Making a clean break with past : investigating the effects of haircut on embodiment of emotions
Embodiment is the concept that relates the body to internal mental processes. Metaphors are often used to explain the underlying mechanisms of embodiment because they help us comprehend abstract ideas by associating them with commonly understood concepts. Past research have explored the effect...
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| Format: | Final Year Project |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2017
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10356/70610 |
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| Institution: | Nanyang Technological University |
| Language: | English |
| Summary: | Embodiment is the concept that relates the body to internal mental processes. Metaphors are
often used to explain the underlying mechanisms of embodiment because they help us
comprehend abstract ideas by associating them with commonly understood concepts. Past
research have explored the effects of physical cleansing, physical contact and physically
enclosing objects on emotions experienced. These studies found out that changes in physical
body states influenced emotions experienced by a person. Combining with the temporal self
appraisal theory, the present study extends this area of research by looking at the impact of
cutting hair on negative emotions experienced after recalling a regretful event. It was
hypothesised participants who cut their hair after recalling a regretful event would feel less
negative emotions as compared to participants who did not cut their hair. It was postulated
that the act of cutting hair increased the subjective temporal distance between the past and
current self, resulting in less negative emotions currently experienced. Sixty-five participants
were undergraduates recruited from Nanyang Technological University. They recalled a
regretful event through a written account, followed by a dexterity test with one of the task as
cutting hair or a bundle of black thread and self-reported their current negative emotions
towards the regretful event. Results of the study did not support the hypothesis. Suppressed
magical thinking has been proposed to account for the results. Future studies could explore if
the activation of magical thinking is essential for a haircut to result in reduction of negative
emotions experienced. |
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