Data Collection and the Topic of Your InterestData collection pr.docx

Data Collection and the Topic of Your Interest
Data collection procedures must walk the reader through the
process of collecting research data, starting with permission
information and concluding with procedures to maintain
confidentiality of information and participants. This is a
standard section of chapter 3 in dissertation research studies.
In this assignment, you will gain an understanding of how to
implement data collection procedures for a dissertation.
Tasks:
In about 750 words, prepare a report, including the following:
· A detailed description of data collection procedures you intend
to implement for the chosen topic of your interest and
qualitative methodology (case study, phenomenology, grounded
theory, ethnography, or narrative approaches).
· A rationale related to ethical issues that have been covered in
this module (for example, confidentiality, anonymity, and
respect for persons).
· An informed consent document related to the topic of your
interest and methodology will accompany the data collection
procedures and will be referenced as Appendix A.
Note that your submission should follow AUO academic writing
guidelines and APA rules for academic writing and referencing.
Submission Details:
In early infancy emotional expressions are automatic and not
yet subject to voluntary control. As children develop and
mature, they begin to regulate emotional displays in order to
meet personal goals and to meet the demands and expectations
of their culture. Culturally prescribed social conventions
dictate how, where, when, and to whom specific emotions are
expressed. These norms, otherwise known as display rules, are

learned culture-specific rules that convey what is socially
appropriate or desirable in certain social contexts and underlie
the management and regulation of emotional expression
(Ekman & Friesen, 1975).
The use of display rules in young North American children
has been investigated largely through the administration of a
procedure known as the disappointment gift paradigm (Cole,
1986; Cole, Zahn-Waxler, & Smith, 1994; Saarni, 1984,
1992). In this procedure, children are presented with an unde-
sirable gift in the presence of an audience figure, and their
emotional responses are recorded. This paradigm takes advan-
tage of the commonly understood North American practice of
smiling upon receiving a gift even though covertly one may not
like the gift (Goffman, 1967).
Existing research with North American children has gener-
ally focused on examining the role of age and gender in
children’s emotional reactions to a disappointing gift situation.
In addition to age and gender, culture is likely another source
of variation in children’s emotionally expressive behaviors. Yet
the role of cultural beliefs and norms in guiding expressive
behaviors has been largely overlooked in investigations of
children’s emotional development (Parke, 1994; Rubin, 1998;
Saarni, 1998, 1999). In the present study, the role of age,
gender, and culture in children’s ex
ing disappointment is examined.
With regard to age, research rat
the finding that children’s know
increases during the elementary sch
1986; Saarni, 1979; Underwood, C
Zeman & Garber, 1996). Fewer con
reported regarding developmental d
display rules (Cole, 1986; Cole et

1992). These discrepant findings m
logical considerations, including t
samples studied, the use of diff
schemes, and procedural variations
tion. One goal of the present stu
equivocal findings by examining dev
children’s emotional responses f
induction. Based on research indica
display rules in older children, it wa
children would be more likely than
disappointment with positive expre
undesirable gift.
With regard to gender, research su
able to manage their emotions and
disappointment with positive affect.
found that among third-, fifth-, an
boys and girls said that they would fe
girls reported that they would use
often than boys. Consistent with this
studies of elementary school children
disappointment, which report that
International Journal of Behavioral Development
2007, 31 (2), 161–169
http://www.sagepublications.com
© 2007 The International Society for the
Study of Behavioural Development
Correspondence concerning this article should be directed to
Patricia
Garrett-Peters Ph.D., Center for Developmental Science, 100
East

Franklin Street, CB # 8115, University
Hill, NC 27599–8115, USA; e-mail: gar
at WALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18,
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DOI: 10.1177/0165025407074627
Cross-cultural differences in children’s emotional
reactions to a disappointing situation
Patricia T. Garrett-Peters
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA
Nathan A. Fox
University of Maryland at College Park, USA
Cross-cultural differences in emotional expressions following
disappointment were examined in 59
Chinese American (CA) and 58 European American (EA)
children. Children aged four or seven
participated in a disappointing gift situation. Dimensions of
expressive behaviors following
disappointment were coded and included positive, negative,
social monitoring, and tension behav-
iors. Significant main effects emerged for ethnicity and age,
with EA children and older children
demonstrating more positive behaviors than CA children and
younger children, respectively. Younger
children also demonstrated significantly more negative
behaviors than older children. This main effect
was qualified by a nearly significant age by ethnicity
interaction, indicating developmental differences
in the negative expressions for the EA group, but not for the CA
group. Among the CA group, child
adaptation of Western values was inversely associated with
negative expressions, and a positive trend
was found for positive expressions. Statistical trends were also
found in which boys demonstrated
more negative behaviors than girls and in which EA children
demonstrated more total expressive

