Simon Schindler
Biographic Data
| ID | 116032 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Simon Schindler |
| GIVEN NAMES | Simon |
| FAMILY NAME | Schindler |
| SIGNATURE | SCHINDLER S |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Kassel |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-1764-7241 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 27 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 70 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 27 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2011 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
Effects of Psychological Distance on Mental Abstraction
Construal-level theory (CLT) proposes that psychological distance influences the level of abstraction at which something is mentally construed: Things perceived as less probable (likelihood) or further away from the here (spatial distance), now (temporal distance), or self (social distance) are thought about more abstractly. In this international multilab study, we tested four basic hypotheses derived from core assumptions of CLT and explore pote…
On the relationship between honesty-humility and truth-bias
Three high-powered online studies were conducted. • Meta-analysis finds no reliable link between Honesty-Humility and truth bias. • Honesty-Humility and detection accuracy is also not correlated. • The role of variability in different measurement paradigms is discussed. We hypothesized a positive correlation between HEXACO Honesty-Humility (H-H) and truth bias due to higher trustworthiness expectations for people higher in H-H. We also predicted …
Effectiveness of Ex-Ante Honesty Oaths in Reducing Dishonesty Depends on Content
Dishonest behaviors such as tax evasion impose significant societal costs. Ex-ante honesty oaths—commitments to honesty before action—have been proposed as interventions to counteract dishonest behavior, but the heterogeneity in findings across operationalizations calls their effectiveness into question. We tested 21 honesty oaths (including a baseline oath)—proposed, evaluated, and selected by 44 expert researchers—and a no-oath condition in a m…
Effectiveness of ex ante honesty oaths in reducing dishonesty depends on content
When it really counts
Meta-analytical findings suggested a positive link between trait mindfulness and prosociality. However, most correlational studies on mindfulness and prosociality have relied on self-report measures. The present work aimed to address this serious limitation by investigating actual prosocial behavior . We further focused on mindfulness as a multi-dimensional personality trait to disentangle effects of different mindfulness aspects. In addition, we…
Challenges in detecting proximal effects of existential threat on lie detection accuracy
The present work documents our investigation of proximal (i.e., immediate) effects of existential threat on the process of lie detection. Specifically, we hypothesized that lie detection accuracy will be higher in a mortality salience (MS) condition compared with the control condition. In two lab-based studies ( N = 120; N = 109) and one internet study ( N = 1294), we did not find any evidence for this hypothesis, that is, MS effects on lie detec…
I enjoy hurting my classmates
Schools can be a place of both love and of cruelty. We examined one type of cruelty that occurs in the school context: sadism, that is, harming others for pleasure. Primarily, we proposed and tested whether boredom plays a crucial role in the emergence of sadistic actions at school. In two well-powered studies (N = 1038; student age range = 10-18 years) using both self- and peer-reports of students' boredom levels and their sadistic tendencies, w…
Gendered Self-Views Across 62 Countries
Social role theory posits that binary gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in less egalitarian countries, reflecting these countries’ more pronounced sex-based power divisions. Conversely, evolutionary and self-construal theorists suggest that gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in more egalitarian countries, reflecting the greater autonomy support and flexible self-construction processes present in these countrie…
Is peoples’ belief in a just world associated with (dis)honesty in romantic relationships
The Role of Just World Beliefs in Responding to the Covid-19 Pandemic
This study investigated whether people's personal belief in a just world (BJW) is linked to their willingness to physically distance themselves from others during the COVID-19 pandemic. Past research found personal BJW to be positively related to prosocial behavior, justice striving, and lower risk perceptions. If social distancing reflects a concern for others, high personal BJW should predict increased interest in social distancing. If social d…
Psychometric Properties and Correlates of Precarious Manhood Beliefs in 62 Nations
Precarious manhood beliefs portray manhood, relative to womanhood, as a social status that is hard to earn, easy to lose, and proven via public action. Here, we present cross-cultural data on a brief measure of precarious manhood beliefs (the Precarious Manhood Beliefs scale [PMB]) that covaries meaningfully with other cross-culturally validated gender ideologies and with country-level indices of gender equality and human development. Using data …
The interplay between individual and collective efforts in the age of global threats
On the relation of boredom and sadistic aggression
4,097). However, alternatives matter: When several behavioral alternatives are available, boredom only motivates sadistic behavior among individuals with high dispositional sadism (Study 7). Conversely, when there is no alternative, boredom increases sadistic behavior across the board, even among individuals low in dispositional sadism (Studies 8 and 9). We further show that excitement and novelty seeking mediate the effects of boredom, and that …
The role of intuition in vaccination attitudes
