Katarzyna Jasko

Jagiellonian University | UJ · Institute of Psychology

In the present study, we applied the quest for significance model of radicalization to explain the use of political violence. According to the model, when people experience loss of personal significance (e.g., due to social rejection, achievement failures, or abuse) the motivation to restore significance may push them toward the use of extreme mean...

Given the social importance of political activism, it is critical to understand what motivates individuals to engage in it. Past research has predominantly focused on individual and collective frustrations as factors that motivate political actions. At the same time, the role of the positive experiences that activists gain from their political enga...

Quest for significance theory (Kruglanski et al., 2013; Kruglanski, Jasko, Chernikova, Dugas, & Webber 2017) states that extreme behavior for an ideological cause is more likely under psychological conditions that induce a search for significance and social recognition. Two forms of motivation for significance have been identified; the quest for in...

The conflict in Syria created a dire humanitarian situation, as nations around the world struggled with how best to deal with the more than 6.6 million Syrian refugees who fled their homes to escape aggression. Resistance to granting refugee status to individuals often originates in the belief that the influx of refugees endangers national security...

Although political violence has been perpetrated on behalf of a wide range of political ideologies, it is unclear whether there are systematic differences between ideologies in the use of violence to pursue a political cause. Prior research on this topic is scarce and mostly restricted to self-reported measures or less extreme forms of political ag...

Research on the structure of political beliefs is predominantly focused on identifying the dimensions underlying issue positions. In contrast, the goal of this research was to uncover the psychological structure underlying ideological beliefs regardless of their content. Drawing from the diverse literature, we identified 18 potentially relevant dim...

Research on political ideology and labor activism is limited to data from Western countries, used general operationalization of ideology, and focused predominantly on union membership as the outcome variable. In contrast, present studies examined the relationship between several dimensions of ideology (general, economic, and cultural) and various a...

While political candidates differ in how extreme vs. moderate their ideas are, it remains unclear how the extremism of a politician’s agenda impacts voters. To fill this gap, the present research investigated the mobilizing effects of extreme vs. moderate politicians on both supporters and opponents. The results of five preregistered experiments (N...

The present research examined the idea that followers are more strongly motivated by radical as opposed to moderate political leaders. We derived this idea from the significance quest theory that posits that a desire to feel important and meaningful is one of the fundamental human motives. We expected that voters would be more willing to support po...

What psychological mechanisms underlie aesthetic judgements? An influential account known as the Hedonic Marking of Fluency, later developed into a Processing Fluency Theory of Aesthetic Pleasure, posits that ease of processing elicits positive feelings and thus enhances stimulus evaluations. However, the theory faces empirical and conceptual chall...

Discourse about people seeking refuge from conflict varies considerably. To understand what components of this discourse reach refugees the most, we examined refugees' perceptions of how their host communities perceive them (i.e., intergroup metaperceptions). We sampled refugees who fled Syria to Jordan, Lebanon, Germany, and the Netherlands. Focus...

In 2002, a group of investigators joined forces to propose a new conceptual paradigm based on a cognitive approach to motivation. This approach, referred to as goal systems theory, offered a broad perspective on behavioral phenomena and inspired research programs in diverse domains of psychological science. The present volume collects the rich body...

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all domains of human life, including the economic and social fabric of societies. One of the central strategies for managing public health throughout the pandemic has been through persuasive messaging and collective behaviour change. To help scholars better understand the social and moral psychology behind public...

In 2002, a group of investigators joined forces to propose a new conceptual paradigm based on a cognitive approach to motivation. This approach, referred to as goal systems theory, offered a broad perspective on behavioral phenomena and inspired research programs in diverse domains of psychological science. The present volume collects the rich body...

Although political violence has been perpetrated on behalf of a wide range of political ideologies it is unclear whether there are systematic differences between ideologies in the use of violence to pursue a political cause. Prior research on this topic is scarce and mostly restricted to self-reported measures or less extreme forms of political agg...

Research has shown that when control is threatened, people are more likely to turn to groups that are perceived as particularly agentic. However, the question of under what conditions control threat can mobilize individuals to join problem-focused, activist groups remains unresolved. In the present research, we propose that strength of involvement...

Research has shown that when control is threatened, people are more likely to turn to groups that are perceived as particularly agentic. However, the question of under what conditions control threat can mobilize individuals to join problem-focused, activist groups remains unresolved. In the present research, we propose that strength of involvement...

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all domains of human life, including the economic and social fabric of societies. One of the central strategies for managing public health throughout the pandemic has been through persuasive messaging and collective behavior change. To help scholars better understand the social and moral psychology behind public h...

Even though the motivation to feel worthy, to be respected, and to matter to others has been identified for centuries by scholars, the antecedents, consequences, and conditions of its activation have not been systematically analyzed or integrated. The purpose of this article is to offer such an integration. We feature a motivational construct, the...

Although political radicalism is one of the major societal threats, we have limited understanding of how it is formed. While there are reasons to expect that harassment experienced in adolescence increase the propensity for radicalism, this relationship has not yet been investigated. This five-wave study of Swedish adolescents ( N = 892) examined t...

