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Completed
blushing and blushing phobia: the role of context-dependent communicative properties of the blush
FunderNetherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO)
Duration16 Aug 2004 - 02 Jul 2009
Project code400-03-042
Open Access mandatePublications: NoResearch data: No
Identifiers
Project timeline100%
Description
Darwin (1872) contended that blushing serves no function and is a mere derivative expression of &8220;moral&8221; emotions. More recently, it has been argued that precisely because blushing is an arbitrary derivative of moral emotions, blushing may have acquired important interpersonal signalling functions, as it fullfills all criteria of being a reliable signal in potential &8220;adversaries&8221; (Tinbergen, 1964). Accordingly, several authors hypothesized that blushing might be the critical display that actually appease observers in interactions involving shame or embarrassment (Keltner, 1995). Meanwhile, and in apparent contrast with its alleged instrumental value, blushing is also an emotional response for which people may develop intense fears: Fear of blushing is a core complaint in social phobia, and many phobics report blushing as being their primary concern. More comprehensive understanding of its functional properties might not only provide important clues of how moral emotions actually affect observers, but also help improving our conceptualisation of this highly prevalent anxiety disorder. Therefore, the first aim of this project is to empiricaly investigate the alleged appeasing effects of blushing: It tests whether the actor&8217;s blush, indeed, evokes reconciliatory behaviour in observers, and explores how blushing actually succeeds in affecting observers. To explain why people should want not to blush despite its alleged capacity to diffuse interpersonal threats, the project tests the idea that the functional properties of blushing are context-dependent: Appeasing in the presence of clear-cut antecedent behaviours, but revealing in their absence. Since most situations involve some ambiguity with respect to the elicitors of a blush, its revealing effects may well prevail its appeasing effects in real life.The hypothesized context-dependent functional properties of the blush may not only be relevant to the observers, but may also differentially affect the actors&8217; conception of the communicative value of their blushing. Following this, the project tests whether blushing phobics are prone to a bias to overestimate the revealing properties of their blushing.
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Darwin (1872) contended that blushing serves no function and is a mere derivative expression of &8220;moral&8221; emotions. More recently, it has been argued that precisely because blushing is an arbitrary derivative of moral emotions, blushing may have acquired important interpersonal signalling functions, as it fullfills all criteria of being a reliable signal in potential &8220;adversaries&8221; (Tinbergen, 1964). Accordingly, several authors hypothesized that blushing might be the critical display that actually appease observers in interactions involving shame or embarrassment (Keltner, 1995). Meanwhile, and in apparent contrast with its alleged instrumental value, blushing is also an emotional response for which people may develop intense fears: Fear of blushing is a core complaint in social phobia, and many phobics report blushing as being their primary concern. More comprehensive understanding of its functional properties might not only provide important clues of how moral emotions actually affect observers, but also help improving our conceptualisation of this highly prevalent anxiety disorder. Therefore, the first aim of this project is to empiricaly investigate the alleged appeasing effects of blushing: It tests whether the actor&8217;s blush, indeed, evokes reconciliatory behaviour in observers, and explores how blushing actually succeeds in affecting observers. To explain why people should want not to blush despite its alleged capacity to diffuse interpersonal threats, the project tests the idea that the functional properties of blushing are context-dependent: Appeasing in the presence of clear-cut antecedent behaviours, but revealing in their absence. Since most situations involve some ambiguity with respect to the elicitors of a blush, its revealing effects may well prevail its appeasing effects in real life.The hypothesized context-dependent functional properties of the blush may not only be relevant to the observers, but may also differentially affect the actors&8217; conception of the communicative value of their blushing. Following this, the project tests whether blushing phobics are prone to a bias to overestimate the revealing properties of their blushing.
