Hypotheses

The assumptions for the hypotheses of Study Two are the same as the assumptions for hypotheses of Study One.

4.2.2 Eight Hypotheses for Study Two

There are eight hypotheses for Study Two. These hypotheses are indicative of (1) the replication of the anger inferiority effect in crowd search; (2) the role of affect (High Trait

Anxious and Low Trait Anxious groups according to the STAI, and High State Anxious and Low State Anxious groups according to the SAQ - question three) in crowd search; (3) the role of decision-making style (rational or experiential) in crowd search; (4) the combined role of affect and decision-making style in crowd search; (5) the role of crowd type (angry or happy) in

physiological arousal; and (6) the role of affect (High Trait Anxious and Low Trait Anxious, and High State Anxious and Low State Anxious groups) in physiological arousal to crowds; (7) the

role of decision-making style in physiological arousal to crowds; and (8) the combined role of affect and decision-making style in physiological arousal to crowds

Crowd search hypothesis one. The first hypothesis is that there will be a significant main effect of Crowd on RT such that participants will have longer RTs when there is a crowd of angry faces versus a crowd of happy faces.

This hypothesis is based on the previous anger inferiority effect in the crowd analyses of Hansen and Hansen (1994) and the evolutionary theoretical assumption that full and proper processing has survival value when a facial emotion conveys a potential threat (Fridlund, 1994, Hansen & Hansen, 1988; Schwartz et al., 1985).

Crowd search hypothesis two. The second hypothesis is that there will be a significant interaction effect of Anxiety x Crowd on RT such that participants in the High Trait Anxious group versus Low Trait Anxious group will have slower RTs for angry crowd searches, but the two groups will not differ in their RTs for happy crowd searches. As extrapolated from the Byrne and Eysenck (1995) study, it is further predicted that these results will be evidenced for the High Trait Anxious versus Low Trait Anxious groups according to the Trait Scale of the STAI,

however, this effect will not hold for the High State Anxious versus Low State Anxious groups according to SAQ - question three.

This hypothesis examines the affective component of the previous anger inferiority effect in the crowd analyses of Byrne and Eysenck (1995) and Gilboa-Schechtman and colleagues (1999), and the theoretical assumption of Hansen and Hansen (1994) that angry faces maintain the focus of attention making it more difficult for participants to look away, and the AIM postulation that anxious individuals may use affect-as-information.

Crowd search hypothesis three. The third hypothesis is that there will be a significant main effect of Decision-Making Style on RT such that participants in the Rational group versus the Experiential group will have faster RTs averaged over both crowd conditions.

Unique to this study, this hypothesis examines the cognitive component of crowd distraction in the face-in-the-crowd paradigm, and is based on the theoretical assumption of the AIM and CEST that rational individuals will be more likely to employ a direct access or motivated processing style and execute a relatively faster search that is not slowed by affective processing, whereas experiential individuals will be more likely to employ a heuristic or substantive

processing style and execute a relatively slower search that is more time-consuming due to greater affective processing.

Crowd search hypothesis four. The fourth hypothesis is that there will be a significant simple effect of Anxiety x Decision-Making Style on RT for angry crowd searches such that participants in the High Trait Anxious/Experiential group versus the Low Trait Anxious/Rational group will have longer RTs in angry crowd searches. Post hoc analysis will demonstrate that participants in the High Trait Anxious/Experiential group versus the High Trait

Anxious/Rational group will have slower RTs in angry crowd searches; and participants in the Low Trait Anxious/Experiential versus the Low Trait Anxious/Rational will have slower RTs in angry crowd searches.

As extrapolated from the Byrne and Eysenck (1995) study, it is predicted that these results will be evidenced for the High Trait Anxious versus Low Trait Anxious groups according to the Trait Scale of the STAI, however, this effect will not hold for High State Anxious versus Low State Anxious groups according to SAQ - question

Unique to this study, this hypothesis examines the interaction of the affective and cognitive components of crowd distraction in the face-in-the-crowd effect, and is based on the theoretical assumptions of the AIM and CEST.

Crowd search hypothesis five. The fifth hypothesis is that there will be a significant main effect of Crowd on GSR such that angry crowds versus happy crowds will have greater GSR. Unique to this study, this hypothesis is based on the Jamesian and physiological theory that the experience of emotions has accompanying autonomic nervous system arousal, and the evolutionary theoretical assumption that signals of threat have greater accompanying autonomic nervous system arousal than non-threatening signals so as to prepare the body for fight or flight.

Crowd search hypothesis six. The sixth hypothesis is that there will be a significant interaction effect of Anxiety x Crowd on GSR such that participants in the High Trait Anxious group versus the Low Trait Anxious group will have greater GSR when presented with angry crowds, but the two groups will not differ in their GSR to happy crowds. It is further predicted that these results will be evidenced for both the High Trait Anxious versus Low Trait Anxious groups according to the Trait Scale of the STAI, and the High State Anxious versus Low State Anxious groups according to SAQ - question three.

This hypothesis is based on the Jamesian and physiological theory that the experience of emotions has accompanying autonomic nervous system arousal, and that anxious individuals experience a greater degree of autonomic arousal to threatening stimuli than their non-anxious counterparts.

Crowd search hypothesis seven. The seventh hypothesis is that there will be a significant interaction effect of Decision-Making Style on GSR such that participants in the Experiential

group versus the Rational group will have higher GSR when presented with angry crowds, but the two groups will not differ in their GSR when presented with happy crowds.

Unique to this study, this hypothesis examines the cognitive component of physiological arousal during crowd searches and is based on the theoretical assumption of the AIM and CEST that rational individuals will be more likely to employ a direct access or motivated processing style and execute a search that is free of affective processing, whereas experiential individuals will be more likely to employ heuristic or substantive processing style and execute a search that is influenced by affective processing.

Crowd search hypothesis eight. The eighth hypothesis is that there will be a significant simple effect of Anxiety x Decision-Making Style on GSR for angry crowd searches such that participants in the High Trait Anxious/Experiential group versus the Low Trait Anxious/Rational group will have higher GSR. Post hoc analysis will demonstrate that participants in the High Trait Anxious/Experiential group versus the High Trait Anxious/Rational group will have higher GSR when presented with angry crowds; and participants in the Low Trait Anxious/Experiential versus the Low Trait Anxious/Rational group will have higher GSR when presented with angry crowds. It is further predicted that these results will be evidenced for both the High Trait Anxious versus Low Trait Anxious groups according to the Trait Scale of the STAI, and the High State Anxious versus Low State Anxious groups according to SAQ - question three.

Unique to this study, this hypothesis examines the interaction of the affective and cognitive components of the anger inferiority effect and physiological arousal during crowd searches, and is based on the theoretical assumptions of the AIM and CEST.

4.3 Method