Stress, cortisol, and social hierarchy.

We review the literature on the relationships between cortisol, stress, and various forms of social status, concluding that cortisol (and stress) is typically elevated when one chronically lacks, or may soon lose, status. Moreover, cortisol is lower when status is higher, as long as that status is stable, enhances one's sense of control, and does not also substantially increase one's responsibilities. Because cortisol is both an output (stress indicator) and input (cause of behavioral inhibition), this low cortisol may be both a cause and consequence of stable status.

Psychological reactance impacts ratings of pediatrician vaccine-related communication quality, perceived vaccine safety, and vaccination priority among U.S. parents.

Physician communication surrounding vaccination is important in driving patient compliance with schedules and recommendations, but patient psychological factors suggest that communication strategies may have differential effects on patients. This paper investigates how psychological reactance, defined as an individuals' propensity to restore their autonomy when they perceive that others are trying to impose their will on them, impacts perceptions about physician communication and perceptions and prioritizations of vaccination. We propose and describe the results of a study that was conducted to assess the relationship between individual differences in reactance, perceived quality of pediatrician communication, perceptions of vaccination safety, and vaccination prioritization using a sample of parents.

Sex differences in cortisol's regulation of affiliative behavior.

A contribution to a special issue on Hormones and Human Competition. A stress perspective is used to illuminate how competitive defeat and victory shape biology and behavior. We report a field study examining how change in cortisol following perceived defeat (vs.

The interaction of testosterone and cortisol is associated with attained status in male executives.

Are hormone levels associated with the attainment of social status? Although endogenous testosterone predicts status-seeking social behaviors, research suggests that the stress hormone cortisol may inhibit testosterone's effects. Thus, individuals with both high testosterone and low cortisol may be especially likely to occupy high-status positions in social hierarchies while individuals with high testosterone and high cortisol may not. We tested this hypothesis by recruiting a sample of real executives and examining testosterone, cortisol, and a concrete indicator of attained status: the number of subordinates over which the executive has authority.

The faintest speck of dirt: disgust enhances the detection of impurity.

Purity is commonly regarded as being physically embodied in the color white, with even trivial deviations from whiteness indicating a loss of purity. In three studies, we explored the implications of this "white = pure" association for disgust, an emotion that motivates the detection and avoidance of impurities that threaten purity and cleanliness. We hypothesized that disgust tunes perception to prioritize the light end of the light-dark spectrum, which results in a relative hypersensitivity to changes in lightness in this range.

Individual differences in the physical embodiment of care: prosocially oriented women respond to cuteness by becoming more physically careful.

Prosocially oriented individuals tend to respond to care-relevant stimuli in a highly embodied manner. Research on facets of prosocial orientation-such as empathy-and embodiment has focused on processes triggered by the perception of others' distress or pain. We suspect that the predisposition among prosocially oriented individuals toward having embodied responses to care-relevant stimuli might be more extensive.

The color of sin: white and black are perceptual symbols of moral purity and pollution.

Three studies examined automatic associations between words with moral and immoral meanings and the colors black and white. The speed of color naming in a Stroop task was faster when words in black concerned immorality (e.g.

Viewing cute images increases behavioral carefulness.

Infantile physical morphology-marked by its "cuteness"-is thought to be a potent elicitor of caregiving, yet little is known about how cuteness may shape immediate behavior. To examine the function of cuteness and its role in caregiving, the authors tested whether perceiving cuteness can enhance behavioral carefulness, which would facilitate caring for a small, delicate child. In 2 experiments, viewing very cute images (puppies and kittens)-as opposed to slightly cute images (dogs and cats)-led to superior performance on a subsequent fine-motor dexterity task (the children's game "Operation").

The socioecological model of procommunity action: the benefits of residential stability.

The authors conducted 3 studies to test a socioecological model of procommunity action. Study 1 showed that residents of stable communities purchased a "critical habitat" license plate to support preservation of the environment in their home state more often than did residents of mobile communities. Study 2 demonstrated that home game baseball attendance was less dependent on the team's record in stable cities than in mobile cities.

Residential mobility, self-concept, and positive affect in social interactions.

The present research examined (a) the link between personal history of residential mobility and the self-concept and (b) the implications of such a link for positive affect in social interactions. Study 1 showed that the personal self was more central to the self-definition of frequent movers than to that of nonmovers, whereas the collective self was more central to the self-definition of nonmovers than to that of frequent movers. Results from a laboratory and a 2-week event sampling study (Studies 2 and 3) demonstrated that frequent movers felt happier when an interaction partner accurately perceived their personal selves, whereas nonmovers felt happier when a partner accurately perceived their collective selves.