In social contexts, reading subtle changes in others' facial expressions is a crucial communication skill. To measure this ability, we developed an expression-change detection task, wherein a series of pictures of changes in an individual's facial expressions within contextual scenes were presented. The results demonstrated that the detection of subtle changes was highly sensitive to contextual...

Why do people behave aggressively toward romantic partners, and what can put the brakes on this aggression? Provocation robustly predicts aggression in both intimate and nonintimate relationships. Four methodologically diverse studies tested the hypothesis that provocation severity and relationship commitment interact to predict aggression toward one's romantic partner, with the aggression-prom...

Public generosity may be a means to convincingly advertise one's good character. This hypothesis suggests that altruistic individuals will be desirable as romantic partners. Few studies have tested this prediction, and these showed mixed results. Some studies have found that altruism is not particularly attractive; other studies showed that altruism is attractive by contrasting descriptions of ...

Social relations analyses examined the relative importance of forgivingness (disposition to forgive others), forgivability (tendency to obtain forgiveness from others), and relationship effects in determining family members' transgression-related interpersonal motivations (TRIMs) and their perceptions of others' TRIMs toward them (PTRIMs). In 2 studies, the individual and dyadic predictors of t...

How is positive emotion associated with our ability to empathize with others? Extant research provides support for two competing predictions about this question. An empathy amplification hypothesis suggests positive emotion would be associated with greater empathy, as it often enhances other prosocial processes. A contrasting empathy attenuation hypothesis suggests positive emotion would be ass...

As human beings we are endowed with gregarious tendencies. Like most other primates we need to live in groups. Since we are also endowed with the capacity to communicate in sophisticated ways, particularly through language, we create cultural milieus. Cultural milieus prescribe and proscribe behaviour, that is, what people should do and should not do given their social surroundings and circumst...

This paper examines development of tourism in Korean fishing communities, and illustrates the ways in which the responses of the state and the fishing village cooperative to tourism have advanced the privatization of commonly held local fishing grounds and of cooperative businesses. The financial assistance from the state and some privatization of common fishing grounds by the cooperative preci...

Three studies involving 478 undergraduates examined the perceived importance of observable actions versus mental states in revealing the "true self"-the authentic and fundamental nature of a target person. Results suggest that when people have only limited information about a target, they believe that an action is more diagnostic of the individual's true self than the accompanying mental state....

A fifth instance of Crohn's disease in identical twins is reported. The evidence for genetic expression of the disease is considered and the possible mechanisms involved are reviewed.