behaviors than CA children. Implications of these findings are
discussed with regard to cultural and
familial processes, as well as cultural variation in children’s
cognitions about emotions.
Keywords: Chinese American; cross cultural differences;
disappointment paradigm; emotional
reactions
pressive behaviors follow-
her consistently supports
ledge of display rules
ool years (Gnepp & Hess,
oie, & Herbsman, 1992;
sistent findings have been
ifferences in actual use of
al., 1994; Saarni, 1984,
ay be due to methodo-
he various ages of the
erent behavioral coding
in disappointment induc-
dy was to address these
elopmental differences in
ollowing disappointment
ting greater knowledge of
s hypothesized that older
younger children to mask
ssions upon receiving an
ggests that girls are better
are more likely to mask
Underwood et al. (1992)

d seventh-grade children,
el angry equally often, but
facial display rules more
finding are observational
’s emotional responses to
girls demonstrate fewer
of North Carolina, Chapel
[email protected]
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negative expressions than boys (Davis, 1995; McDowell,
O’Neil, & Parke, 2000; Saarni, 1984), and are more likely to
mask negative affect with positive expressions (Cole, 1986;
Garner & Power, 1996). A second goal of the present study
was to examine gender differences in children’s emotional
responses to a disappointment situation. Consistent with
previous research, it was hypothesized that females would be
more likely than males to mask disappointment with positive
expressions (Cole, 1986; Saarni, 1984).
Although research has been conducted examining the role
of age and gender in children’s emotional reactions vis-à-vis
the disappointment paradigm, comparable studies have not
been conducted to address the role of culture in children’s
emotional responses. The present study represents one of the
first to assess children’s observable expressive behaviors in a
disappointment situation among culturally distinct groups of
children, namely, those of either European American (EA) or
Chinese American (CA) descent. Kagitcibasi Kagitcibasi
Culture has been defined as “the set of attitudes, values,
beliefs, and behaviors shared by a group of people, com-

municated from one generation to the next” (Matsumoto,
1997, p. 5). Culture shapes one’s emotional experience and
expression, and it provides meaning to both intended and
demonstrated behavior and to consequences associated with
behavior, including emotional responses (Kagitcibasi, 1996).
Markus and Kitayama (1991) argue that the very nature of
the self-system is shaped by one’s culture, with Western
cultures fostering an independent construal of self, and Asian
cultures fostering an interdependent construal of self. These
divergent views of self have implications for emotional activity
and experience (Markus & Kitayama, 1991). For example,
within a culture that promotes an independent view of self,
ego-focused emotions that emphasize an individual’s own
needs and desires (e.g., anger, frustration, and pride) may be
expressed and experienced more frequently because they
reinforce the self as an independent autonomous being. In
contrast, other-focused emotions that highlight interpersonal
connectedness (e.g., sympathy and shame) may be expressed
and experienced more frequently within a culture that fosters
an interdependent view of self.
Differences in emotional behaviors may be particularly
prevalent and most readily detected in comparisons of
cultural groups with distinct cultural frameworks such as
those represented among the Chinese relative to European
Americans (Matsumoto, 1989; Oyserman, Coon, &
Kemmelmeier, 2002). The Western cultural framework of
European Americans is characterized by an open expression
of emotion and the attainment of one’s personal goals as
important sources of well-being and life satisfaction (Diener
& Diener, 1995; Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Oyserman et al.,
2002). Emotions are seen as fundamental to the self and to
the perpetuation of social relationships. Within a Western
orientation, the expression of negative emotions is tolerated
and encouraged as it affirms individuality within a society
(Matsumoto, 1992). In the Chinese cultural framework,

emotional suppression is supported as an adaptive coping
strategy, which stands in contrast to the Western conception
of achieving psychological balance through emotional cathar-
sis (Chen & Swartzman, 2001; Lin, 1981). The minimization
of affective expressions is also promoted by traditional
Chinese medicine, which associates excessive emotional
activity with organic dysfunction and poor health, and
emotional balance with good health (Bond & Hwang, 1986;
Chen & Swartzman, 2001; Hammer, 1990; Kleinman, 1986;
Wu, 1982).
Cross-cultural research with both infants and older children
provides support for a greater emphasis on emotional and
behavioral restraint among the Chinese relative to more
Western cultures. For example, Camras et al. (1998) reported
that Chinese 11-month-olds demonstrated a longer latency to
cry following arm restraint, were less expressive overall, and
produced fewer Duchenne smiles (i.e., genuine rather than
social smiles) than their Japanese and European American
counterparts. Chinese infants are also reported to be less
reactive and to show a disposition toward nonexcitability and
accommodation to external change relative to EA infants
(Kagan et al., 1994; Freedman & Freedman, 1969).
Among older Chinese children, behavioral inhibition is
viewed as an index of achievement by their parents and is
associated with acceptance by both parents and peers (Chen
et al., 1998; Chen, Rubin, & Li, 1995a, 1995b; Chen, Rubin,
& Sun, 1992). In contrast, shy-inhibited Canadian children
experience social difficulties, and their parents view their
inhibition as an indicator of social incompetence (Chen et al.,
1995a, 1995b, 1998). Parents of these behaviorally inhibited
children report themselves to be higher on parental punish-
ment orientation, disappointment, and rejection (Chen et al.,
1998). These findings highlight the extent to which behavioral

