The Helper's Help Intentions Have An Impact On The Recipient's Gratitude And Guilt

Gratitude is a positive emotion, it refers to the thankful and joyful attitude that the recipient expresses towards others' benefaction. Indebtedness is defined as a negative emotion that one ought to repay a benefactor for favors associated with uncomfortable and indebted. The research used two methods to explore the recipients grateful and indebted reactions to a favor.In order to explore the characteristics and the gender differences of recipients'sense of gratitude and indebtedness. Study 1 used Recall past emotional experiences methodology with 80 freshman, and designed the two factor mixed experiment adopted 2( helping intention: unselfish favor, selfish favor )×2( gender: male,female ). The results of study 1 showed that: (1) Whether receipted unselfish favor or selfish favor,the scores of grateful were significantly high compared to indebtedness'.(2) Participants reported significantly more gratitude for the favor when they were instructed to recall an unselfish favor. But levels of indebtedness were not affected by helper intention. (3)The gender had no significant main effect on the emotion of gratitude and indebtedness. And the gender and helping intention had no interaction on gratitude and indebtedness.In order to explore the difference of recipients' sense of gratitude and indebtedness between ambiguous favor scenario and clear favor scenario, and explore the effect of the relationship between the helper and the recipient on the sense of gratitude and indebtedness . Study 2 used Scenario methodology with 124 freshman,and designed the three factor mixed experiment adopted adopted 3( helping intention:unselfish favor,selfish favor, ambiguous favor) ×2 (relationship: acquaintance,stranger)×2( gender: male, female). The results of study 2 showed that: (1)Participants felt significantly more gratitude than indebtedness in unselfish favor scenario and selfish favor scenario. But in the ambiguous favor scenario , the emotion of gratitude and indebtedness had no significant difference. (2) The helping intention had significant main effect on the emotion of gratitude and indebtedness. Participants reported significantly more gratitude and indebtedness in the unselfish favor scenario compare to the other two scenario which offered ambiguous favor and selfish favor.And the emotion of participants has no significant difference between the ambiguous favor scenario and selfish favor scenario. (3) The relationship between benefactor and recipient had no significant main effect on gratitude and indebtedness, but it and helping intention had a significant interaction on gratitude and indebtedness. (4)The gender had no significant main effect on the emotion of gratitude and indebtedness.and there is no interaction of it and helping intention.Based on the results, we drawn the following inclusions:(1)After receiving help, the emotion of gratitude is dominant. Recipients felt significantly more gratitude than indebtedness under help with clear intention. But when receipting a favor which the helper have ambiguous intention, levels of recipients' gratitude and indebtedness, had no significant difference.(2)Gratitude varied according to helper intention, individuals felt more gratitude for an unselfish favor, but little gratitude when helper acted selfishly. Whereas feelings of indebtedness did not varied according to helper intention, it remained constant and independent of helper intention.(3)The relationship between benefactor and recipient had no significant effect on gratitude and indebtedness,but it and helping intention had a significant interaction on gratitude and indebtedness.(4)In any helping intention situation, the gender had no significant main effect on the emotion of gratitude and indebtedness.