This study tested the idea that faith in intuition (people's reliance on their intuition when making judgments or decisions) is negatively associated with vaccination attitudes in the U.S. populace. Intuition is an implicit, affective information processing mode based on prior experiences. U.S. citizens have few threatening experiences with vaccines because vaccination coverage for common vaccine-preventable diseases is high in the United States.…
Country‐level and individual‐level predictors of men's support for gender equality in 42 countries
Men sometimes withdraw support for gender equality movements when their higher gender status is threatened. Here, we expand the focus of this phenomenon by examining it cross‐culturally, to test if both individual‐ and country‐level variables predict men's collective action intentions to support gender equality. We tested a model in which men's zero‐sum beliefs about gender predict reduced collective action intentions via an increase in hostile s…
Defending one's worldview under mortality salience
On the impact of Honesty-Humility and a cue of being watched on cheating behavior
Potential negative consequences of mindfulness in the moral domain
Mindfulness is a state of paying conscious and nonjudgmental attention to present‐moment experiences. Previous research relates this state to more effective emotion regulation and less emotion reactivity. We therefore hypothesized an attenuating effect of a mindfulness exercise on moral reactions that usually results from a bad conscience when having caused harm. Across five studies, we experimentally induced mindfulness via a short breathing exe…
The Effect of Dislike on Accuracy and Bias in Person Perception
The present work explores how accuracy and bias in person perception change with the level of liking that the perceiver holds toward the target person. Specifically, we studied whether dislike affects (a) the social desirability of judgments (positivity bias), (b) the extent to which the target is described like an average person (normative accuracy), and (c) the extent to which the judgment reflects the given target’s characteristics in particul…
Social Loafing in the Refugee Crisis
In light of the European refugee situation, we investigate how information about others’ support influences individuals’ willingness to help. When individuals see information about other people supporting refugees, they may either be influenced by a descriptive norm, and act accordingly. Alternatively, they may perceive that others are already doing the job, and thus engage in social loafing. In an experiment (N = 132), we tested these competing …
The frame of the game
The Bicultural Phenomenon
Cross-cultural research has indicated that bicultural individuals switch their behavioral patterns according to situational cultural frames. Based on self-categorization theory and evidence that being prototypical for an ingroup can increase ingroup identification, we investigated the idea that when being prototypical for a specific culture, bicultural individuals switch their cultural identification toward the culture for which they are prototyp…
When Death Is Compelling
Research on terror management theory has found evidence that people under mortality salience strive to live up to activated social norms and values. Recently, research has shown that mortality salience also increases adherence to the norm of reciprocity. Based on this, in the current paper we investigated the idea that mortality salience influences persuasion strategies that are based on the norm of reciprocity. We therefore assume that mortality…
The risk of male success and failure
Previous research has demonstrated that failure on a task may at times increase self-esteem, known as the failure-as-an-asset effect. This effect is observed when high-status group members (e.g., referring to management positions: men) show poor performance in a domain that is seen as a low-status domain—one in which the low-status group (e.g., referring to management positions: women) typically outperforms the high-status group. In line with soc…
Mortality Salience Increases Personal Relevance of the Norm of Reciprocity
Research on terror management theory found evidence that people under mortality salience strive to live up to salient cultural norms and values, like egalitarianism, pacifism, or helpfulness. A basic, strongly internalized norm in most human societies is the norm of reciprocity: people should support those who supported them (i.e., positive reciprocity), and people should injure those who injured them (i.e., negative reciprocity), respectively. I…
The frame of the game
Country‐level and individual‐level predictors of men's support for gender equality in 42 countries
Men sometimes withdraw support for gender equality movements when their higher gender status is threatened. Here, we expand the focus of this phenomenon by examining it cross‐culturally, to test if both individual‐ and country‐level variables predict men's collective action intentions to support gender equality. We tested a model in which men's zero‐sum beliefs about gender predict reduced collective action intentions via an increase in hostile s…
On the relation of boredom and sadistic aggression
4,097). However, alternatives matter: When several behavioral alternatives are available, boredom only motivates sadistic behavior among individuals with high dispositional sadism (Study 7). Conversely, when there is no alternative, boredom increases sadistic behavior across the board, even among individuals low in dispositional sadism (Studies 8 and 9). We further show that excitement and novelty seeking mediate the effects of boredom, and that …
On the impact of Honesty-Humility and a cue of being watched on cheating behavior
Tit for tat in the face of death
Defending one's worldview under mortality salience
Potential negative consequences of mindfulness in the moral domain
Mindfulness is a state of paying conscious and nonjudgmental attention to present‐moment experiences. Previous research relates this state to more effective emotion regulation and less emotion reactivity. We therefore hypothesized an attenuating effect of a mindfulness exercise on moral reactions that usually results from a bad conscience when having caused harm. Across five studies, we experimentally induced mindfulness via a short breathing exe…
The Role of Just World Beliefs in Responding to the Covid-19 Pandemic
