Skip to main content
Springer Nature Link
Log in

Protection, payback, or both? Emotional and motivational mechanisms underlying avoidance by victims of transgressions

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Motivation and Emotion Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

In the wake of an interpersonal offense, victims often feel motivated to avoid their perpetrators, and the more severe the offense, the more pronounced this motivation is. On the surface, avoidance appears to serve a self-protective function such that victims, compelled by a sense of fear and apprehension, withdraw from their wrongdoers to prevent further harm. However, avoidance might also serve a retaliatory purpose in which victims shun their offenders out of anger and hostility, using interpersonal aloofness as a means of payback. In the present pair of studies, we examined victims’ self-reports of recent offense experiences and tested the mediating roles of fear and anger in the relationship between offense severity and avoidance motivations. Study 1 revealed that anger, not fear, was the emotion that mediated this relationship. Study 2 replicated this finding and also showed that the link between anger and avoidance was mediated both by revenge and self-protection motives, which demonstrates the complex nature of avoidance following a transgression.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. To verify that this outcome was not the result of a violation of the homogeneity of variance assumption made by ordinary least squares regression, which the multiple mediator model relies on to estimate path weights, we examined the residuals for the paths leading to and from fear in the model and discovered that applying a monotonic transformation to both the offense severity and fear scale helped us better satisfy this assumption. Including these transformed values in the model did not alter the role of fear in the model, however; it remained a nonsignificant mediator of the severity-avoidance relationship, and the mediating function of anger remained intact.

  2. We relied on the AMOS program to perform the SEM analyses in both studies. Detailed information concerning the structural and measurement models we examined can be obtained from the first author.

  3. As in Study 1, we applied monotonic transformations to the offense severity and fear scales and reran the analysis to insure that fear did not fail to mediate the severity-avoidance association because of a violation of the homogeneity of residuals assumption. Modifying the analysis in this way produced no changes in the mediating role of fear; anger remained the only significant mediator.

  4. To further substantiate our conclusions, we reran the final multiple mediator model with participants’ TRIM Revenge scores substituted for their scores on the WOES and found parallel results. That is, both the TRIM Revenge (point estimate = 0.0931, 95% CI from 0.0293 to 0.2164) and self-protection scale (point estimate = 0.1390, 95% CI from 0.0306 to 0.2715) mediated the anger-avoidance association, and this mediation was full. Anger no longer predicted avoidance motivations with the mediators included in the model, β = 0.07, ns. Importantly, the contrast between the two meditation paths was nonsignificant (point estimate = −0.0459, 95% CI from −0.1814 to 0.0793). Thus, our results hold for both revenge scales. The zero-order correlation between the TRIM Revenge and WOES was strong and positive, r = 0.63, p < 0.001.

  5. The sadness scale was created by taking the average of participants’ current feelings of sadness, hurt, and depression related to their offenses (α = 0.86 in Study 1 and α = 0.87 in Study 2).

  6. We are grateful to an anonymous reviewer of an earlier version of this article for bringing this possibility to our attention.

