The regulatory properties of anger under different goal orientations: the effects of normative and outcome goals

Abstract

Background The present study aimed to evaluate the self-regulatory properties of anger on the performance of individuals under various motivational dispositions using an experimental design. Methods The participants were 99 university students who participated in response to extra credit. The performance of the participants was evaluated using the Tower of Hanoi task. Their anger was measured using a facial expression recognition system and arousal was assessed using a heart-rate monitoring device. Two motivational dispositions were assessed: performance goals with normative evaluative standards and performance goals with a focus on outcomes. Results The results indicated that a nonlinear function explained the relationship between anger, arousal, and achievement under different goal conditions. Specifically, the Cusp Catastrophe Model showed that anger levels beyond a critical point were associated with the unpredictability of performance during the normative goal condition, suggesting that anger disturbed the relationship between arousal and achievement. Interestingly, a linear model was relevant for explaining the same relationships during the outcome goal condition. Conclusion Thus, this study concluded that anger plays a more salient role when coupled with the pressures arising from employing interpersonal evaluative standards.

Attitudes towards STEM education: nonlinear effects of teachers’ readiness and the crucial role of affective conditions

“…The three cusp models presented in the previous sections capture these interactions that are taking place in the relevant selfregulation processes, providing an enhanced theoretical understanding. As mentioned in the rationale section, the idiosyncratic character of emotions justifies the findings, which confirm the association of affective conditions with discontinued changes and unpredictability (Stamovlasis and Sideridis, 2014;Antoniou et al, 2022).…”

“…Emotions are the most sensitive factor influenced by internal and external fluctuations and are very involved in the human self-regulation process, a fact that renders them a decisive determinant of behavior (Folkman et al, 1986;Keltner and Haidt, 1999;van Kleef et al, 2004van Kleef et al, , 2010. This distinct and rather anticipated role is associated with non-linear phenomena hypotheses that have been supported by empirical evidence (Stamovlasis and Sideridis, 2014;Antoniou et al, 2022).…”

“…Note that research in psychology has established that emotions are crucial latent factors affecting, directly and indirectly, behavior, potentially in undesirable or unpredictable ways because they are linked and actively involved in self-regulation processes (Cheng et al, 2022) and, under some circumstances, are associated with non-linear and abrupt behavioral changes (Antoniou et al, 2022).…”

Catastrophe Theory Applied to Neuropsychological Data: Nonlinear Effects of Depression on Financial Capacity in Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia

“…In a CAS, the behavior is deemed as inherently nonlinear, and changes can often be discontinuous and unpredictable. Complexity science has already gained considerable attention in social sciences [ 22 , 23 ], behavioral sciences [ 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ], and life and medical sciences [ 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 ]. The present endeavor employs catastrophe theory for modeling financial capacity as the state variable dependent measure, while the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) and the Functional Rating Scale for Symptoms of Dementia (FRSSD) are the predictor variables.…”