Perry et al. Notes PDF

PERRY ET AL. (PERSONAL SPACE) Psychology Being Investigated: Interpersonal distance is a critical aspect of social interactions. It involves the relative distance between individuals, indicating the preferred area around a person where others are not to enter. Human Pref...

PERRY ET AL. (PERSONAL SPACE) Psychology Being Investigated: Interpersonal distance is a critical aspect of social interactions. It involves the relative distance between individuals, indicating the preferred area around a person where others are not to enter. Human Preferences for Personal Space are influenced by relationships, guiding individuals to choose specific interpersonal distances based on connections. Edward T. Hall's zones (1966) categorize these distances into intimate, personal, social, and public, reflecting preferences in various social contexts. Culture influences personal space requirements, with different cultures exhibiting varied preferences. Role of Oxytocin (OT) as a Factor: OT, a social hormone, regulates social thinking and behavior. Its effects vary based on the situation, individual attributes, and culture. Associated with helping behavior, empathy, lack of cooperation with out-groups, and jealousy. Role of Empathy in Personal Space: Defined as the ability to recognize and share the thoughts and feelings of another. Starts development in childhood, contributing to cooperation, friendship, and aiding those in need. Individual differences in empathy may shape how people process social cues (social salience). The study explores the relationship between empathy and personal space preferences and tests effects of OT through a placebo control condition. Use of Placebos in the Study: Placebos establish a control condition. Enables a direct comparison between the effects of the placebo and the treatment condition (OT) in psychological experiments. Background: Perry et al. aimed to explore the factors influencing individuals' personal space preferences. The focus included interpersonal distance, investigating how people's preferences vary for different social figures, such as strangers or friends. The researchers hypothesized that social hormones, particularly oxytocin (OT), could play a role in shaping personal space preferences. Perry et al. specifically examined the impact of OT on individuals with varying empathy abilities. The study aimed to investigate whether OT influences individuals with different empathy levels in similar or distinct ways concerning their personal space preferences. In psychological terms, this exploration falls under the concept of an interaction effect, denoted by 'X' in notation, where variables like OT, empathy, and condition interact with each other (OT x empathy x condition). Aim: Investigate the differential effect of oxytocin (OT) on personal space preference based on empathy abilities. Keywords: Interpersonal distance (personal space): The relative distance between people, representing the area around a person in which they prefer not to have others enter. It is a dynamic concept influenced by various factors, including relationships, culture, and social context. Oxytocin (OT): A social hormone found in humans that heightens the importance of social cues and is linked to positive social behaviors such as helping others. Empathy: The ability of one individual to recognize and share the thoughts and feelings of another. It is crucial for cooperation, social functioning, and processing social cues. Social cues: Facial expressions or body language used to send messages to others, influencing interpersonal interactions and personal space preferences. Social salience: The importance or attention given to cues from other people, such as body language, interpersonal distance, and expressions.  Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI): A self-report measure with subscales related to empathy, used to categorize participants into 'high' or 'low' empathy groups. Comfortable Interpersonal Distance (CID) paradigm: An experimental method where participants indicate their preferred stopping point as another person approaches, measuring personal space preferences. Double-blind procedure: A research design where both the participant and experimenter are unaware of whether the participant received the active treatment (OT) or a placebo. Counterbalanced order: Systematic variation in the order of experimental conditions to control for potential order effects. Ecological validity: The extent to which a study's findings can be generalized to realworld settings. Mundane realism: The degree to which the experimental tasks and setting resemble everyday life. Research Method and Design: The study employed a laboratory experiment conducted at the University of Haifa, taking place in an artificial environment. A mixed experimental design was utilized for participant allocation. Independent groups design was employed for the independent variable (IV) of 'empathy' in both Experiments I and 2. The 'empathy' IV had two levels: 'high' and 'low', with participants categorized into either 'high' or 'low' empathizers. This IV was naturally occurring and NOT manipulated by the researchers. A repeated measures design was used in both experiments for the second IV of 'treatment'. The 'treatment' IV was operationalized as OT administered or placebo administered, manipulated by the researchers. In Experiment I, a third IV known as 'condition' was introduced, following a repeated measures design. 'Condition' included levels: stranger, authority, friend, and ball. Experiment 2 lacked a third IV; participants were consistently asked to imagine their personal space in relation to the same person, with no manipulation in this part of the experiment. The dependent variable (DV) was the personal space requirements of each participant.  