inhibition is regarded as socially immature and psychologically
maladaptive in Western cultures (see Rubin & Asendorpf,
1993), and contrastingly, regarded as socially desirable and
adaptive in Chinese culture.
In the present study, comparisons are made between two
culturally distinct groups, namely EA children and first gener-
ation CA children. CA children were studied rather than
mainland Chinese due in part to their ready accessibility.
Nevertheless, their propinquity does not preclude their legit-
imacy in adequately representing traditional Chinese child-
hood values and beliefs in contrast to those of European
Americans. Research on contemporary Chinese conceptions
of childhood socialization provides evidence for the enduring
continuity of traditional Chinese child-rearing values and
practices (see Wu, 1996). These traditional cultural beliefs
regarding childrearing are even maintained in Chinese
communities living overseas in Western societies (Lin & Fu,
1990; Wu & Xue, 1995, cited in Wu, 1996). Moreover,
because acculturation is a gradual process, first-generation
CA children may be more similar to their counterparts in
mainland China than to those in the West (Feldman &
Rosenthal, 1990). Given the extant research, the behaviors
and responses of the CA children who participated in the
present study are believed to adequately reflect traditional
Chinese values. Yet because individuals are not impervious to
outside influences, assessments of both parent and child
acculturation were obtained for the CA group to examine
possible associations with expressive behaviors.
It was hypothesized that CA children would demonstrate
fewer expressive behaviors relative to their EA counterparts
following disappointment induction. Specifically, the EA
children were expected to invoke the North American display
rule of masking negative affect with positive displays, while the
CA children were expected to show a less intense affective

response and thus relatively fewer positive and negative expres-
sive behaviors and fewer expressive behaviors overall.
To summarize, the goals and hypotheses of the present study
were:
162 GARRETT-PETERS AND FOX / CULTURAL
DIFFERENCES IN EMOTIONAL REACTIONS
1 To examine developmental differences in expressive behav-
iors following disappointment induction. It was hypothe-
sized that older children would demonstrate more positive
and fewer negative behaviors than younger children.
2 To examine gender differences in children’s emotional
responses to a disappointment situation. It was hypothesized
that females would demonstrate more positive and fewer
negative behaviors than males.
3 To examine ethnic group differences in expressive behaviors
following disappointment. It was hypothesized that EA
children would demonstrate more positive and negative
expressive behaviors and more overall expressiveness than
the CA children.
4 To examine the possible associations between parent and
child acculturation and children’s expressive behaviors
following disappointment for the CA group. Specifically, it
was hypothesized that, as CA children increasingly adapt
more to Western values, their expressive behaviors will

increasingly resemble those expected from the EA children
(i.e., more positive and fewer negative expressions following
disappointment).
Method
Participants
Fifty-nine CA and 58 EA children and their mothers from the
Washington DC metropolitan area participated in the study. CA
participants were comprised of 29 children (14 females and 15
males) between the ages of 4 and 5 years old (M = 4.62 years,
SD = .44 years) and 30 children (15 females and 15 males)
between the ages of 7 and 8 years old (M = 7.82 years, SD =
.42 years) and their mothers. Both mothers and fathers of the
CA children were born in either Taiwan or China. Of the 59 CA
children, 47 (79.7%) were born in the United States, 8 (13.6%)
were born in China, 2 (3.4%) were born in Taiwan, and 2
(3.4%) were born in Canada. Mothers and fathers of Chinese-
American children resided in the United States an average of
10.23 years (SD = 4.75) and 11.39 years (SD = 4.96), respec-
tively. CA children were recruited from local Chinese-language
schools, which they attended on weekends. With the exception
of one, all mothers reported their child to be average or above
average in their ability to understand spoken Mandarin, and all
but three mothers reported their child to be average or above
average in their ability to speak Mandarin. A majority of
mothers (96.6%) reported that they required their children to
speak Chinese at home at least some of the time.
EA participants were comprised of 28 children (13 females
and 15 males) between the ages of 4 and 5 years old (M = 4.81
years, SD = .41 years) and 30 children (15 males and 15
females) between the ages of 7 and 8 years old (M = 7.93 years,
SD = .24 years) and their mothers. Of the 58 EA children, 57
(98.3%) were born in the United States, and one child was

