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Sugar or spice: Using I 3 metatheory to understand how and why glucose reduces rejection‐related aggression
Author(s) -
Pfundmair Michaela,
DeWall C. Nathan,
Fries Veronika,
Geiger Babette,
Krämer Tanya,
Krug Sebastian,
Frey Dieter,
Aydin Nilüfer
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
aggressive behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.223
H-Index - 92
eISSN - 1098-2337
pISSN - 0096-140X
DOI - 10.1002/ab.21593
Subject(s) - metatheory , aggression , spice , psychology , computer science , social psychology , engineering , programming language , electrical engineering
Social rejection can increase aggression, especially among people high in rejection sensitivity. Rejection impairs self‐control, and deficits in self‐control often result in aggression. A dose of glucose can counteract the effect of situational factors that undermine self‐control. But no research has integrated these literatures to understand why rejection increases aggression, and how to reduce it. Using the I 3 model of aggression, we proposed that aggression would be highest under conditions of high instigation (rejection), high impellance (high rejection sensitivity), and low inhibition (drinking a beverage sweetened with a sugar substitute instead of glucose). As predicted, aggression was highest among participants who experienced social rejection, were high in rejection sensitivity, and drank a placebo beverage. A dose of glucose reduced aggression, especially among rejected people high in rejection sensitivity. These findings point to the importance of self‐control in understanding why social rejection increases aggression, and how to prevent it. Aggr. Behav. 41:537–543, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.