In Experiment 1, the DV was operationalized as the preferred distance measured between the participant and the approaching person/object. In Experiment 2, the DV was operationalized as the preferred distance and angle between two chairs in a room. Sample: 54 male undergraduates from the University of Haifa participated. Ages ranged from 19 to 32 years (mean age 25.29). Participants received course credit or payment. All participants had normal vision and no history of psychiatric or neurological disorders. Five participants were left-handed. Participants were divided into two groups based on Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) scores, a 28-item self-report measure with four 7-item subscales relating to empathy. High Interpersonal Reactivity group: 20 participants with empathy scores ≥ 40, mean age 23.9 years. Low Interpersonal Reactivity group: 20 participants with empathy scores < 33, mean age 25.9 years. Procedure: Participants attended the University for two sessions, one week apart. OT administration: Random administration of OT or placebo solution using a nasal dropper, supervised by the experimenter. Double-blind technique employed, ensuring neither the participant nor the experimenter knew the administered substance. Assessment of empathy: Participants completed the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) online questionnaire after solution administration. Participants waited in a quiet room for 45 minutes with nature magazines. Order of experiments counterbalanced: Half undertook Experiment 1 then Experiment 2, while the other half did the reverse. Experiment 1 (CID): Participants used a computer-based paradigm where they imagined themselves in a room, indicating their preferred stopping point as another person approached. Different conditions included close friend, stranger, authority figure, and a rolling ball. 24 trials per condition, 96 trials in total. The researchers recorded a he percentage of remaining distance from the total distance after participants pressed the space bar. Experiment 2 (Choosing rooms):  Participants were told that after doing two runs of the experiment, they’d sit in a room with another person to discuss personal topics. They were told they’d be shown pairs of similar rooms to choose from, as preferred. This information would be used to design a room. They selected preferred chair distances and angles between furniture items in pairs of rooms presented as colored pictures on a computer screen. Experimental and control conditions involved distances between chairs (20-140cm (8-55 in) with intervals of 20cm (8 in)). angle of the chairs position (0 degree : both facing forward, 45 degree each or 90 degree : facing each other). distances between a table and a plant (200-320cm (80-125 in) with intervals of 20cm (8 in)). angle of the table and plant positions (0 degree : both facing forward, 45 degree each or 90 degree : facing each other). The experiment included 21 different pairs of chair distances, 21 different pairs of table- plant differences & three options for each pair of angles, repeated 7 times. 84 pairs of images shown, each repeated twice (168 total). The two picture sets were shown on a computer screen for 2 s. Results: Experiment 1: CID Results: Three manipulated independent variables (IVs): condition, treatment, and empathy. Dependent variable (DV): Preferred distance, presented as a mean percentage distance from the circle's center where participants imagined themselves. Higher percentage indicates a preference for greater personal distance. IV: Condition: Differences found in preferred distances between stranger, authority, ball, and friend across all trials. Indicates that participants' need for personal distance increases as familiarity with the approaching figure decreases. Interaction Effect of IVs: Treatment x Empathy: OT decreased mean preferred distance in the high empathy group but had the opposite effect in the low empathy group.  Differential effect of OT on high and low empathizers. Interaction Effect of IVs: Treatment x Condition x Empathy: Significant differences in preferred distances between conditions for high empathizers with both OT and placebo. Presence of significant differences for low empathizers with OT, indicating enhanced social interaction cues. Experiment 2: Choosing Rooms Results: Differences in preferences for chair distance, but not for preferred angles. High empathy group chose closer chair distances following OT administration; opposite effect for low empathy group. Interaction between treatment and empathy only present in the experimental condition (distance between chairs). Supports the social salience hypothesis: OT did not affect general preferences, only those with a social context. Comparison of Results: Moderate correlation between average distance chosen in Experiment I (CID) under placebo treatment and average chair distance chosen in Experiment 2 under placebo treatment. Strengths and Weaknesses: Strengths: Good internal validity, counterbalanced order of experiments, controlled extraneous variables. Weaknesses: Lack of ecological validity due to the artificial setting, tasks lacked mundane realism, potential influence of computer-generated images on decision-making. Ethical Issues: Informed consent obtained; study approved by ethics committees. Participants protected from physical harm during OT or placebo administration. Deception in Experiment 2 (no actual personal discussion) considered unlikely to cause psychological distress. Full debriefing provided after the study. Conclusion: Administration of OT influenced personal space preferences based on empathy, with opposite effects in high and low empathizers. Results supported the concept of social salience, where OT enhances social cues differently for individuals with varying empathetic abilities. Findings aligned with previous research on personal space, confirming that people require less distance from close friends compared to strangers.