born in Japan. All parents of the EA children were born in the
United States, with the exception of one mother who was born
in France, and one father who was born in Ireland. EA children
were recruited from area day- and after-school care centers.
Inclusion in the study was based on the child’s age, child’s
developmental status as reported by parent, parent ethnic
origin, and parental consent. Participants were not selected or
disqualified on the basis of religion or any social or economic
qualifications.
Procedures
Two Caucasian females comprised the research team for the
EA sample, and two bilingual (Mandarin- and English-
speaking) Chinese females comprised the research team for the
CA sample. All of the research assistants (RA) were similar in
age, which minimized differential emotional responding due to
RA age. For the CA sample, all mothers and children spoke
Mandarin, and the experimenters spoke Mandarin to the
dyads. No children had difficulty understanding or responding
to the experimenter’s questions in Mandarin or requested that
the experimenter speak English.
Each child participated in a disappointment task (Cole et al.,
1994). RA1 showed the child eight possible prizes, which
included “good” prizes (e.g., whistles, candy, stickers) and
potentially “disappointing” prizes (e.g., broken toys). Each
child was asked to rank-order the prizes from their most to
their least favorite. The prizes were arranged on a tray so that
the first- and last-choice prizes were adjacent. RA1 confirmed
the child’s first and last choices, and the child was told that
s/he would receive the prize after playing a picture or a math
game with RA2. These games were filler tasks and involved
identifying elements of a storybook picture (for younger
children) or solving simple math problems (for older children).
RA1 left the room after stating that she would leave the prize

tray just outside the door so that RA2 could retrieve the prize
for the child.
After the child completed the filler task, RA2 told the child
that she would retrieve his or her prize. She then left the room
and returned with the last-ranked prize, which remained
hidden until it was placed in front of the child. After gift
presentation, RA2 remained in the room acting busy with
paperwork. She remained neutral in affect so as not to influ-
ence the child’s emotional behavior, repeated any verbaliza-
tions made by the child in a neutral tone, and made
intermittent eye contact with the child. The child’s facial
expressions and upper body movements were video recorded
for one minute, after which RA2 left the room. All RAs
adhered to the instructions for the protocol, and no data were
lost due to RA noncompliance.
RA1 then returned to the room and conducted a debriefing
interview. RA1 asked the child which prize s/he received,
whether or not the child liked the prize, and how the child felt
about receiving the last-choice prize (Cole, 1986; Cole et al.,
1994). RA1 then told the child that RA2 must have acciden-
tally picked up the wrong prize because the first- and last-
choices were next to each other, and RA1 retrieved the prize
tray and allowed the child to trade the prize.1
Mothers of CA children also completed a questionnaire
about the child’s and her own acculturation from the Cultural
and Social Acculturation Scale-CSAS (Chen & Lee, 1996).
The CSAS is a bidimensional scale, which permits the assess-
ment of a bicultural identity and independent variation in both
heritage and mainstream cultural identities. Several theorists
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL
DEVELOPMENT, 2007, 31 (2), 161–169 163

at Wjbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from
1 In some previous studies, the disappointment gift has been
presented in a
nonsocial condition for half of the sample and a social condition
for the other
half to assess children’s emotional responses in the presence or
in the absence
of the gift giver (e.g., Cole, 1986), and more specifically, to
examine display
rules. In the nonsocial condition, the RA left the room
immediately after present-
ing the disappointment prize. Only the social condition was
used in the present
study to permit an examination of the children’s emotional
responses in the
presence of a culturally-matched RA and to avoid a reduction in
power by assign-
ing the sample to two different conditions (see also Davis,
1995, Garner &
Power, 1996; McDowell & Parke, 2000).
ALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016
favor a bidimensional acculturation model over a unidimen-
sional model, which conceives of acculturation or assimilation
into the mainstream culture as resulting in a loss of values
associated with one’s culture of origin (Berry, 1980; Ryder,
Alden, & Paulhus, 2000; Stephenson, 2000). The CSAS
provides two separate subscales. Fourteen items reflect one’s
adaptation of mainstream Western culture and 12 separate
items assess adherence to Chinese culture. Example items from
the separate subscales include: “How often do you (does your
child) have Caucasian-American (Chinese) friends over to
your house?” and “How often do you (does your child) go to

a Western (Chinese) Restaurant?”. Response options ranged
from 1 (almost never) to 5 (more than once a week). Among
the other questions were items that assessed the extent to
which the mother and child understand English and Chinese,
speak English and Chinese, look at English and Chinese books
and magazines, listen to Western and Chinese music, and read
and write in English and Chinese. Because most 4-year-olds
do not yet read or write, items related to reading and writing
in English and Chinese were excluded from the analyses of age
differences in child acculturation variables.
Estimates of internal consistency for child adaptation of
Western values and child maintenance of Chinese values
revealed Cronbach’s alphas of .85 and .61, respectively.
Cronbach’s alphas for mother’s adaptation of Western values
and mother’s maintenance of Chinese values were .77 and .59,
respectively.
Scoring
A behavior coding system developed by Saarni (1984, 1992)
was used to measure expressive behaviors following
disappointment. The first occurrence of each of 50 discrete
behaviors was coded, and behaviors included those related to
facial expressions, vocalizations, gazing, and selected body
movements. Coding of these behaviors yielded four expressive
dimensions: positive, negative, social monitoring, and tension.
The positive and negative dimensions represent those behav-
iors that are obviously positive or negative, such as a relaxed
broad smile or frowning. Behaviors coded as social monitoring
are those that represent some attempt at expressive control,
such as slight smiling. Responses indicative of nervousness or
anxiousness are coded as tension. A total expressiveness score
was also created by summing the four expressive dimensions.
Because Saarni’s (1992) behavior coding scheme was