References

  • Aquino, K., Tripp, T. M., & Bies, R. J. (2006). Getting even or moving on? Power, procedural justice, and types of offense as predictors of revenge, forgiveness, reconciliation, and avoidance in organizations. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91, 653–668.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 1173–1182.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baumeister, R. F., DeWall, C. N., Ciarocco, N. J., & Twenge, J. M. (2005). Social exclusion impairs self-regulation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 88, 589–604.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baumeister, R. F., & Leary, M. R. (1995). The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 117, 497–529.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baumeister, R. F., Twenge, J. M., & Nuss, C. K. (2002). Effects of social exclusion on cognitive processes: Anticipated aloneness reduces intelligent thought. Journal of Personality and Psychology, 83, 817–827.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berry, J. W., Worthington, E. L., O’Connor, L. E., Parrott, L., I. I. I., & Wade, N. G. (2005). Forgiveness, vengeful rumination, and affective traits. Journal of Personality, 73, 183–225.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bono, G., McCullough, M. E., & Root, L. M. (2008). Forgiveness, feeling connected to others, and well-being: Two longitudinal studies. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34, 182–195.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, R. P. (2003). Measuring individual differences in the tendency to forgive: Construct validity and links with depression. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 29, 759–771.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, R. P., Wohl, M. J. A., & Exline, J. J. (2008). Taking up offenses: Secondhand forgiveness and group identification. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34, 1406–1419.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cacioppo, J. T., Hawkley, L. C., Bernston, G. G., Ernst, J. M., Gibbs, A. C., Stickgold, R., et al. (2002). Do lonely days invade the nights? Potential social modulation of sleep efficiency. Psychological Science, 13, 384–387.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cole, D. A., & Maxwell, S. E. (2003). Testing meditational models with longitudinal data: Questions and tips in the use of structural equation modeling. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 112, 558–577.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Crossley, C. D. (2009). Emotional and behavioral reactions to social undermining: A closer look at perceived offender motives. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 108, 14–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eaton, J., Struthers, C. W., & Santelli, A. G. (2006). Dispositional and state forgiveness: The role of self-esteem, need for structure, and narcissism. Personality and Individual Differences, 41, 371–380.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Epstein, S. (1983). Aggregation and beyond: Some issues in the prediction of behavior. Journal of Personality, 51, 360–392.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gottman, J. M. (1993). A theory of marital dissolution and stability. Journal of Family Psychology, 7, 57–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hoyt, W. T., Fincahm, F. D., McCullough, M. E., Maio, G., & Davila, J. (2005). Responses to interpersonal transgressions in families: Forgiveness, forgivability, and relationship- specific effects. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 89, 375–394.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kline, R. B. (2005). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (2nd ed.). New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • MacKinnon, D. P., & Dwyer, J. H. (1993). Estimating mediated effects in prevention studies. Evaluation Review, 17, 144–158.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maltby, J., Wood, A. M., Day, L., Kon, T. W. H., Colley, A., & Linley, P. A. (2008). Personality predictors of levels of forgiveness two and a half years after the transgression. Journal of Research in Personality, 42, 1088–1094.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCullough, M. E., Bono, G., & Root, L. M. (2007). Rumination, emotion, and forgiveness: Three longitudinal studies. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 490–505.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McCullough, M. E., Fincham, F. D., & Tsang, J. (2003). Forgiveness, forbearance, and time: The temporal unfolding of transgression-related interpersonal motivations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84, 540–557.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McCullough, M. E., & Hoyt, W. T. (2002). Transgression-related motivational dispositions: Personality substrates of forgiveness and their links to the Big Five. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28, 1556–1573.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCullough, M. E., Rachal, K. C., Sandage, S. J., Worthington, E. L., Brown, S. W., & Hight, T. L. (1998). Interpersonal forgiveness in close relationships: II. Theoretical elaboration and measurement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75, 1586–1603.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McCullough, M. E., Root, L. M., & Cohen, A. D. (2006). Writing about the benefits of an interpersonal transgression facilitates forgiveness. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 74, 887–897.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McCullough, M. E., Worthington, E. L., Jr., & Rachal, K. C. (1997). Interpersonal forgiving in close relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73, 321–336.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nisbett, R. E. (1993). Violence and U.S. regional culture. American Psychologist, 48, 441–449.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nisbett, R. E., & Cohen, D. (1996). Culture of honor: The psychology of violence in the South. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nolan, S. A., Flynn, C., & Garber, J. (2003). Prospective relations between rejection and depression in young adolescents. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 745–755.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Orth, U., Berking, M., Walker, N., Meier, L. L., & Znoj, H. (2008). Forgiveness and psychological adjustment following interpersonal transgressions: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Research in Personality, 42, 365–385.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Preacher, K. J., & Hayes, A. F. (2008). Asymptotic and resampling strategies for assessing and comparing indirect effects in multiple mediator models. Behavior Research Methods, 40, 879–891.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rothberg, J. M., & Jones, F. D. (1987). Suicide in the U. S. Army: Epidemiological and periodic aspects. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 17, 119–132.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sigall, H., & Mills, J. (1998). Measures of independent variables and mediators are useful in social psychology experiments: But are they necessary? Personality and Social Psychology Review, 2, 218–226.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sommer, K. L., & Baumeister, R. F. (2002). Self-evaluation, persistence, and performance following implicit rejection: The role of trait self-esteem. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28, 926–938.

    Google Scholar 

  • Spencer, S. J., Zanna, M. P., & Fong, G. T. (2005). Establishing a causal chain: Why experiments are often more effective than mediational analyses in examining psychological processes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 89, 845–851.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Trout, D. L. (1980). The role of social isolation in suicide. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 10, 10–23.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Twenge, J. M., Catanese, K. R., & Baumeister, R. F. (2003). Social exclusion and the deconstructed state: Time perception, meaninglessness, lethargy, lack of emotion, and self-awareness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 409–423.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, K. D., Cheung, C. K. T., & Choi, W. (2000). Cyberostracism: Effects of being ignored over the internet. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79, 748–762.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, The University of Oklahoma, 455 W. Lindsey Street, Dale Hall Tower, Room 705, Norman, OK, 73019-2007, USA

    Collin D. Barnes, Ryan P. Brown & Lindsey L. Osterman

Authors
  1. Collin D. Barnes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ryan P. Brown
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Lindsey L. Osterman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ryan P. Brown.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Barnes, C.D., Brown, R.P. & Osterman, L.L. Protection, payback, or both? Emotional and motivational mechanisms underlying avoidance by victims of transgressions. Motiv Emot 33, 400–411 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-009-9142-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-009-9142-4

Keywords