Better than my pride is your misfortune: the impact of schadenfreude on decision-making

Investigações anteriores relacionadas ao schadenfreude concentraram-se nos fatores que provocam o prazer no infortúnio do outro. A presente pesquisa tem como objetivo investigar o impacto do schadenfreude na tomada de decisão. Dois estudos (um em laboratório e uma em campo) abordam o impacto do schadenfreude em decisões realizadas no passado e no futuro em eventos desportivos. O primeiro estudo confronta sentimentos de orgulho em uma vitória do time favorito contra os sentimentos de perda schadenfreude de uma equipe rival. Os resultados mostraram que as pessoas preferiam enviar notícias sobre a vitória da equipe favorita (orgulho) ao invés da perda do time rival (schadenfreude) quando as diferenças de pontuação no jogo eram pequenas (por exemplo: time favorito 1 x 0 outro, contra, o time rival 0 x 1 favorito). No entanto, as pessoas eram mais propensas a fazer a escolha schadenfreude (por exemplo, escolher o envio de uma notícia sobre a derrota de um time rival) quando o resultado era alto (por exemplo, time favorito 5 x 0 rival, contra, time rival 0 x 5 favorito). O segundo estudo no campo examina como schadenfreude influencia a vontade de apostar contra um time rival. Para responder a esse problema, a preferência da equipe do participante é avaliada (Participantes que apoiam time alvo contra os que apoiam o rival). Uma manipulação de louvor é adicionada, tal que os consumidores vejam ou não um elogio à equipe alvo enquanto eles estão fazendo uma aposta sobre o resultado da partida. Os resultados mostram que os torcedores do time alvo não foram influenciados pela manipulação de louvor. No entanto, torcedores do time rival aumentaram sua probabilidade de aposta contra o time alvo (ou seja, mostraram um comportamento que envolve o schadenfreude) quando esta foi elogiada antes do jogo.

An examination of the link between just world belief and schadenfreude

Schadenfreude is a pleasure derived from someone else’s misfortune. Just world belief is a desire to belief that people get what they deserve and deserve what they get (Lerner, 1965,1980). Interestingly, previous scholars documented the link between schadenfreude, responsibility and deservingness (e.g. van Dijk, Goslinga, & Ouwerkerk, 2008), i.e. the more failure is deserved, the more perceived responsibility for the failure, and subsequently more schadenfreude is evoked. Thus, the present study tested if a threat of a just world belief intensifies experience of schadenfreude. The participants (N=48, 31 women and 17 men, M age = 23.72), were randomly assigned to one of two experimental conditions (just world belief: threat versus no-threat) between-participant design. They read scenarios which were designed to threaten or maintain their just world belief. Next, they were transferred to an online magazine presenting funny stories about other peoples’ failures. The stories were selected in a pilot study in order to evoke schadenfreude. As presumed, the participants exposed to the threat of just world belief experienced more schadenfreude, i.e. spent more time on reading schadenfreude stories. The results confirmed the existence of a link between just world threat and schadenfreude.

Schadenfreude and just world belief

The present study tested the hypothesis that a threat of a just world belief intensifies experience of schadenfreude (i.e., pleasure at another's misfortune). The participants read scenarios which were designed to threaten or maintain their just world belief. Subsequently, they were transferred to an online magazine presenting funny stories about other peoples' failures. As presumed, the participants exposed to the threat of just world belief spent more time on reading. These results confirmed the existence of a link between just world threat and schadenfreude.

Joy, Schadenfreude, Sorrow, and Resentment as Responses Restoring Balance in Cognitive Units

Based on Heider’s (1958) balance theory we hypothesize that emotional responses to other persons’ outcomes depend on attitudes towards these persons. Positive attitudes towards others lead to empathic responses to their outcomes– joy after a success and sorrow after a failure. Negative attitudes result in paradoxical responses – negative to a success (resentment) and positive to a failure (schadenfreude). These emotions function as responses restoring balance within cognitive units consisting of the perceiver, other persons and their outcomes. Three studies supported these hypotheses and showed that deservingness considerations play a weaker role in shaping emotional responses of joy and sorrow to others’ outcomes when strong interpersonal attitudes are involved. However, deservingness plays an independent role in shaping the emotional response of resentment.

