Although partner similarity in demographics, personal values, and personality has been well studied, little is known about partner similarity in aesthetic dispositions. Music preferences offer a particularly promising lens for examining this question because they function as powerful social signals that individuals seem to consider when forming relationships, for example, by showcasing their favorite music on dating apps. Across three studies and a mini meta-analysis, we assessed the profile similarity in couples’ music preferences ( N couples = 309, primarily young adults) using both genre-based and artist-based methods, and compared these similarities with those observed for personal values and Big Five personality traits. Couples consistently demonstrated greater similarity in music preferences than pseudo-couples, and these effects exceeded those observed for values and personality traits. In addition, some analyses indicated small to modest positive associations between music preference similarity and relationship outcomes. These findings provide an initial demonstration of partner similarity in music preferences and its potential implications for relationship quality.
We reveal a way that people use counterfactual thinking: They use it to infer motives and solve mysteries about what happened in the unseen past. In three preregistered experiments, participants (total N = 1,242) were asked to determine which of two competitors in a contest had sabotaged a third competitor. Participants often succeeded in identifying the culprit when counterfactual reasoning could be used to judge whether each suspect profited from the sabotage. Participants had more difficulty, though, when the mystery required using counterfactuals to judge how much each suspect profited. These findings show that people can use counterfactual reasoning to infer others’ motives and to determine who was most likely to have produced past events. But they find this easier when counterfactuals support binary judgments rather than graded ones. Besides revealing a way that people use counterfactual reasoning, the findings are informative about how people learn about the unobserved past.
In this research, we examine the associations between political ideology and two central components of maximization: the maximization goal of choosing the best option and the maximization strategy of alternative search. Across three studies, we show that conservatives are more likely than liberals to pursue the maximization goal of choosing the best option. In addition, we demonstrate that the relationship between political ideology and the maximization strategy of alternative search is contingent on the maximization goal. Specifically, conservatives tend to engage in less extensive alternative searches than liberals when the maximization goal is not highly important. Conversely, when this goal is highly important, conservatives’ alternative search increases substantially, reaching a level comparable to that of liberals, although it does not exceed it. The effects of political ideology on both the maximization goal of choosing the best and alternative search remain significant after controlling for ideological extremity and demographic variables.
Self-determination theory provides a useful framework for understanding why singles may or may not desire partnership. In a longitudinal study of single adults ( N = 4,019), we assessed motivations for relational pursuit and coded ∼12,000 qualitative reports of relationship goals into 41 thematic categories. Six months later ( N = 3,176), participants reported their progress on these goals. Intrinsic and identified motivation were associated with goals emphasizing relational quality, including enjoyment and commitment. Introjected motivation, reflecting self-image concerns, was associated with prioritizing relational entry over relational quality. It was also associated with the pursuit of self-affirmation and lower goal progress. Amotivation was associated with not pursuing romantic relationships and greater progress on goals related to remaining single. Taken together, our findings suggest single peoples’ motivations to partner shape the quality of the relationships they seek and how they organize their behaviors within singlehood.
Our perceptions of reality are partly a byproduct of our goals. Past research has found that people are motivated to selectively share reality—shared inner states about the world—with those who help them achieve their goals (i.e., instrumental others). We argue that this desire to share reality with instrumental others depends on relational mobility: how free others are to leave relationships. Across 39 countries ( N ≈ 17,000), relational mobility predicted more shared reality with instrumental (vs. noninstrumental) others. Two network studies ( N = 353; N = 277) replicated this interaction, revealing that perceived relational mobility shaped the likelihood of sharing reality with instrumental versus noninstrumental others. An experiment ( N = 590) manipulating relational mobility found causal support: High (vs. low) relational mobility reduced shared reality with noninstrumental others. These findings suggest that cultures emphasizing social freedom influence how people “choose their reality” by selectively merging minds with instrumental others.
Storytelling helps people learn, make sense of the world, and connect with others. But stories and narrative may vary in how effective they are perceived to be at communicating different types of messages. Drawing on research on storytelling, communication, and psychological distance, we predicted that psychologically distant (vs. proximal) narratives would be perceived as more appropriate for conveying general messages. Findings across seven preregistered studies that used diverse tasks and manipulations of distance—including foreign versus local settings (Studies 1–3), large versus small audiences (Study 4), more versus less hypothetical scenarios (Study 5), and temporally proximal versus distal personal documentation (Study 6)—supported this prediction, suggesting that psychological distance signals that a narrative is intended to convey a general, abstract lesson. These findings have implications for how narratives are used in education, interpersonal communication, art, and persuasive messaging.
Nonprofit organizations often solicit voluntary payments from visitors either before or after their experience, such as through donation boxes placed at museum entrances or exits. While prior research has examined how payment timing (pre- vs. postexperience) affects organizational outcomes, less is known about its impact on perceptions of donors. Across four preregistered studies, we find that preexperience payments are judged as more moral than postexperience payments. Drawing on the communal–exchange relationship framework, we show that preexperience payment signals a communal orientation, in which giving is motivated by concern for the beneficiary’s welfare, whereas postexperience signals an exchange orientation, calibrated to the value received. The effect of payment timing on moral judgment is driven by differences in perceived communal motives, rather than exchange motives. However, when an exchange relationship is made salient as the social norm, the moral advantage of preexperience over postexperience payment is attenuated.
