Interdependent = Compassionate? Compassionate and Self-Image Goals and Their Relationships With Interdependence in the United States and Japan

Abstract

The pursuit of compassionate goals, which involves focusing on and attending to other people’s needs, has often been described as a defining characteristic of an interdependent self that prioritizes harmonious relationships over individual achievement. This research investigated whether compassionate goals can be empirically distinguished from various indices of interdependence and examined their correlations with interdependence in both American and Japanese adult samples. It further differentiated two types of self-image goals—the goals to appear warm and kind vs. the goals to appear competent and in control—and explored their relationships with interdependence. In Study 1, the 18-item scale showed a clear four-factor structure that distinguished (a) compassionate goals, (b) approach-worded likable self-image goals, (c) approach-worded competent self-image goals, and (d) avoidance-worded self-image goals. Study 2 confirmed the equivalence of the four-factor structure and the equivalence of factor loadings in the United States and Japan. Finally, Study 3 showed that the items of compassionate goals and those of various measures of interdependence loaded onto separate factors with only negligible cross-loadings. Study 3 further found that the indices of interdependence reflecting connection with others showed moderately positive correlations with compassionate goals whereas indices of interdependence reflecting conformity showed moderate correlations with likable, competent, and avoidant self-image goals, indicating that the pursuit of compassionate and self-image goals reflect different aspects of interdependence.

Dispositional Self-Construal Modulates the Empathy for Others’ Pain: An ERP Study

“…In addition, it has been suggested that individuals with interdependent self-construal are associated with prosocial motivation and affiliative tendencies such that individuals primed with interdependent self-construal exhibited a higher level of cooperation than those primed with independent self-construal in a social dilemma task ( Utz, 2004 ). Moreover, Niiya and Crocker (2019) found that the indices of interdependence showed moderately positive correlations with compassionate goals. Thus, the higher sensitivity to others’ pain observed in individuals with higher interdependent self-construal might be associated with their high level of prosocial motivation, affiliative tendencies, or compassion.…”

Compassionate goals predict COVID-19 health behaviors during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

“…However, collectivism is a multifaceted distinction that cannot be reduced to compassionate goals [59]. Furthermore, measures of interdependence, which characterizes people in collectivist cultures, load on separate factors from items measuring compassionate goals [60]. Because of limits on participants' time and attention, we could not include every plausible indicator of prosocial orientation in Study 3.…”

Compassionate goals and responses to social rejection: A mediating role of self-compassion

“…Goals that people pursue in interpersonal relationships influence their well-being and their relationship satisfaction (Canevello & Crocker, 2020;Crocker et al, 2017;Crocker & Canevello, 2008Niiya, 2019). When people seek to show their competence or likable characteristics, or avoid revealing their weaknesses (i.e., have self-image goals; Niiya & Crocker, 2019), despite their best effort to obtain approval from others, they are more likely to feel conflicted and lonely (Crocker & Canevello, 2008). However, when people genuinely care about others' well-being (i.e., have compassionate goals; Niiya & Crocker, 2019), they feel safe and connected with others and perceive social support from family and friends (Crocker & Canevello, 2008).…”

“…Participants completed a measure of compassionate goals adapted from the Culturally Invariant Compassionate and Self-Image Goals Scale (Niiya & Crocker, 2019), which has been validated both in the U.S. and Japan. Participants were instructed to indicate how much they want or try to pursue various goals in their everyday relationships on a 5-point scale ranging from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very much).…”

“…Compassionate goals consisted of six items such as "be supportive of others." Following Niiya and Crocker (2019), we used the mean scores of these items as compassionate goals (α = .85 in the current sample).…”