This study investigated whether people's personal belief in a just world (BJW) is linked to their willingness to physically distance themselves from others during the COVID-19 pandemic. Past research found personal BJW to be positively related to prosocial behavior, justice striving, and lower risk perceptions. If social distancing reflects a concern for others, high personal BJW should predict increased interest in social distancing. If social d…
The risk of male success and failure
Previous research has demonstrated that failure on a task may at times increase self-esteem, known as the failure-as-an-asset effect. This effect is observed when high-status group members (e.g., referring to management positions: men) show poor performance in a domain that is seen as a low-status domain—one in which the low-status group (e.g., referring to management positions: women) typically outperforms the high-status group. In line with soc…
Effectiveness of ex ante honesty oaths in reducing dishonesty depends on content
The role of intuition in vaccination attitudes
This study tested the idea that faith in intuition (people's reliance on their intuition when making judgments or decisions) is negatively associated with vaccination attitudes in the U.S. populace. Intuition is an implicit, affective information processing mode based on prior experiences. U.S. citizens have few threatening experiences with vaccines because vaccination coverage for common vaccine-preventable diseases is high in the United States.…
The Bicultural Phenomenon
Cross-cultural research has indicated that bicultural individuals switch their behavioral patterns according to situational cultural frames. Based on self-categorization theory and evidence that being prototypical for an ingroup can increase ingroup identification, we investigated the idea that when being prototypical for a specific culture, bicultural individuals switch their cultural identification toward the culture for which they are prototyp…
When Death Is Compelling
Research on terror management theory has found evidence that people under mortality salience strive to live up to activated social norms and values. Recently, research has shown that mortality salience also increases adherence to the norm of reciprocity. Based on this, in the current paper we investigated the idea that mortality salience influences persuasion strategies that are based on the norm of reciprocity. We therefore assume that mortality…
Repetition of Educational Aids Advertising Affects Attitudes
In educational AIDS campaigns, initiators often use advertisements to warn about the threat of AIDS. The present Internet study (N = 283) tested the assumption of an inverted U-shaped relationship between the number of educational AIDS advertisements in a magazine and the perceived threat of AIDS among different groups (i.e., homosexual men and heterosexual men and women). This expectation was primarily based on signaling theory, which assumes th…
Mortality Salience Increases Personal Relevance of the Norm of Reciprocity
Research on terror management theory found evidence that people under mortality salience strive to live up to salient cultural norms and values, like egalitarianism, pacifism, or helpfulness. A basic, strongly internalized norm in most human societies is the norm of reciprocity: people should support those who supported them (i.e., positive reciprocity), and people should injure those who injured them (i.e., negative reciprocity), respectively. I…
Tit for tat in the face of death
The risk of male success and failure
Previous research has demonstrated that failure on a task may at times increase self-esteem, known as the failure-as-an-asset effect. This effect is observed when high-status group members (e.g., referring to management positions: men) show poor performance in a domain that is seen as a low-status domain—one in which the low-status group (e.g., referring to management positions: women) typically outperforms the high-status group. In line with soc…
When Death Is Compelling
Research on terror management theory has found evidence that people under mortality salience strive to live up to activated social norms and values. Recently, research has shown that mortality salience also increases adherence to the norm of reciprocity. Based on this, in the current paper we investigated the idea that mortality salience influences persuasion strategies that are based on the norm of reciprocity. We therefore assume that mortality…
The frame of the game
The Bicultural Phenomenon
Cross-cultural research has indicated that bicultural individuals switch their behavioral patterns according to situational cultural frames. Based on self-categorization theory and evidence that being prototypical for an ingroup can increase ingroup identification, we investigated the idea that when being prototypical for a specific culture, bicultural individuals switch their cultural identification toward the culture for which they are prototyp…
Social Loafing in the Refugee Crisis
In light of the European refugee situation, we investigate how information about others’ support influences individuals’ willingness to help. When individuals see information about other people supporting refugees, they may either be influenced by a descriptive norm, and act accordingly. Alternatively, they may perceive that others are already doing the job, and thus engage in social loafing. In an experiment (N = 132), we tested these competing …
The Effect of Dislike on Accuracy and Bias in Person Perception
The present work explores how accuracy and bias in person perception change with the level of liking that the perceiver holds toward the target person. Specifically, we studied whether dislike affects (a) the social desirability of judgments (positivity bias), (b) the extent to which the target is described like an average person (normative accuracy), and (c) the extent to which the judgment reflects the given target’s characteristics in particul…
On the impact of Honesty-Humility and a cue of being watched on cheating behavior
Potential negative consequences of mindfulness in the moral domain
