Browsing by Author "Buzinski, Steven G."

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    Effects on Communal Relationships of the Presence of Need, Responsibility for the Need, and the Ability to Satisfy the Need.
    (2008-12-08) Buzinski, Steven G.; Sigall, Harold; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    The relationship between a communal other's needs and one's communal strength toward that other, and general communal orientation were examined. Three variables were examined in a 2 x 2 x 2 experimental design: a communal other's need (need-unmet vs. need-met), the other's responsibility for creating the need (yes vs. no), and the other's ability to satisfy the need (yes vs. no). Participants (N = 48) completed pre- and post-test measures of communal strength toward the other and communal orientation. Results showed that the presence of need and the other's responsibility affected communal orientation. An interaction between these variables was observed as well: communal orientation was lower when the need was met and the other was not responsible for creating it than in the other conditions. There were no effects on communal strength. The relationship between the needs of a communal other and both communal strength and communal orientation are discussed.
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    When Guidelines Become Demands: Highly Restrictive Standards Promote Self-Regulatory Failure
    (2011) Buzinski, Steven G.; Sigall, Harold; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Self-regulation is often defined as the process of altering one's thoughts, feelings, or behaviors in order to attain, or maintain, some desired standard (Vohs & Baumeister, 2004). As such, the standards or goals that one commits to influence the likelihood of self-regulatory success or failure (Baumeister, Schmeichel, & Vohs, 2007). Three experiments were conducted to explore whether framing a goal as highly restrictive leads to decrements in self-regulation (hypothesis 1), and whether or not these goals increase ego depletion (hypothesis 2). Study 1 demonstrated that a highly restrictive goal frame caused an increased valuation of goal-damaging temptations. Study 2 replicated and extended Study 1 by demonstrating that highly restrictive goal framing caused greater temptation indulgence as well. Study 3 tested whether or not highly restrictive goals increase levels of ego depletion, a state associated with self-regulatory failure (Schmeichel & Vohs, 2009), but did not support the hypothesis. The role of psychological reactance (Brehm, 1966; Brehm & Brehm, 1981) in these results, as well as possible future research, is discussed.