Moral concern for animals is widely endorsed, yet people appear to make exceptions for practices of animal exploitation rooted in their own cultural traditions. In two studies (total N = 1,318), we tested whether support for culturally embedded practices of animal exploitation varies with cultural ingroup-outgroup origin as well as with ideological and identity-based factors. Across the United States (Study 1), Norway, Spain, and Australia (Study 2), participants consistently supported their own country’s (ingroup) practice more than the foreign (outgroup) practices; for example, Norwegian participants supported whaling more than kangaroo hunting or bullfighting, suggesting culturally selective moral leniency. Furthermore, right-wing authoritarianism and national identification showed specific associations with support for ingroup practices, whereas social dominance orientation was associated with broader support for animal exploitation (including higher speciesism). These findings offer insight into why contested animal practices persist, revealing that evaluations of animal exploitation vary systematically with cultural group membership and ideological orientations.
A match between a person and their culture is widely considered a source of well-being. However, why does this "person-culture match effect" (PCME) emerge? This research seeks to elucidate that question on three counts. It reports the first experimental-and, thus, causal-test of the PCME, examines whether match increases well-being only for people who consider their culture central to themselves, and tests whether the PCME occurs only for match with one's own culture rather than another culture. Across three experiments (N total = 1,251), we found initial evidence that person-culture match causes higher well-being, but only for people who consider their culture central to themselves and only if match refers to one's own culture, not another culture. These findings were more consistent for some indicators of well-being (affect, global well-being) than others (life satisfaction, self-esteem), thereby providing initial insights into the PCME's underlying mechanisms that opens avenues for future research.
Does it matter whether people believe in free will? Over recent decades, this question has sparked a debate across philosophy, sociology, psychology, and cognitive neuroscience. Previous research has largely overlooked how this belief relates to people’s everyday affect. To address this gap, we conducted two experience-sampling studies with participants from five European countries to examine the association between belief in free will and individuals’ daily affect ( N total = 1,381; k total = 12,856), and one experimental study ( N = 1,053). In Studies 1 and 2, stronger belief in free will was positively associated with positive affect across the day. Importantly, all effects remained after controlling for constructs related to the belief and everyday affect. Study 3 showed that exposing participants to pro- (vs. anti-) free will viewpoints increased positive affect. Our findings highlight the unique role of belief in free will in shaping daily positive affect and its wider social implications.
Nostalgia is a bittersweet emotion that increases happiness and meaning in life. Recently, psychological richness has been identified as a third component of a good life. The present research investigated whether nostalgia also enhances psychological richness in life. This was tested with two high-powered (Study 1 N = 640, Study 2 N = 1,007) preregistered experiments. We found evidence that nostalgia reliably enhances perceptions that life is psychologically rich, and this effect went above and beyond nostalgia’s effects on meaning in life and happiness. The effects were partially mediated by the unusualness of the nostalgic memories. In Study 2 (but not Study 1), we found evidence that nostalgia boosts the three facets of meaning in life: coherence, purpose, and mattering. Nostalgia appears to have broad benefits to people’s well-being.
Major sporting events exert manifold influences on people’s intra- and interpersonal experiences. Preliminary findings suggest that they affect sexuality, but the evidence has been limited to population-level outcomes such as birth rates. Direct, individual-level evidence and research on underlying processes are missing. In this preregistered study, we investigated the relationship between the success of national men’s soccer teams during the UEFA EURO 2024 tournament and the frequency of sexual events in daily life, with match results serving as natural within-person, quasi-experimental manipulations. Participants from five European countries ( N = 952, k = 3,627 reports) reported more cognitive, affective, and behavioral sexual events following their national teams’ wins (vs. losses). These effects were particularly pronounced among participants who identified more strongly as fans and were partly explained by higher well-being after wins. We discuss the far-reaching impact of sporting events on sexuality in daily life and future research directions.
People with multiple stigmatized identities (e.g., queer people of color [QPoC]) are especially at risk of experiencing invisibility or feeling overlooked and ignored. While a growing literature has explored experiences of invisibility, scarce research exists on the relationship between contact and invisibility, especially for stigmatized groups. In one preregistered study ( N = 338), we examined how the quantity (frequency) and quality (how positive) of contact with different target groups relate to feelings of social invisibility for QPoC. Results reveal that having more frequent contact with ingroup members, compared to outgroup members, relates to lower invisibility. Positive contact across all target groups, but especially with other QPoC, was negatively related to invisibility. Taken together, our results highlight the potential for intragroup contact as a strengths-based tool for counteracting invisibility for people with multiple stigmatized identities.