Mindfulness is a state of paying conscious and nonjudgmental attention to present‐moment experiences. Previous research relates this state to more effective emotion regulation and less emotion reactivity. We therefore hypothesized an attenuating effect of a mindfulness exercise on moral reactions that usually results from a bad conscience when having caused harm. Across five studies, we experimentally induced mindfulness via a short breathing exe…
Country‐level and individual‐level predictors of men's support for gender equality in 42 countries
Men sometimes withdraw support for gender equality movements when their higher gender status is threatened. Here, we expand the focus of this phenomenon by examining it cross‐culturally, to test if both individual‐ and country‐level variables predict men's collective action intentions to support gender equality. We tested a model in which men's zero‐sum beliefs about gender predict reduced collective action intentions via an increase in hostile s…
Defending one's worldview under mortality salience
Psychometric Properties and Correlates of Precarious Manhood Beliefs in 62 Nations
Precarious manhood beliefs portray manhood, relative to womanhood, as a social status that is hard to earn, easy to lose, and proven via public action. Here, we present cross-cultural data on a brief measure of precarious manhood beliefs (the Precarious Manhood Beliefs scale [PMB]) that covaries meaningfully with other cross-culturally validated gender ideologies and with country-level indices of gender equality and human development. Using data …
The interplay between individual and collective efforts in the age of global threats
On the relation of boredom and sadistic aggression
4,097). However, alternatives matter: When several behavioral alternatives are available, boredom only motivates sadistic behavior among individuals with high dispositional sadism (Study 7). Conversely, when there is no alternative, boredom increases sadistic behavior across the board, even among individuals low in dispositional sadism (Studies 8 and 9). We further show that excitement and novelty seeking mediate the effects of boredom, and that …
The role of intuition in vaccination attitudes
This study tested the idea that faith in intuition (people's reliance on their intuition when making judgments or decisions) is negatively associated with vaccination attitudes in the U.S. populace. Intuition is an implicit, affective information processing mode based on prior experiences. U.S. citizens have few threatening experiences with vaccines because vaccination coverage for common vaccine-preventable diseases is high in the United States.…
The Role of Just World Beliefs in Responding to the Covid-19 Pandemic
This study investigated whether people's personal belief in a just world (BJW) is linked to their willingness to physically distance themselves from others during the COVID-19 pandemic. Past research found personal BJW to be positively related to prosocial behavior, justice striving, and lower risk perceptions. If social distancing reflects a concern for others, high personal BJW should predict increased interest in social distancing. If social d…
When it really counts
Meta-analytical findings suggested a positive link between trait mindfulness and prosociality. However, most correlational studies on mindfulness and prosociality have relied on self-report measures. The present work aimed to address this serious limitation by investigating actual prosocial behavior . We further focused on mindfulness as a multi-dimensional personality trait to disentangle effects of different mindfulness aspects. In addition, we…
Challenges in detecting proximal effects of existential threat on lie detection accuracy
The present work documents our investigation of proximal (i.e., immediate) effects of existential threat on the process of lie detection. Specifically, we hypothesized that lie detection accuracy will be higher in a mortality salience (MS) condition compared with the control condition. In two lab-based studies ( N = 120; N = 109) and one internet study ( N = 1294), we did not find any evidence for this hypothesis, that is, MS effects on lie detec…
I enjoy hurting my classmates
Schools can be a place of both love and of cruelty. We examined one type of cruelty that occurs in the school context: sadism, that is, harming others for pleasure. Primarily, we proposed and tested whether boredom plays a crucial role in the emergence of sadistic actions at school. In two well-powered studies (N = 1038; student age range = 10-18 years) using both self- and peer-reports of students' boredom levels and their sadistic tendencies, w…
Gendered Self-Views Across 62 Countries
Social role theory posits that binary gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in less egalitarian countries, reflecting these countries’ more pronounced sex-based power divisions. Conversely, evolutionary and self-construal theorists suggest that gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in more egalitarian countries, reflecting the greater autonomy support and flexible self-construction processes present in these countrie…
Is peoples’ belief in a just world associated with (dis)honesty in romantic relationships
Effectiveness of Ex-Ante Honesty Oaths in Reducing Dishonesty Depends on Content
Dishonest behaviors such as tax evasion impose significant societal costs. Ex-ante honesty oaths—commitments to honesty before action—have been proposed as interventions to counteract dishonest behavior, but the heterogeneity in findings across operationalizations calls their effectiveness into question. We tested 21 honesty oaths (including a baseline oath)—proposed, evaluated, and selected by 44 expert researchers—and a no-oath condition in a m…
Effectiveness of ex ante honesty oaths in reducing dishonesty depends on content
Psychology (26 works) · Social Psychology (24 works) · Social and Intergroup Psychology (13 works) · Social Psychology (12 works) · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment (7 works) · Political science (6 works) · Sociology (6 works) · Cognitive psychology (5 works) · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion (5 works) · Honesty (5 works)