Faculty Mentor(s)
Dr. Daryl Van Tongeren, Psychology
Document Type
Poster
Event Date
4-12-2024
Abstract
Death, isolation, meaning, identity, and freedom–the five existential concerns–give rise to anxiety and reveal natural human limitations (Koole et al., 2006). People construct and defend worldviews that answer existential questions, reduce anxiety, and provide security, yet little research investigates how holding on to beliefs affects one’s flourishing. We argue that humility serves as a belief process that leads to flourishing and decreased defensiveness. We tested two competing predictions: does intellectual humility around one’s worldviews mitigate defensive responses and lead to more positive reactions, or does it undermine the confidence with which people hold their views and erode the anxiety-mitigating function of their beliefs, leading to greater defensiveness? We also compared relational humility (relationships) and intellectual humility (ideas). Individuals participated across five pre-registered studies via Qualtrics (N = 3,800). Each survey contained a different experimental condition on an existential concern. Participants received writing prompts regarding an existential concern or an aversive but not threatening topic (control) and completed assessments of flourishing and defensiveness, as well as measures of humility. Overall, the existential primes did not reliably result in differences in responses (i.e., experimental conditions had no consistent significant effects). Thus, we examined correlations between relational humility and intellectual humility with the various measures of defensiveness. In most studies, relational humility was associated with significantly less defensiveness on various measures, whereas existential commitment was associated with greater defensiveness, and existential humility was associated with greater defensiveness. Humility plays a role in managing existential concerns. Relational humility was consistently associated with less defensiveness and more significant meaning and growth, whereas intellectual humility around existential concerns did not provide comfort or security, and was sometimes associated with defensiveness. Holding beliefs too loosely comes with existential costs. This suggests why cultural worldviews or ideologies that offer strong and conclusive claims often have broad appeal.
Recommended Citation
Repository citation: Casper, Carmen; Swanson, Chloe; Brady, Isabella; and Van Duinen, Claire, "Humbly Facing the Facts of Life: Humility and Existential Concerns" (2024). 23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024). Paper 15.
https://digitalcommons.hope.edu/curca_23/15
April 12, 2024. Copyright © 2024 Hope College, Holland, Michigan.
Comments
This project was supported by Grant 61392 of the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the John Templeton Foundation.