Hating Evil: Understanding the Role of Evil in Interpersonal Hate

<p>Research has demonstrated that hate is a protective emotional response to perceived evil, yet the dimensions by which people perceive evil have not been clearly identified. Research has also indicated that it is evil to feel hate, which presents an interesting paradox: if hate protects us from evil, then how can it be evil to feel hate? The present research attempts to identify the dimensions of evil and elucidate the relationship between hate and evil by comparing it to the relationship between dislike and evil. Study 1 tested how participants identified evil in third person scenarios. As predicted, evil was labeled most often in scenarios that depicted intentional acts on the part of the target, though contrary to predictions evil was not labeled as often in scenarios that depicted responsible acts on the part of the target. Study 2 relied on participants’ own experiences of dislike and hate, or the experiences of someone, they knew toward either a group or individual. As predicted, hate and dislike differed in intensity and kind, though less so in kind than anticipated. Also as predicted, differentiations emerged within hate that suggested that hate toward groups, specifically when experienced by others, is considered more evil and less justified than hate experienced by the self. The consistency of these results with extant theories of hate and evil are discussed as well as potential explanations for the differential relationship of hate and evil. </p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD)

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Year dc:date.available

2019

Author dc:creator

• Merrick, Carmen

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Beike, Denise R.

Contributors dc:contributor

• Veilleux, Jennifer C.
• Eidelman, Scott H.

• Emotions
• Evil
• Hate
• Cognition and Perception
• Experimental Analysis of Behavior
• Social Psychology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/3380

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholarworks.uark.edu:etd-4930