developed using Western samples, utilizing this coding system
with the CA sample required some extra precautions. After
careful review of numerous videotapes and a consideration for
the extant literature on behavioral inhibition among the
Chinese, a modification of Saarni’s behavioral scoring system
was deemed appropriate. The scoring system used in the
present study departs from Saarni’s original method in that
expressive behaviors were coded for 30 s rather than 10 to 15
s following exposure to the disappointment gift. The rationale
behind this longer coding segment was to allow the CA sample
sufficient response time given both our observations and
previous reports of less reactivity, behavioral inhibition, and
longer response latencies in children and infants of Chinese
origin (Camras et al., 1998; Chen et al., 1998; Freedman &
Freedman, 1969; Kagan, Kearsley, & Zelazo, 1978; Kagan et
al., 1994).
Due to equipment failure, disappointment segments of two
7-year-old males (one CA and one EA) were not video
recorded and thus could not be used in the analyses. Three
individuals (one who is of Chinese descent), who were naïve
to the hypotheses of the study, were trained for the coding of
expressive behaviors. Cohen’s kappa (Gottman, 1990) was
computed for approximately 25% of the videotaped segments,
and satisfactory coder reliability was obtained with kappas
ranging from .71 to .85. Scoring disagreements were resolved
through discussion. Because the EA coders could not speak or
understand Mandarin, incidents of verbalization and verbal
tone among the CA children were scored by a Chinese-
speaking trained research assistant.
A three-factor, age (2) � ethnicity (2) � gender (2), multi-
variate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted to
determine group differences in the four expressive dimensions.
Bivariate correlations were conducted to determine the

strength of associations between acculturation and expressive
variables for the CA group. Finally, chi-square analyses were
conducted to explore group differences in children’s self-
reported emotions following the debriefing questions.
Results
Expressive behaviors following disappointment
To determine group differences in expressive behaviors follow-
ing disappointment, a three factor, age (2) � ethnicity (2) �
gender (2), MANOVA was conducted on the frequency of the
four expressive variables (i.e., positive, negative, social moni-
toring, and tension) and overall expressivity. The overall F
(Wilks’ lambda = .81) reached significance for a main effect of
age only, F(4,104) = 6.18, p < .001.
The univariate analyses revealed no main effects or inter-
actions for social monitoring or tension behaviors. For positive
behaviors, a significant main effect was found for ethnicity,
F(1,114) = 4.10, p < .05. A greater number of positive behav-
iors was demonstrated by the EA children (M = 1.81, SD =
1.59) relative to the CA children (M = 1.28, SD = 1.30)
following presentation of the disappointment prize. There was
also a significant main effect of age, F(1,114) = 16.53, p <
.001. Positive expressions were exhibited more often by the
older children (M = 2.05, SD = 1.60) than by the younger
children (M = 1.02, SD = 1.09). There were no gender differ-
ences in the number of positive expressions displayed and no
significant interactions.
For negative expressions a significant main effect of age
emerged, F(1,114) = 6.58, p < .02. Older children demon-
strated fewer negative expressions (M = .36, SD = .69) than
younger children (M = .81, SD = 1.09). This main effect was
qualified by a nearly significant age � ethnicity interaction,

F(1,114) = 3.88, p < .06. Follow-up t-tests indicated that
ethnic group differences were present for the older children,
t(56) = 2.15, p < .04, but not for the younger children. For the
older group, CA children demonstrated more negative behav-
iors than did EA children, (M = .55, SD = .74 and M = .17,
SD = .60, respectively). Additionally, for the EA group, older
children demonstrated fewer negative behaviors than younger
children, t(55) = 3.04, p < .005, (M = .17, SD = .60 and M
= .96, SD = 1.26, respectively). Older and younger CA
children demonstrated similar rates of negative behaviors, (M
= .55, SD = .74 and M = .66, SD = .90, respectively). A
statistical trend was revealed for gender and negative
expressions, F(1,114) = 3.23, p < .08, indicating that boys
tended to demonstrate more negative behaviors than girls (M =
.74, SD = .98 and M = .42, SD = .87, respectively).
Finally, a nearly significant main effect of ethnicity was
found for total expressivity, F(1,114) = 3.54, p < .07, suggest-
ing that the EA group tended to demonstrate more total
expressive behaviors than the CA group (M = 5.56, SD = 2.87
and M = 4.64, SD = 2.19, respectively). See Table 1 for a
summary of mean frequencies and standard deviations for
expressive behaviors.
Acculturation