Changing collective behaviour and supporting non-pharmaceutical interventions is an important component in mitigating virus transmission during a pandemic. In a large international collaboration (Study 1, N = 49,968 across 67 countries), we investigated self-reported factors associated with public health behaviours (e.g., spatial distancing and str...

In this article, we provide a toolbox of recommendations and resources for those aspiring to promote the uptake of open scientific practices. Open Science encompasses a range of behaviours that aim to improve the transparency of scientific research. This paper is divided into seven sections, each devoted to different groups or institutions in the r...

Even though taking part in elections is one of the most direct tools to influence the socio-political system, many people choose not to vote. Research shows that this problem is especially prevalent among those citizens who do not believe they have control over social and political issues, but the question remains as to what could encourage their v...

The conflict in Syria created a dire humanitarian situation, as nations around the world struggled with how best to deal with the more than 6.6 million Syrian refugees that fled their homes to escape aggression. Resistance to granting refugee status to individuals often originates in the belief that the influx of refugees endangers national securit...

Even though goal pursuit is often conceptualized as a linear phenomenon, it consists of feedback loops and reciprocal relationships between its crucial components. To investigate this cyclical aspect, we tested the relationships between core goal properties (i.e., goal importance and expectancy of success) as well as goal-related emotions (satisfac...

In this article, we provide a toolbox of resources and nudges for those who are interested in advancing open scientific practice. Open Science encompasses a range of behaviours that aim to include the transparency of scientific research and how widely it is communicated. The paper is divided into seven sections, each dealing with a different stakeh...

In the current paper, we address psychological mechanisms predicting commitment to collective action for labor rights. Specifically, we focus on factors that helped maintain engagement in a workers’ cause among participants of a failed teachers’ strike. We examined the relative role of positive and negative experiences and how they related to a sen...

The current highly polarized U.S. political culture impedes people’s ability to live and work together effectively. Here we examine one factor that may play a role: selective empathy based on shared political ideology. Across seven studies (N = 3,476), participants read about a hypothetical politician and his political ideology, trustworthiness, or...

Even though taking part in elections is one of the most direct tools to influence the socio-political system, many people choose not to vote. Research shows that this problem is especially prevalent among those citizens who do not believe they have control over social and political issues, but the question remains as to what could encourage their v...

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is a devastating global health crisis. Without a vaccine or effective medication, the best hope for mitigating virus transmission is collective behavior change and support for public health interventions (e.g., physical distancing, physical hygiene, and endorsement of health policies). In a large-scale international co...

We examined the job outcomes of men and women who recently graduated from the same STEM majors in Poland (N = 8,082). The results demonstrated that women experienced more difficulties in finding a job, received fewer job offers, were less likely to find a job consistent with their education, and earned less money than men. Additionally, we examined...

Religion and science are two major sources of knowledge. Some accounts suggest that religious belief inhibits people from trusting scientific information, and encourages conflict between religion and science. We draw from theories of human motivation to challenge this claim, instead suggesting that religious people perceive less conflict between sc...

People often seek new information and eagerly update their beliefs. Other times they avoid information or resist revising their beliefs. What explains those different reactions? Answers to this question often frame information processing as a competition between cognition and motivation. Here, we dissolve this dichotomy by bringing together two the...

In three studies conducted over the course of 2016 US presidential campaign we examined the relationship between radicalism of a political candidate and willingness to engage in actions for that candidate. Drawing on significance quest theory (Kruglanski et al., 2018), we predicted that people would be more willing to make large sacrifices for radi...

The present review identifies a variety of tactics that are often employed by ideologies to promote and/or justify political violence. The review builds on a social psychological framework that identifies important existential and epistemic needs that motivate individuals to become ideological extremists and discusses the mechanisms through which i...

Reactions of losers and winners of political elections have important consequences for the political system during times of power transition. In four studies conducted immediately before and after the 2016 U.S. presidential elections, we investigated how personal significance induced by success or failure of one's candidate is related to hostile ve...

Political violence is often portrayed as a means of last resort. Thus, there is a perception among those who use political violence that this tactic has a chance to succeed where others have failed. Extant evidence, however, suggests the contrary. For instance, a comparison of 323 violent and non-violent campaigns from 1900 to 2006 found that viole...

W czasach urodzaju na poradniki samorozwoju i szkolenia dotyczące sku- tecznej rywalizacji z innymi chcemy zwrócić uwagę na wspólne działania podejmowane na rzecz zmiany społecznej. Na solidarność, która może nas połączyć w celu zmiany tego, co nas otacza. Większość wyników licznych badań naukowych nad aktywizmem i działaniami zbiorowymi publiko- w...

Few prior studies have examined the extent to which the behavior and characteristics of political extremists are related to their position within radical groups. In this paper we concentrate on one of the most fundamental distinctions in groups: That between leaders and followers. Our main goal is to investigate the comparative propensity of leader...

Few prior studies have examined the extent to which the behavior and characteristics of political extremists are related to their position within radical groups. In this paper we concentrate on one of the most fundamental distinctions in groups: that between leaders and followers. Our main goal is to investigate the comparative propensity of leader...

