Recognizing Contributions: Face–Support and Face-Threat Influences Students’ Emotional and Communicative Responses

LosingFaceon Social Media

“…Results show that rejection and criticism lead directly to negative affect, but the effect on retaliation is indirect, operating through negative affect in a form of mediation. Prior research has examined a variety of face threats (e.g., Kennedy-Lightsey, 2010; Oetzel & Ting-Toomey, 2003) and proposed multiple models for how these threats lead to emotional responses and behavior (e.g., Brett et al, 2007; Dillard & Shen, 2005; Rains, 2013). However, prior research has not directly explored rejection and criticism as positive face threats and examined how these threats indirectly lead to retaliatory aggression operating through negative affect.…”

“…This study built on earlier research by proposing and testing a model of how positive face threats lead to negative emotion and retaliatory aggression. It is worth noting that earlier research on this topic has examined other types of face threats, such as lack of verbal recognition (Kennedy-Lightsey, 2010) or negative threats to face, which question or limit a person’s autonomy (Dillard & Shen, 2005; Rains, 2013). This study built on this foundation by examining rejection and criticism specifically as positive face threats and testing a mediation model to answer these core questions: Do threats to positive face directly or indirectly lead to negative emotion and retaliatory aggression?…”

“…For example, Cupach and Carson (2002) used correlational data from a survey, which limits the ability to predict causality, and found that complaints were associated with face threats as well as negative reactions, such as embarrassment, defensiveness, and relational damage. Kennedy-Lightsey (2010) used an experimental design and found participants felt greater negative emotion and communicated more negatively when they failed to receive verbal recognition in a group setting. Although these studies examined similar concepts, they did not propose or test mediation.…”

Face and resilience in divorce

“…Despite suggestions to include emotion in face threat and facework research (Craig, Tracy, & Spisak, 1986;Locher & Watts, 2005;Metts, 1992), few studies have linked face threat to emotion. Recently, Kennedy-Lightsey (2010) found that positive face threat elicited more negative emotional responses, including anger and frustration. In the current study, and consistent with predictions, face threats were also related to negative emotions, suggesting that the more face threatening the divorce, the more negative the emotional reactions.…”

The Impact of Giving Feedback in Online Discussions

“…Face-threatening messages have been found to increase negative emotions. They hurt (Zhang & Stafford, 2008) and elicit anger, embarrassment, and anxiety (Cupach & Carson, 2002; Kennedy-Lightsey, 2010; Lin & Yamaguchi, 2011; Willer & Soliz, 2010). This holds for threats to negative as well as positive face.…”