The dark side of brand attachment: a conceptual framework of brand attachment's detrimental outcomes

Brand attachment recently has received great attention among practitioners and academics alike. Scholars consider brand attachment a key requisite in consumer-brand relationships that create favourable consumer behaviours such as positive brand attitudes and brand loyalty. Few studies, however, examine the detrimental outcomes of brand attachment. In this paper, we develop a conceptual framework that explores how brand attachment may explain detrimental consumer behaviours, such as oppositional brand loyalty and antibrand actions. We investigate consumers' trash-talking and schadenfreude in brand communities and their subsequent outcomes. Our framework reveals that the link between brand attachment and oppositional brand loyalty is driven by consumers' social identity and sense of rivalry. Furthermore, we put forward that brand attachment leads to anti-brand actions when relationships deteriorate. We identify two factors behind the deterioration: (1) companies' opportunism activities, and (2) incongruity between consumers' values and the brand's values. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed arising from our emerging 'dark side' brand attachment framework.

Striving for consistency shapes emotional responses to other’s outcomes

Based on the balance theory (Heider, 1958), we hypothesized that emotions (i.e., schadenfreude, resentment, joy and sorrow) induced by other person’s outcomes function as responses restoring balance within cognitive units consisting of the perceiver, other persons and their outcomes. As a consequence, emotional reactions towards others’ outcomes depend on the perceiver’s attitudes in such a way that outcomes of a well-liked person rise congruous responses (sorrow after failure and joy after success), while outcomes of a disliked other lead to incongruous responses (schadenfreude after failure and resentment after success). Our participants recalled a situation from their past in which somebody they liked or disliked had succeed or failed. Additionally, we manipulated whether the outcome referred to a domain where participants’ self-interest was involved or not. We analyzed the participants’ average emotional state as well as specific emotions induced by the recalled events. Consistently with expectations we found that balancing principles played a major role in shaping emotional responses to successes and failures of person who were well-liked or disliked.

Offene Antwort der Provinzen an die Berliner: Hauptstädter! Landsleute! Durch den Offenen Brief, den Ihr im vorigen Monate mit der Unterschrift ...

Welsch (Projektbearbeiter): Flugblatt, das die Ressentiments der sich benachteiligt fühlenden Bevölkerung der preußischen Provinzen gegenüber der Haupt- und Residenzstadt Berlin wie auch eine gehörige Portion Schadenfreude angesichts der dortigen 'Anarchie' widerspiegelt: "Berlin bedarf unserer - wir bedürfen Berlins nicht! Denn wenn heute Berlin in seinem Wahn untergeht, werden wir bestehen." Berlin verdankt seine Bedeutung allein der 'Kraft', 'Arbeit' und 'Treue' der Provinzen, ihm wurde mit vollen Händen das gegeben, was letzteren weggenommen wurde. Im Unterschied zu 1789 gab es im März 1848 in Berlin keinerlei Berechtigung zu einer Revolution. Schilderung der Geschehnisse seit März 1848 aus konservativ-monarchistischer Sicht

Offene Antwort der Provinzen an die Berliner: Hauptstädter! Landsleute! Durch den Offenen Brief, den Ihr im vorigen Monate mit der Unterschrift ...

Welsch (Projektbearbeiter): Flugblatt, das die Ressentiments der sich benachteiligt fühlenden Bevölkerung der preußischen Provinzen gegenüber der Haupt- und Residenzstadt Berlin wie auch eine gehörige Portion Schadenfreude angesichts der dortigen 'Anarchie' widerspiegelt: "Berlin bedarf unserer - wir bedürfen Berlins nicht! Denn wenn heute Berlin in seinem Wahn untergeht, werden wir bestehen." Berlin verdankt seine Bedeutung allein der 'Kraft', 'Arbeit' und 'Treue' der Provinzen, ihm wurde mit vollen Händen das gegeben, was letzteren weggenommen wurde. Im Unterschied zu 1789 gab es im März 1848 in Berlin keinerlei Berechtigung zu einer Revolution. Schilderung der Geschehnisse seit März 1848 aus konservativ-monarchistischer Sicht