Gaines T, Kirwin P M, Gentry W D
Genet Psychol Monogr. 1977 May;95(2):349-67.
In a test of the hypothesis that descriptive anger expression elicits less subsequent aggression and greater empathy than does aggressive insult, 60 male undergraduates were instructed to set varying levels of shock for an opponent during a series of competitive trials before and after hearing one of four types of taped comment. Results indicated that descriptive anger expression led to a significant decrease in aggression, while no feedback (opponent said nothing) led to an increase in aggression. Insult and no anger feedback resulted in little change in aggressive behavior. In contrast, descriptive anger expression, insult, and no anger feedback produced more residual hostility than did no feedback. Descriptive anger expression Ss appeared to be more motivated by empathy in setting shocks, as compared to the other three groups. Empathy was found to be generally associated with lower shock settings initially and with reductions in shock settings following the opponent's comments. Empathy, however, was not related to Ss' hostility ratings. The results tend to support the clinical utility of descriptive anger expression in improving interpersonal relations.
在一项关于描述性愤怒表达比攻击性侮辱引发更少后续攻击性和更多同理心这一假设的测试中，60名男性本科生在听到四种类型的录音评论之一前后的一系列竞争性试验中，被指示为对手设置不同程度的电击。结果表明，描述性愤怒表达导致攻击性显著降低，而无反馈（对手什么也没说）导致攻击性增加。侮辱和无愤怒反馈导致攻击行为几乎没有变化。相比之下，描述性愤怒表达、侮辱和无愤怒反馈比无反馈产生了更多的残余敌意。与其他三组相比，描述性愤怒表达组的受试者在设置电击时似乎更受同理心的驱动。研究发现，同理心通常与最初较低的电击设置以及对手评论后电击设置的降低有关。然而，同理心与受试者的敌意评分无关。这些结果倾向于支持描述性愤怒表达在改善人际关系方面的临床效用。
