An Interdependence Approach to Empathic Concern for Disability and Accessibility: Effects of Gender, Culture, and Priming Self-Construal in Japan and New Zealand

The Relationships Between COVID-19 Anxiety, Ageism, and Ableism

The COVID-19 pandemic is a source of anxiety globally, and lockdowns have increased anxiety symptoms, contributed to economic stress, and influenced an increase in prejudice, particularly prejudice directed at the elderly and people with disabilities. Terror management theory serves as an explanation for the association between COVID-19 anxiety, ageism, and ableism. Recruiting participants from Amazon MTurk, I assessed anxiety about COVID-19, ageism, and ableism. Hierarchical linear regression analyses demonstrate that COVID-19 anxiety is significantly associated with ageism, and with ableism, as well as age and gender. The results of this study have implications for the effect of COVID-19 anxiety on those who are most vulnerable in the current pandemic, particularly with regards to isolation and social connection; those who are most anxious about the pandemic might spend less time trying to connect with their older friends and relatives, and likewise for the people in their lives who might have a disability.

How does brief guided mindfulness meditation enhance empathic concern in novice meditators?: A pilot test of the suggestion hypothesis vs. the mindfulness hypothesis

Despite the widespread popularity of mindfulness meditation for its various benefits, the mechanism underlying the meditation process has rarely been explored. Here, we present two preliminary studies designed to test alternative hypotheses: whether the effect of brief guided mindfulness meditation on empathic concern arises from verbal suggestion (suggestion hypothesis) or as a byproduct of an induced mindfulness state (mindfulness hypothesis). Study 1 was a pilot randomized control trial of sitting (breath-and-body) meditation vs. compassion meditation that provided preliminary support for the mindfulness hypothesis. Study 2 was set up to rule out the possibility that the meditation effects observed in Study 1 were the effects of repeated measures. An inactive control group of participants underwent the repeated measures of empathic concern with no meditation in between. The pre-post comparison demonstrated no significant changes in the measures. Thus, the results of two studies supported the mindfulness hypothesis. Limitations of the present study and future research directions are discussed.

Socially Engaged Social Psychology in Asia: Sustaining Research Progress in Diverse Directions

The final thematic special issue in the series ‘The Social Psychology of Social Change: Science and Practice in Asia’ features 10 empirical studies that apply diverse social psychological theories and approaches to understand and to address a wide range of social concerns in Asian societies. The articles in the special issue align more to mainstream social psychological approaches to studying social phenomena, and as such are mainly derivative of Western social psychological paradigms, with the exception of a couple of studies that adopt emic indigenous approaches. Nevertheless, the various studies display a clear motivation to use social psychology to engage particular societal concerns, representing incremental progress towards using social psychology in the service of social change.