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When scowling may be a good thing: The influence of anger expressions on credibility
Author(s) -
Hareli Shlomo,
Harush Raveh,
Suleiman Ramzi,
Cossette Michel,
Bergeron Stephanie,
Lavoie Veronique,
Dugay Guillaume,
Hess Ursula
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
european journal of social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.609
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1099-0992
pISSN - 0046-2772
DOI - 10.1002/ejsp.573
Subject(s) - anger , credibility , psychology , complaint , harm , plaintiff , social psychology , value (mathematics) , compensation (psychology) , ambiguity , linguistics , philosophy , machine learning , political science , computer science , law
Emotion displays do not only signal emotions but also have social signal value. A study was conducted to test the hypothesis that expressing anger when complaining may lead to positive outcomes for the complainant because anger signals goal obstruction and hence the presence of real harm. The results suggest that the social signal value of anger enhances the credibility of the complainant and hence leads to better compensation, but only when the complaint itself presents room for doubt. For highly justified complaints the additional expression of anger does not add information and is discounted. In contrast, showing an affiliative‐smiling demeanor was found to enhance credibility for both types of complaints. Overall, the present research confirmed the important role of emotion expressions as social signals. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.