Consequences of interpersonal rejection: A cross-cultural experimental study

A cross-cultural experimental study was conducted to investigate cultural differences in the consequences of interpersonal rejection, specifically focusing on the effect of rejection on affect, human needs, aggression, and prosocial behavior. One hundred and thirty-two American and 55 Japanese undergraduates were led to believe that they were either rejected or accepted by other participants. As predicted, significant differences emerged regarding affect and human needs, with both Japanese participants and rejected participants reporting less positive affect, more depressive affect, less belonging, less meaningful existence, and less self-esteem than American participants and accepted participants, respectively. Additional analyses revealed culture-based partial mediations of affect differences and that Japanese participants reported more rejection sensitivity and a greater history of past rejection than American participants. The results have important implications for the way in which rejection is experienced across cultures.