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. 2008 May 1;44(3):775-782.
doi: 10.1016/j.jesp.2007.07.004.

Individual differences in the rejection-aggression link in the hot sauce paradigm: The case of Rejection Sensitivity

Ozlem Ayduk  1 , Anett Gyurak, Anna Luerssen
Affiliations

Individual differences in the rejection-aggression link in the hot sauce paradigm: The case of Rejection Sensitivity

Ozlem Ayduk et al. J Exp Soc Psychol. .

Abstract

Prior research shows that social rejection elicits aggression. In this study, we investigated whether this is moderated by individual differences in Rejection Sensitivity (RS) - a processing disposition to anxiously expect, readily perceive and overreact to rejection. Participants (N = 129) took part in a purported web-based social interaction in which they were either rejected or not by a potential partner. Subsequently, they were given the opportunity to allocate hot sauce to the perpetrator, knowing that he/she disliked spicy food. Amount of hot sauce was used as a behavioral index of aggression. Participants in the rejection condition allocated more hot sauce to the perpetrator than those in the control condition. However, RS moderated this effect such that rejection elicited aggression in high but not in low RS people. These results held after controlling for trait neuroticism. Implications of these findings for understanding how and why rejection elicits aggression are discussed.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Amount of hot sauce allocated as a function of experimental condition and Rejection Sensitivity (RS) controlling for perceived spiciness and angry mood. Notes. The hot sauce distribution has been square root transformed. The predicted values were based on the following estimates from the GLM analysis: Hot sauce = 2.27 - .63(spiciness)*** - .32(baseline anger) + .90(manipulation)* -.17(RS) + .42(RS × manipulation)** *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001
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