生和研究生的科学培训。

Growing consensus views emotions as psychological mechanisms designed to shape cognition and behavior to meet adaptive challenges. Although the functional role of many negative emotions in guiding behavior has been well established, similar evidence for the importance of positive emotions in shaping judgment and behavior in adaptive ways is only beginning to emerge. Emerging evidence suggests that the functions of positive emotions may focus on challenges related to social interactions (e.g., building social support, trust, status). Embracing this view, the goal of the current project is to investigate the function of gratitude as a distinct positive emotion with respect to challenges presented by social exchange and relationship building. To function adaptively, humans must regularly engage in social and economic exchange. Indeed, reciprocal giving and receiving of resources and support, whether physical, psychological, or fiscal, stands as a fundamental necessity for society to flourish. Yet for all the potential benefits one might receive through exchange or cooperative actions, decisions to engage in such behaviors are fraught with risk. Any exchange of resources entails not only the receipt, but also the offering, of goods or assistance, and in so doing, raises the potential for an asymmetric loss or gain. To explain why humans engage in such risky and/or costly exchange behaviors, psychologists have historically pointed to the development of a social norm for reciprocity. However, given the high adaptive value of social exchange, it is likely that such behaviors may also be shaped by specific emotional responses. Gratitude, in particular, has been theorized to be sensitive to cost/benefit ratios. If true, identification of gratitude as a mediator of such behaviors would be among the first evidence to demonstrate the existence of a discrete positive state designed to meet challenges associated with the building of social capital (i.e., supportive social relationships). To investigate this theory, the current project consists of five experiments in which gratitude and other positive emotions will be manipulated through interpersonal interactions. The effects of these manipulations on reciprocity (e.g., costly assistance provided to a benefactor) and measures of relationship building (e.g., trust, decreased self-interest in favor of a benefactor) will be assessed to determine the distinct role of gratitude. In addition to scientific contributions, this project will advance scientific training of undergraduate and graduate students through their participation in data collection, analysis, and presentation at scientific meetings.