Recent analyses highlight women's opting out of STEM fields as an important con‐tributing factor to the gender gap in science. Therefore, it is important to identify the factors influencing women's motivation to participate in STEM. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that the focus on differences between male and female students in STEM...

Collective action is a topic that is highly relevant to the socio-political dynamics of the contemporary world. Six papers collected in the special section address different aspects of collective action. They cover a diversity of topics, methods, and samples. However, the focus on goals and needs that drive collective action and social context that...

From the 1950s onward, psychologists have generally assumed that people possess a general need for cognitive consistency whose frustration by an inconsistency elicits negative affect. We offer a novel perspective on this issue by introducing the distinction between epistemic and motivational impact of consistent and inconsistent cognitions. The epi...

A unique advantage of Psychological Inquiry’s format is that it encourages a free exchange of ideas allowing authors to “drill down” on points of disagreement and clarify possible misunderstandings. This is particularly helpful where an article asks its readers, as we do here, to revisit fundamental assumptions and reconsider widely accepted views....

This paper describes a programme of research addressing an intriguing inconsistency in research findings about cognitive processes under a high need for cognitive closure (NFC). While early studies demonstrated that individuals who seek closure opt for closed-minded cognitive strategies, a growing body of research has identified a number of circums...

Doliński (2018, this issue) deplores the near absence of “real behavior” in social and personality studies and attributes to that omission several problems in our research. We concur in the depiction of problems but take issue with the diagnosis. In a sense, most we ever study is behavior (the definition of the concept is quite broad). The problems...

At the height of its power, ISIS was perceived as the biggest contemporary terrorist threat to world security. In this paper, we analyze the phenomenon of ISIS and its unique history through the lens of general social psychological principles that might have contributed to its stunning—even if only temporary—success. We suggest that ISIS represents...

We outline a psychological model of extremism and analyze violent extremism as a special case of it. Our Significance Quest Theory identifies three general drivers of violent extremism: need, narrative, and network. The theory asserts that the need for personal significance—the desire to matter, to “be someone”, and to have meaning in one’s life—is...

From the 1950s onward, psychologists have generally assumed that people possess a general need for cognitive consistency whose frustration by an inconsistency elicits negative affect. We offer a novel perspective on this issue by introducing the distinction between epistemic and motivational impact of consistent and inconsistent cognitions. The epi...

We outline a general psychological theory of extremism and apply it to the special case of violent extremism (VE). Extremism is defined as motivated deviance from general behavioral norms and is assumed to stem from a shift from a balanced satisfaction of basic human needs afforded by moderation to a motivational imbalance wherein a given need domi...

This paper considers the current state of the field in social psychology. On the one hand, we have made enormous progress in integrating our research with other disciplines, reaching out to general publics and using our knowledge toward addressing major societal ills. On the other hand, social psychology has been recently mired in a crisis of confi...

Locomotion regulatory mode is the self-regulatory aspect concerned with motion and progress from state to state (Kruglanski et al., 2000). Given that motion is typically oriented forward (i.e., toward the future), locomotors’ preoccupation with movement should lead to their greater focus on the future. Accordingly, we review empirical research demo...

Reflecting on Roy Baumeister’s guidelines for a general theory of motivation, we relate his ideas to our own perspectives and interests. In those terms we consider, among others, the role of motivation in cognitive processes, the emergence of motives from basic needs, the mental representation of motives in memory, and the issue of free will. Roy’s...

In two studies, we examined the influence of behavioral inhibition system (BIS) and need for closure (NFC) on information processing in decision making. We expected that BIS would regulate behavior in a decisional context and that this relationship would be mediated by epistemic motivation expressed by NFC. In addition, drawing on contradictory fin...

The issue of attitude-behavior relations is revisited in light of recent work on motivation and the psychology of goals. It is suggested that for object-attitudes to drive a specific behavior, a chain of contingencies must be realized: Liking must be transmuted into wanting, wanting must evolve into a goal, the goal must be momentarily dominant, an...

The aim of the present study was to investigate the moderated mediation model of the relationship between the behavioral inhibition system (BIS), need for closure (NFC) and working memory capacity (WMC) in the decision making process. It was assumed that NFC works as a motivational mechanism that enables individuals high in BIS to deal with uncerta...

Previous research on superordinate identification demonstrated the positive effects of such identification on intergroup relations. Our study investigated the hypothesis that superordinate identity increases acceptance of intergroup inequalities among members of low‐status groups. The results obtained from two studies supported our predictions. Sup...

Need for closure and cognitive structuring among younger and older adults The paper reported two correlational studies. The aim of the Study 1 was to examine the hypothesis that age moderates the relationship between need for closure (NFC) and cognitive structuring. Results of the study revealed that aging with increased need for closure was associ...

Two studies were conducted to examine the relationships among need for closure (NFC) and schematic information processing in younger and older adults. The results show increased NFC to be associated with less schematic processing (i.e., less memory for schema-consistent items, and more memory for schema-irrelevant items, out of all items memorized...