Scores for the adaptation of Western values and the mainten-
ance of Chinese values were obtained for the CA children and
their mothers. The means and standard deviations for child
adaptation and maintenance were M = 3.16, SD = .75 and
M = 2.55, SD = .46, respectively. The means and standard
deviations for mother adaptation and maintenance were M =
3.32, SD = .57 and M = 3.61, SD = .48, respectively. Among
mother and child acculturation indices, mother and child
adaptation of Western values were significantly correlated,
r(59) = .50, p < .000. There were no gender differences in the
child acculturation variables, but older children were rated
significantly higher than younger children on adaptation of
Western values, F(1,52) = 65.25, p < .000 (M = 3.64, SD =
.53 and M = 2.45, SD = .59, respectively).
Because age was related to the display of both positive and
negative behaviors, a partial correlation controlling for the
effect of age was conducted to explore the relation between
child adaptation and maintenance and positive and negative
expressions. Results revealed a significant inverse association
between child adaptation of Western values and negative
behaviors, r(55) = –.27, p < .05. A positive trend in the relation
between child adaptation of Western values and positive
displays was also found, r(55) = .24, p < .07. These associ-
ations were not differentiated by child age. Taken together
these findings suggest that as children increasingly adapt more
Western values, they may demonstrate behaviors more similar
to their Western counterparts (i.e., fewer negative and more
positive behaviors following disappointment). Child mainten-
ance of Chinese values was not associated with either positive
or negative expressive behaviors. Bivariate correlations were
also used to examine the relations between child acculturation
variables and social monitoring and tension behaviors. No
significant associations were found.

Bivariate correlations were conducted to examine the
relations between mother’s adaptation of Western values and
maintenance of Chinese values and her child’s expressive
behaviors. No significant correlations were found. However, a
nearly significant positive association was found for mother’s
maintenance of Chinese values and children’s social moni-
toring behaviors, r(58) = .26, p < .06. It should be noted that
the significant correlations reported here should be interpreted
with caution given the number of analyses conducted and the
possibility of alpha inflation.
Self-reported emotion following disappointment
The majority of children (75.7%) acknowledged that they did
not get the prize they wanted or that they did not like the prize
they received. Pearson’s chi-square analyses revealed that boys
more often than girls acknowledged receiving the wrong prize
or not liking the prize they were given, χ2 (1, N = 115) = 4.95,
p < .05. There were no ethnic group or age group differences
in the number of children who acknowledged receiving the
wrong prize or who acknowledged not liking the prize. Many
children (44.3%) reported experiencing a negative emotion
such as not happy, bad, or sad after receiving their last-choice
prize. There was no differentiation by ethnicity, age, or gender
for children who reported experiencing a negative emotion.
Some children (19.1%) reported feeling good or happy about
receiving their last-choice prize, and the younger children did
so more often than the older children, χ2 (1, N =115) = 5.84,
p < .05. There were no ethnic group or gender differences
in the number of children who reported feeling good or
happy. Other children (17.4%) reported ambiguous feelings
such as funny, weird, strange, or confused. This was true more
often for the older children than for the younger children, χ2
DEVELOPMENT, 2007, 31 (2), 161–169 165

Table 1
Mean frequencies and standard deviations of expressive
behaviors
as a function of age, ethnicity, and sex
Chinese American European American
M SD M SD
Positive
4-year-olds
Female 1.07 1.39 1.38 1.12
Male .60 .63 1.07 1.10
7-year-olds
Female 1.27 1.10 2.60 1.60
Male 2.21 1.48 2.14 1.99
Negative
4-year-olds
Female .57 .85 .62 1.39
Male .73 .96 1.27 1.10
7-year-olds
Female .53 .64 .00 .00
Male .57 .85 .36 .84
Social Monitoring
4-year-olds
Female 1.21 .80 1.38 1.04
Male 1.20 .86 1.33 .90
7-year-olds
Female 1.40 .91 1.60 .99
Male 1.36 .93 1.50 1.10

Tension
4-year-olds
Female 1.86 1.41 1.92 1.70
Male 1.07 1.34 1.87 1.69
7-year-olds
Female 1.87 1.19 1.60 1.50
Male 1.07 1.27 1.57 1.51
Total Expressivity
4-year-olds
Female 4.71 2.37 5.31 2.95
Male 3.60 2.06 5.53 2.42
7-year-olds
Female 5.06 1.75 5.80 2.54
Male 5.21 2.39 5.57 3.74
(1, N =115) = 15.16, p < .001. There were no ethnic group or
gender differences in children’s reporting of ambiguous
feelings. Still other children (12.2%) gave neutral responses
such as fine or okay when asked about their feelings. There
were no ethnic group, age, or gender differences in the number
of children who gave neutral responses to questions about their
feelings following disappointment.
Finally, all children chose to exchange the disappointment
prize for either their first- or second-choice prize. These data
generally support the inference that the children were disap-

