I will present in a symposium at the upcoming European Association for Social Psychology conference in Granada, Spain in July 2017.
Abstract
Context both produces emotion and shapes emotion: how it is expressed, regulated, and perceived. However, in practice, research often examines emotion processes without considering the important contextual factors that shape them, missing nuance that is vital to a deeper understanding of these phenomena. This symposium showcases emerging research demonstrating how context fundamentally shapes the way people express and regulate their emotions, and the personal and social outcomes of these processes. We begin by exploring the role that context plays in perceptions of emotion expression. Manstead demonstrates that context influences how trustworthy people appear when they express regret or pride. Van Kleef presents evidence that context influences how persuasive people are when they express happiness or sadness. Greenaway explores how context influences social ratings of people who express and suppress positive emotion. Widening the field to consider emotion regulation, Netzer demonstrates how context guides people’s attempts to regulate the emotions of others. Finally, Kalokerinos outlines how context shapes the emotion regulation strategies people use in daily life. Taken together, the talks reveal that the personal and social effects of emotion expression and regulation are not fixed, but are highly malleable; shaped and changed by key contextual factors. These findings show the role played by contexts across diverse domains, including economic decision-making, attitude change, social relationships, conflict resolution, and well-being.
1. Social context moderates the impact of emotional expressions in mixed-motive games
Tony Manstead, Cardiff University
2. Contextual Influences on Emotional Persuasion: The Roles of Message Framing, Emotion Relevance, and Information Processing
Gerben van Kleef, University of Amsterdam
3. Exploring the contexts in which expressing positive emotion has social costs
Katharine Greenaway, University of Queensland
4. Toying with the Enemy’s Emotions: The Social Factors that Moderate Motivated Intergroup Emotion Regulation
Liat Netzer, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
5. Mapping the role of context in emotion regulation choice and effectiveness
Elise Kalokerinos, KU Leuven
