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The Benefits of Transcending Self-Interest: Examining the Role of Self-Transcendence on Expressive Suppression and Well-Being

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Abstract

Research has taken a dim view of regulating emotions via expressive suppression. However, the impact of suppression may vary according to individuals’ interpersonal orientation. In two studies, we examined the effects of suppression under self-transcendent and self-interest orientations. Results revealed that (1) in everyday life, although dispositional suppression was related to lower psychological well-being, the costs associated with suppression were buffered among individuals with a self-transcendence orientation (Study 1); and (2) among individuals primed with a self-transcendence orientation, suppression of negative emotions in an interpersonal conflict situation led to lower levels of anger-related emotions and higher levels of perceived relational quality compared to emotional expression; however, among individuals primed with a self-interest orientation, suppression led to higher levels of anger-related emotions and lower levels of perceived relational quality compared to expression (Study 2). Together, results from the present study highlight the role of interpersonal orientation in moderating the effects of suppression on well-being.

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Notes

  1. Self-transcendence can be either a trait or a state, as it can be measured as an individual difference or be induced in laboratory settings (Bauer and Wayment 2008). In Piff et al.’s (2015) study, for instance, participants were induced to experience feelings of awe, which in turn led to decreased self-concerns and increased compassionate behaviors. Moreover, studies using daily and weekly reports of compassionate and self-image goals (e.g., Crocker and Canevello 2008) have shown that not only do people differ in their average level of self-transcendence across time, there are day-to-day, week-to-week, and even moment-to-moment fluctuations as well.

  2. The Chinese version of the Compassionate and Self-image Goals Scale (CSGS) was translated and revised by Chang, Lin, Huang, and Lin (in press). The Chinese CSGS compassionate and self-image subscale scores had good internal reliability (Cronbach’s alpha of .88 and .82 for compassionate goals and self-image goals, respectively). The Chinese version of the ERQ was downloaded from the Stanford Psychophysiological Laboratory website (http://spl.stanford.edu/). The Chinese version of the Scale of Psychological Well-Being was also translated and revised in a previous study (Cronbach’s alpha = .94; Liao and Cheng 2011).

  3. We did not control for age or gender in the main analyses, because the results remained the same whether or not these variables were included as covariates.

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the support of National Taiwan University and the Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan (Research Grant Number: NSC 101-2410-H-002-094-MY2).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, New York University, 6 Washington Place, New York, NY, 10003, USA

    Chien-Han Kao

  2. Department of Psychology, St. Lawrence University, 23 Romoda Drive, Canton, NY, 13617, USA

    Jenny C. Su

  3. Department of Psychology, Ohio State University, 122 Lazenby Hall, 1835 Neil Avenue, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA

    Jennifer Crocker

  4. Institute of Ethnology, Academia Sinica, Nankang, Taipei, 11529, Taiwan

    Jen-Ho Chang

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  1. Chien-Han Kao
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Correspondence to Jenny C. Su.

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Kao, CH., Su, J.C., Crocker, J. et al. The Benefits of Transcending Self-Interest: Examining the Role of Self-Transcendence on Expressive Suppression and Well-Being. J Happiness Stud 18, 959–975 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-016-9759-4

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