pointed upon receiving their last-choice prize. The lack of
ethnic group differences in the self-report of positive and
negative emotion following disappointment suggests that the
CA and the EA children were equally disappointed as a result
of receiving their last-choice prize.
Discussion
A major aim of the present study was to examine cross-cultural
differences in children’s emotionally expressive behaviors in
the context of a disappointment situation. Given the Chinese
cultural emphasis on emotional control (Bond & Hwang,
1986; Potter, 1988) and the Western cultural emphasis on
individuality and self-expression (Markus & Kitayama, 1991),
CA children were expected to demonstrate fewer emotionally
expressive behaviors than their EA counterparts. While this
hypothesis was generally supported for overall expressiveness,
interesting patterns emerged with regard to positive and
negative expressions. As expected, CA children demonstrated
fewer positive behaviors than EA children. Surprisingly, among
older children, CA children displayed more negative
expressions than EA children and displayed negative
expressions at rates similar to their younger counterparts. In
contrast, older EA children exhibited fewer negative
expressions than their younger counterparts. These findings
are discussed in terms of cultural and familial processes, as
well as cultural variation in children’s cognitions about
emotions.
Upon receiving a disappointing gift, a typical North
American response is to smile even though one may not like
the gift (Goffman, 1967). Consistent with this cultural norm
of expression, EA children exhibited positive expressive
behaviors to a greater degree than their CA counterparts.
Cultural variation in display rules and expected emotional
reactions could account for these group differences (Cole,

Bruschi, & Tamang, 2002; Ekman, 1972). For example, the
pattern of masking disappointment with positive expressions
may be a uniquely North American phenomenon. Because
experimenters and children were matched for ethnicity in the
present study, CA children may have deemed the display of
positive expressions inappropriate or unnecessary given the
audience figure. This explanation is unlikely, though, given the
Chinese cultural emphasis on maintaining interpersonal
harmony. It is more likely that cultural variation in parental
socialization goals, and in particular, parental strategies of
emotion socialization, contributed to these differences. For
example, research suggests that Chinese mothers perceive the
socialization of socioemotional competence as a hindrance to
the achievement of academic accomplishments and filial piety,
a primary socialization goal in Chinese culture (Rao, McHale,
& Pearson, 2003). Thus, Chinese mothers may be less focused
on the socialization of emotion expression and understanding
in their children than EA mothers, who tend to acknowledge
emotional experiences and encourage discussions in attempts
to promote emotional understanding (Bretherton, Fritz, Zahn-
Waxler, & Ridgeway, 1986; Chao, 1995; Chen et al., 1998;
Gottman, 1998; Sears & Sears, 2002; Wang, 2001).
Relatedly, cultural variation in mothers’ styles of emotional
discourse appears to support emotional development through
different mechanisms and thus may serve different functions
in different cultures (Wang, 2001; Wang & Fivush, 2005). EA
mothers tend to use a “cognitive approach” in the socialization
of emotion and to provide rich causal explanations for the
antecedents of emotion. This style of emotional discourse
likely promotes the child’s development of emotion regulation
through emotion understanding. Chinese mothers tend to take
a directive role and employ a “behavioral approach”, provid-
ing few explanations about the causes of emotions and
focusing on teaching lessons and instilling proper conduct.

This style of emotional discourse likely promotes the child’s
regulation of emotion by emphasizing behavioral expectations
and the importance of adapting to social norms. In the context
of mother–child emotion conversations, the use of more power
assertive strategies (e.g., direct command and prohibitions),
coupled with the absence of appropriate explanations about
emotions, may render the internalization of expected stan-
dards of expressive behaviors and emotion understanding
difficult and, hence, the display of appropriate expressions
more improbable (cf. Chamberlain & Patterson, 1995; Chen,
Dong, & Zhou, 1997; Wang, L., Chen, X., Chen, H., Cui, &
Li, 2006). As such, even if positive expressions following
disappointment are culturally sanctioned, CA children may be
less likely to demonstrate “appropriate” expressive behaviors
given cultural differences in emotion socialization practices,
which then lead to differences in children’s emotion under-
standing and subsequent affective displays. Consistent with
this explanation is recent research indicating that EA children
have an overall greater understanding of emotional situations
than their Chinese counterparts (Wang, 2003; Wang, Q., Hutt,
Kulkofsky, McDermott, & Wei, 2006). Emotion understand-
ing may thus be a crucial prerequisite for the display of appro-
priate emotional behaviors in particular social contexts, such
as the disappointing gift situation.
Contrary to our expectation, older CA children exhibited
more negative behaviors than their EA peers. Given the
Chinese cultural emphasis on emotional restraint (Bond &
Hwang, 1986), it was hypothesized that CA children would
show relatively few negative expressions. Ethnographic field-
work conducted in China offers a possible explanation for this
finding (Potter, 1988). Potter reported that emotions were
conceived of as secondary and lacking significance in the main-
tenance of social order and that expressions of emotion did not
elicit any social responses. This perspective suggests that the
experience and subsequent expression of emotion may result

in few, if any, important social consequences. As such, CA
children might express felt negative emotion more readily and
with little concern for social repercussions, especially in the
context of disappointment, a relatively low valence affective
state. This explanation seems to contradict the notion that
Chinese culture promotes a heightened concern for emotional
control in the service of interpersonal harmony. However, the
expression of a negative emotional experience such as
disappointment is not as harmful or threatening to social
relationships as is the expression of negative affects such as
sadness or anger. The extent to which emotional restraint is
endorsed in Chinese culture is likely associated with the
valence and intensity of a particular emotional experience.
Cultural differences in children’s understanding of emotion
situation knowledge might also account for the display of
negative expressions by the older CA children. As mentioned
previously, Chinese children demonstrate less mastery of
emotion knowledge and understanding relative to their EA
counterparts, and this is particularly true for negative emotions
(Wang, 2003). In the context of a disappointing gift situation,
negative emotions may be experienced by the recipient and, if
those negative emotions are displayed, also by the gift giver.
CA children may have understood less well the potential
emotional outcomes of the disappointing gift situation with
respect to their own and the gift giver’s negative emotions.

