Vol.21,No.1 August, 2005

Title

The effects of the communication target on self-effacement

Author

Fumio MURAKAMI (Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology, University of Tokyo)
Itaru ISHIGURO (Faculty of Humanity, Hirosaki University)

Summary

We investigated self-effacement as an interpersonal issue. We focused on not only people who effaced themselves, but also on the communication targets to whom they showed their self-effacement. A mail survey was conducted to collect representative dyadic data. The results illustrate the social and interactive nature of self-effacement. First, the respondents were more likely to efface themselves to those communication targets who favor the modesty norm, and to those who deny the respondents' self-effacement. Second, the respondents preferred not to self-efface when NEITHER of them favored the modesty norm. Finally, we discuss the importance of using dyadic interaction to study communication norms.

Key words

self-effacement, self-presentation, social norm, dyadic data

Title

The determinants of the interpersonal effects of anger expression: Focusing on the influences of the justice evaluation of anger expression

Author

Shingo ABE (Graduate School of Sociology, Kansai University)
Osamu TAKAGI (Faculty of Sociology, Kansai University)

Summary

In this study, we asked participants (229 students, 87 male and 142 female) to describe experiences both in which they expressed anger to someone and in which someone expressed anger to them, and examined whether there were differences between expressing and expressed positions in the determinants of the interpersonal effects of anger expression. The results showed that, while the justice evaluation of anger expression by persons who expressed anger did not exert any influence on interpersonal effects, the justice evaluation of those who were expressed anger to had statistically significant influences on interpersonal effects. We suggested from this that the more justified the anger-expressed person evaluates the anger expression as, the more positive the interpersonal effects tend to become. It was also found that the strength and direction of the influences of expressing anger on interpersonal effects differed between anger-expressing and anger-expressed positions.

Key words

anger expression, justice evaluation, interpersonal conflict, aggressive behavior, victim-perpetrator

Title

Negative feelings caused by events in opposite-sex relationships

Author

Yosuke TATEWAKI (Department of Human Science, University of Tsukuba)

Summary

The purpose of this study was to investigate the structure of negative feelings caused by negative events in opposite-sex relationships, and the relation between negative feelings and sex difference, relationship with partner, coping behaviors and relationship satisfaction. Three hundred and fifty-six undergraduates responded to a questionnaire asking about their relationships with their partners, negative events, negative feelings, their coping behaviors, relationship satisfaction and a love scale. Negative feelings were classified into affiliation-dissatisfaction and aggressive/refusal feelings. Affiliation-dissatisfaction was composed of sadness, anxiety and so on. It was caused by distance from partners, and did not influence the relationship satisfaction of lovers. The aggressive/refusal feelings were composed of irritation, anger and so on. They were caused by interference from partners. The more frequently they occurred, the lower relationship satisfaction was.

Key words

opposite-sex relationships, negative feelings, negative events, coping behavior, relationship satisfaction

Title

Does extending social networks help a minority to survive? : On the introduction of information about distant others to a DSIT simulation

Author

Makoto SHIMURA and Tetsuro KOBAYASHI (Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology, The University of Tokyo)
Fumio MURAKAMI (Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Kobe University)

Summary

The rapid spread of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) enables people to maintain ties with friends and relatives who are physically distant, and to establish new ties through the Internet. To examine the social consequence of using ICTs at the macro level, we extended Latane's DSIT simulation model by adding interaction with distant agents. The results show that the largest and the mean cluster sizes of minority were smaller than Latane's model, but the number of minority clusters increased. Even if they are surrounded by others of different opinions, people can keep their opinions unchanged through ties with distant others. Such ties decrease the relative effects of adjacent neighbors. As a whole, people can form the homogeneous networks that are free from physical restriction to some degree. Consequently, minority opinions are able to survive.

Key words

social network, ICTs, Internet, opinion distribution, Dynamic Social Impact Theory

Title

Influences of cultural-self-construal on self-presentation

Author

Naohiro HASEGAWA (Graduate School of Nagoya University)

Summary

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influences of cultural-self-construal on self-presentation to significant-others that belong to the participants' ingroup (miuchi) or outgroup (soto). In the pilot study, 54 undergraduates and graduate students described self-images that they wanted to present to significant-others, and 19 desirable self-images were extracted. Two hundred and twenty-four undergraduate students were then included in the present survey. In terms of results, two implications were induced. First, participants who had inter-dependent-self-construal changed the presentation of their self-images than those who had independent self-construal. This result is congruent with the theory of the cultural construal of self. Second, the data show the tendency of self-depreciation to their self-images independent to the cultural-self-construals. However, the tendency is more remarkable among the people who had inter-dependent-self-construal. The discussion considered the effects of cultural-self-construal on self-presentation.

Key words

cultural construal of self, self-presentation, significant-other

Title

Negotiation and anger: A case study of sandal divination in the Turkana of Northwestern Kenya

Author

Shinsuke SAKUMICHI (Faculty of Humanities, Hirosaki University)

Summary

Negotiation is the most basic way to solve problems in the pastoral Turkana society of Northwestern Kenya. Anger (angoikin) is believed to bring misfortune and calamity to the Turkana people. After encountering serious illness or an unusual accident, a client visits a sandal diviner to discover who got angry with him/her and what the cause of the anger was. This paper aims to show the cognitive process of the interaction among the participants in terms of scenario analysis within the framework of social constructionism of emotion. Through interaction with his diviner, the client recalls episodes that may have offended the adversary and sometimes talks, by way of retaliation, about occasions where he also was offended by the adversary. Four scenarios of anger were abstracted from 22 scenes: inconsiderate treatment, decision without agreement, refusal of demands, and refusal of marriage or a sexual relationship. The result showed that anger was caused by a violation of the cooperation norm underpinning a negotiation society.

Key words

emotion, anger, social constructionism, divination, Turkana