2. *
*Oxytocin is a hormone in the brain and body
that is secreted during sexual encounters and
social facilitation
*Oxytocin has been positively correlated with
openness
*Those who are higher in levels of openness
reported having an increased amount of oxytocin
3. *
*Missig et al (2010) conducted a study with rats
*When rats were put into a fearful situation,
oxytocin was injected to neutralize the fearful
response
*There was a negative correlation between
amount of oxytocin administered and amount
of fear the rat displayed
*There was no significant difference between
type of fear and amount of oxytocin
administered
4. *
*There would be a negative correlation between
openness and startle fear
*Startle fear: a sudden shock or alarm
*There would be a negative correlation between
openness and suspense fear
*Suspense: the uncertainty and building anxiety of
a certain outcome
5. *Heart Rate
*Novelty Seeking
*Harm Avoidance
*Fantasy Scale of Empathy
*Positive Affect
*Negative Affect
*Risky Behavior
*SONA Systems
*20
*Male and Female
*2 level (Clip: Startle vs.
Suspense) between-
participant design
*
9. * Fantasy Scale of Empathy &
Negative Affect
* (r = .543, p = .016)
* Maximum Heart Rate & Harm
Avoidance
* (r = .489, p = .034)
* Novelty Seeking & Harm
Avoidance
* (r = -.570, p = .009)
* Harm Avoidance & Risky Behavior
* (r = -.501, p = .024)
* Heart Rate Increase & Positive
Affect
* (r = -.706, p = .015):
* Openness & Maximum Heart Rate
* (r = -.217, p = .372)
*
10. * Openness & Clip & Positive Affect
* High Openness= More Positive Affect
with Startle
* Low Openness= More Positive Affect
with Suspense
* p = .018
*
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
high openness low openness
PositiveAffect
startle
suspense
11. *
*There was not a significant correlation between
openness and maximum heart rate
*However, there were patterns in the expected
direction
*Those who were higher in openness responded more
positively to the startle clip
*They found it more “fun” or “amusing”
*More open to sudden changes
*Those who reported lower in openness responded
more positively in the suspense condition
*This might be because it was a more gradual
change
12. *
*Can be used in therapy to treat phobias
*By identifying the type of fearful response
(startle vs. suspense) the therapist can gain
useful knowledge about how to overcome the
problem through behavioral therapy
*Using startle or suspense as a scare tactic to
appeal to a wider audience during horror films
13. *
*Some limitations to the study include:
*Small sample size= less variability= less
significance
*Personality research typically requires a large
amount of variability
*Age; participants were local college students
*Future research should include a larger sample
size
