Boosting our self esteem: A need to gossip

1. Boosting our self esteem: A need to gossip Kristine Barnes-Meyers Dawn Mohar

2. Gossip can be used to remind the group members that it is important to follow the group’s norms and values (McAndrew, Bell, & Garcia, 2007) • It has been shown that if any individual of a group steps out of line it can affect the group as a whole (Hopman &Leeuwen, 2009) • Gossip has been used to have a feeling of control and to manipulate and control others’ reputations (McAndrew, Bell, & Garcia, 2007; Watson & MacEwan, 2011) • Gossip is used as an evolutionary tool, to get rid of the weak individuals in order to strengthen the group as a whole (McAndrew, Bell, & Garcia, 2007) Research Background

3. There are three major approaches to the gossip theory: • Sociological/anthropological – focuses on the group but states that the individual brings his own interests and needs • Social psychology – focuses on what the individual will gain from participating in gossip (status, power, entertainment) • Individual Approach – focuses on gossip as a reflection of the persons inner unconscious life. Considers gossip a defense mechanism (Watson & MacEwan, 2011) Research Background (Cont.)

4. People tend to care more about gossip that pertains to those of the same sex (McAndrew, Bell, & Garcia, 2007) • People tend to share gossip with their allies rather than non-allies (McAndrew, Bell, & Garcia, 2007) • A low status group will gossip more to the “in group” to be more loyal to the “in group” (Hopman & Leeuwen, 2009) • A high status group will gossip more to the “out-group” to be more loyal to the “in group” (Hoppman & Leeuwen, 2009) • Gossip is used by those with low self esteem and self efficacy in order to gain control, clarity, and power (Watson & MacEwan, 2011) • Gossip is a status enhancing mechanism (Watson & MacEwan, 2011) Previous Research Concludes…

5. Study the relationship between an individual’s self esteem and his/her likelihood to gossip. • Like previous research studies, our study will focus on the type of gossip that a person is most likely to share and with whom they are most likely to share it. • Unlike previous studies, our study will focus on how self esteem relates to the likelihood of an individual to gossip. • Most previous research focused on gossip as a way to move up the social ladder. Study Goals

6. Women with low self esteem gossip more than women with high self esteem. • Women with low self esteem will be more open to who they share gossip with whereas women with high self esteem will only gossip with their close friends. • Men are less likely to gossip regardless of their self-esteem level. Hypothesis

7. Gwynedd-Mercy college students (undergraduate) • 86 students took the survey • 12 were discarded due to missing data • The remaining data included: • 44 Female • 30 Male • Students from multiple majors • Criminal justice • Psychology • Nursing Target Population

8. Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale • 10 statements about an individuals worth • Four rankings: strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly disagree • Three categories: • Love/relationships • Academic • Social • Each category will have three scenarios: • One outrageous scenario • One moderately scandalous scenario • One dull scenario • Four follow up questions: • How likely are you to tell a friend? • How likely are you to tell many friends? • How likely are you to tell a rival? • How likely are you to tell a person of authority? Measures

9. Love/Relationships • You find out that someone is cheating on their significant other with a same sex partner • You witness someone you know cheating on their significant other. • You find out someone you know has recently started dating a new person. • Academic • You witness a student engaging in consensual inappropriate sexual behavior with a teacher to get good grades. • You witness a person that you know cheating on a final exam. • You find out your friend was the only one to get a 4.0 in the class. • Social • You find out someone was kicked out of class because they were drinking alcohol out of a coffee cup in class. • You witness someone being bullied. • You witness college students drinking on campus. Scenarios…

10. The average self-esteem scores were calculated for both groups (male and female) • The mean was discarded for each group in order to obtain a high and low self-esteem (10 discarded in total) • Average score for males was 15 • Participants who had a score equal or less than 14 were in the high self-esteem group • Participants who had a score equal or greater than 16 were in the low self-esteem group • Average score for females was 17 • Participants who had a score equal or less than 16 were in the high self-esteem group • Participants who had a score equal or greater than 18 were in the low self-esteem group Data Analysis

13. Females with low self-esteem tend to gossip more than those with high self-esteem • Men with low self esteem tend to gossip more than those with high self-esteem • Why? • Social status Discussion

14. Limitations • A larger sample • Many of the participants were psychology students • The participants received both surveys at the same time • Future Direction • It would be interesting to conduct this research in a high school setting

15. Hopman, P. & Leeuwen, E. V. (2009). Who d we inform? The role of status and target in intergroup whistle-blowing. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 12(5), 605-618. doi 10.1177/1368430209337472 • McAndrew, F. T., Bell, E. K., & Garcia, C. M. (2007). Who do we tell and whom do we tell on? Gossip as a strategy for status enhancement. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 37(7), 1562-1577. doi 10.1111/j.1559-1816.2007.00227.x • Watson, D. C. & MacEwan, G. (2011). Gossip and the self. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 41(7), 1818-1833. doi10.1111/j.1559-1816.2011.00772.x References