It’s not personal
The use of deflections in social rejections
Datos Bibliográficos
| ID | 21355441 |
|---|---|
| Autores | Gili Freedman (0000-0002-7006-9674, St. Mary's College of Maryland, autor de correspondencia), Shannon Lutz (St. Mary's College of Maryland), Andrew F Sonnenberg (St. Mary's College of Maryland), Sydney Okland (0000-0003-3907-0375, The University of Texas at Austin), Jennifer S Beer (0000-0002-8277-1698, The University of Texas at Austin) |
| Año | 2026 |
| Páginas | 1-19 |
| Fecha de publicación | 2026-04-21 |
| Peer Reviewed | Sí |
| Open Access | No |
| Tipo | ARTICLE |
| Revista | The Journal of Social Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Identificadores de la revista | ISSN: 0022-4545 • E-ISSN: 1940-1183 |
| Editorial | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/00224545.2026.2661015 |
| PMID | 42011906 |
| OpenAlex | W7155064024 |
| Idioma | EN |
| Referencias citadas | 53 |
What do people say to socially reject someone, and is it what they would want to hear? We test whether rejectors use deflections – words to deflect the interpretation of the rejection as a negative judgment of the rejectee (e.g., “nothing personal”) – and whether that has the desired effect. In two exploratory studies, participants spontaneously used deflections in video-recorded and written social rejections (N1 = 497, 19.1% deflections; N2 = 94, 35.1% deflections). In two preregistered studies (N3 = 1213; N4 = 933), participants imagined themselves as rejectors and as rejectees across multiple contexts (Study 3) and as rejectees in situations with acquaintances or close friends (Study 4). Participants preferred rejections with deflections compared to rejections without, and particularly preferred “nothing personal.” The present research addresses the struggle to find the right words for social rejection and opens an avenue for investigation of when and how language may soften the blow
Exploratory research · Interpretation (philosophy) · Perception · Social comparison theory · Social relation · Test (biology) · Action Observation and Synchronization · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment
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| Velocidad de citación | historical |
|---|---|
| Altamente citado | No |