Psychology 204
November 2nd, 2012
Analytical Paper
Experiences and Interpersonal Consequences of Hurt Feelings and Anger The journal article “ Experiences and Interpersonal Consequences of Hurt Feelings and Anger” by Edward Lemay, Nickola Overall and Margaret Clark their research consisted in examining the social functions and consequences of hurt feelings. The research was conducted in four studies, retrospective questionnaires, daily reports by both members of a couple, and a dyadic behavioral observation, and whether the experience of hurt and anger differed in appraisal dependence and vulnerability. Hurt was characterized by the experience of commitment, dependence, and vulnerability. Victim hurt was connected with the perpetrators feelings of hurt, commitment, and empathy. However, hurt also had a positive consequence for relationships if the victim anger were independent of commitment, low dependence, invulnerability. The strength of this article is that the authors elaborate into details on how hurt and anger affect someone and how they experience and responses due to vulnerability “ when valued partners are rejecting or hostile or betray the self, they signal that they do not value the relationship as highly, which should heighten feelings of vulnerability and pain” (Lemay, Overall, Clark, 2012). However, as well as strengths there are weaknesses as well. Even though throughout the article they talk about how hurt can lead to anger they concluded that hurt does not motivate destructive responses which to me is a little confusing. In the recent news reported by Washington Post named “ D.C. woman found guilty of fatally stabbing boyfriend in ‘jealous rage’ “ is related to the journal article. Dominique Bassil stabbed her boyfriend at the time three times after they got home from a wedding where she (Bassil) saw her boyfriend dancing with other women. The study would suggest that she was feeling devalued and also as if the perpetrator