Homophily in psychological characteristics is common, yet recent evidence suggests that personality trait similarity among friends may be less common. Moreover, little is known about whether and how personality similarity—and perceptions of this similarity—among friends shapes how they feel about their relationships in group settings. In a study of 369 quads of friends ( N = 1,476), we found personality similarity in most Big Five traits (except extraversion), but perceived similarity was larger and more common than actual similarity across all traits. Response surface analyses found no evidence of similarity effects on friendship satisfaction across all traits and models. Rather, actor and partner effects (particularly perceived partner characteristics) of personality were more consistently associated with friendship satisfaction. Our findings contribute to the debate on similarity as a heuristic for friendship compatibility and enhance our understanding of whether and how friends’ personalities shape friendship well-being.
Four preregistered studies (N = 369) demonstrate a relationship between speech rate and politeness: participants experienced slower (/faster) versions of a foreign-language message as more (/less) compatible with politeness (Study 1); intended to speak more slowly (/faster) to convey more (/less) politeness (Studies 2a and 2b); and read a pre-written message more slowly when intending to be more polite (Study 3). Findings show the association between speech rate and politeness is robust, does not depend on content, and does not even require comprehension. Drawing on established theories of politeness, we suggest that speech rate may reflect and regulate three factors that influence politeness: the status of the addressee, the imposition placed on the addressee by the message, and the social distance between speaker and addressee. We discuss implications vis-& agrave;-vis construal level theory, which suggests a relationship between psychological distance and speed via social distance.
Can people accurately predict how major political events will affect their views of themselves and the world? We assessed people's accuracy in forecasting their affective reactions and changes in enduring psychological traits to the 2024 U.S. presidential election. In a three-wave longitudinal study, people made forecasts of their affective states and traits encompassing well-being (life satisfaction, meaning in life), views of the self (self-esteem, perceived control, optimism) and of the world (cynicism, experiences of disrespect, institutional trust) for the event of Democratic and Republican candidate victory twice: 3 weeks before the election (remote forecast) and on the election day (immediate forecast). Following the election results being called, people reported their experiences. Partisan losers overestimated the event impact on their affective reactions but also trait well-being, self-views and worldviews. Partisan winners did not display systematic forecasting errors. The results demonstrate that forecasting errors extend to predictions of changes in enduring traits.
Having difficult conversations is a cornerstone of healthy relationships, yet people are often reluctant to initiate them. We propose that chatbots, with their remarkable ability to emulate human communication, can be harnessed to help people prepare for difficult conversations. In a pre-registered study (N = 1,371), participants who briefly prepared for a difficult conversation with a chatbot were significantly more likely to initiate that conversation in real life over the following week, compared to those in a control condition. This effect was partly driven by participants anticipating that the conversation would go better after discussing it with a chatbot. Our findings indicate that when deployed thoughtfully, chatbots can influence consequential real-world behaviour within existing social relationships.
Gligoric et al. reported based on country-level data that poorer and more exploited countries showed more outgroup favorit-ism on competence ratings and more ingroup favoritism on warmth. However, their analyses used a difference score measure of outgroup favoritism. I discuss problems with this approach, and reanalyze the authors' data using polyvariate regression, which is specifically meant to test congruence hypotheses as outcomes. This revealed that greater poverty was associated with warmer ratings of the ingroup, but was unrelated to warmth ratings of outgroups. Thus, the relationship between wealth and warmth stereotyping may be driven more by ingroup perceptions than perceptions of outgroups. No other multivariate associations of either exploitation or wealth with trait ratings were statistically significant, although there were strong, but nonsignificant, trends in the data. Finally, I show how difference scores rarely provide statistical information beyond the two individual measures used to create them.
Bridging the Model of Intersectional Invisibility and the Role Congruity Theory, we hypothesized that Black gay men were overlooked as leaders in both anti-racism advocacy groups, where Black heterosexual men were preferred, and in anti-homophobia groups, where White gay men were favored. In three studies (N = 512), White heterosexual participants allocated two funds, one addressing racism and one addressing homophobia, to one of four advocacy groups whose leaders' race (Black vs. White men) and sexual orientation (gay vs. heterosexual men) were orthogonally varied. For the anti-racism fund, participants preferred to fund advocacy groups led by Black over White men, but preferred to fund a Black heterosexual rather than a Black gay male leader. For the anti-homophobia fund, participants preferred to fund groups led by gay over heterosexual men, yet preferred to fund a White than a Black gay male leader. Results are discussed in the context of intersectionality.
Popular advice in media and self-help literature encourages people to trust their intuition when forming impressions of strangers. We tested this widespread lay belief by examining whether intuitive judgments are preferred over deliberate ones and whether such preferences are justified by differences in accuracy. In Study 1 (n = 401), participants from the general population reported using intuition more frequently, preferring it, and expressing greater confidence in it compared to deliberate reasoning when judging strangers. In Study 2, we analyzed 21,739 judgments from 380 users of the quiz app “Who Knows,” who inferred personality-related characteristics from short video introductions. Judgment mode was experimentally manipulated within persons across multiple game rounds. While intuitive judgments were again preferred, accuracy did not differ between conditions. Thus, although intuition is favored when judging strangers, it does not yield higher accuracy but may still be adaptive by achieving comparable accuracy with less time.