Finally, relatively high rates of behavioral inhibition observed
among Chinese children may lead to an interpretation of the
laboratory experience as a highly stressful event, thus resulting
in the greater experience and expression of negative affect
(Chen et al., 1998).
Interestingly, older CA children exhibited negative
expressions at rates similar to younger children, whereas older
EA children demonstrated fewer negative expressions than
their younger counterparts. This finding is consistent with
reports that gains in emotion knowledge and understanding
occur less rapidly for Chinese children relative to their EA
counterparts (Wang, 2003; Q. Wang et al., 2006) and once
again highlights the importance of emotion knowledge and
understanding as potential precursors in the display of appro-
priate expressive behaviors. Additionally, specific cultural
patterns of socialization also appear to affect the age at which
emotion understanding emerges. Joshi and MacLean (1994)
found that preschool-aged Indian girls understood the distinc-
tion between felt and expressed emotion earlier than Indian
boys and British boys and girls. Likewise, Chinese and EA
parents may exert socialization pressure during different
developmental periods to meet the socialization goals
mentioned earlier. Indeed, by the end of the toddler period,
North American parents expect their children to demonstrate
emotional and behavioral self-regulation skills that support
self-sufficient behavior (Cicchetti, Ganiban, & Barnett, 1991;
Kopp, 1982). In contrast, Chinese parents believe that very
young children have not yet reached the “age of under-
standing”, and therefore, parents are often indulgent towards
their young children (Ho, 1986).
Findings from the present study highlight the potential
influence of acculturation on children’s emerging emotional
repertoires. As expected, children’s adaptation of Western
values was associated with patterns of expressive behaviors

similar to their EA counterparts (i.e., more positive and fewer
negative expressions). However, child maintenance of Chinese
values was not related to expressive behaviors. These findings
provide some support for a bidimensional model of accultur-
ation that allows for children’s independent identification with
heritage and mainstream cultures (Ryder et al., 2000). Co-
existing cultural identities can present young children with
unique challenges as they develop skills that allow them to
quickly and smoothly transition from one cultural mode to
another. This may be especially true for children’s acquisition
of emotion knowledge and understanding and the regulation
of emotional experience and expression given that advances in
these domains often require attention to implicit and subtle
social cues. Future research examining how young immigrant
children learn to negotiate the emotional demands of two
divergent cultures will be particularly interesting for those
embedded within a dominant culture whose emotional frame-
work differs so drastically from their native culture, such as
those of the Chinese and Westerners. Equally important will
be an examination of the relation between variations in
children’s skill at negotiating these demands and potential
positive or negative social consequences.
Results from the present study provide evidence for
developmental differences in the demonstration of culturally
appropriate emotional displays. Relative to younger children,
older children demonstrated more positive displays and, for the
EA group, fewer negative displays. Developmental maturity
with respect to social and cognitive abilities aids in children’s
knowledge, understanding, and subsequent utilization of
display rules (Gnepp & Hess, 1986; Saarni, 1979; Underwood
et al., 1992; Zeman & Garber, 1996). Older children are also
exposed to more indirect socializing agents (e.g., teachers and
peers) and have more opportunities to observe and model
expressive behaviors of other individuals. Increasing pressures

from these socializing agents, especially during the elementary
school years, may facilitate the internalization of appropriate
display rule use (Cole et al., 1994). Moreover, as children
mature, they are more cognitively capable of processing and
internalizing social norms of expression, and they are more
able to monitor their own emotionally expressive behaviors to
ensure compliance with social expectations.
In some studies employing the disappointment paradigm,
girls have been shown to demonstrate more positive behaviors
(Cole, 1986; Garner & Power, 1996; McDowell et al., 2000)
and fewer negative behaviors than boys (Davis, 1995;
McDowell et al., 2000; Saarni, 1984). Both sets of findings are
indicative of the greater likelihood of girls than boys to use the
display rule of minimizing negative affect and masking that
negative affect with positive displays during disappointment.
Surprisingly, gender differences were only moderately
supported in the present study with girls demonstrating fewer
negative behaviors than boys. No gender differences were
found for positive expressions. One explanation for the failure
to replicate the significance found in previous research may be
attributed in part to the extension of the coding epoch
employed in the present study. To enhance the cultural sensi-
tivity of the coding system, expressive behaviors were coded
for 30 s rather than 10 to 15 s as in previous disappointment
studies. The rationale for this modification stems from research
indicating longer response latencies and emotional inhibition
in Chinese samples (e.g., Camras et al., 1998; Chen et al.,
1998). Lengthening the coding epoch may have diluted the
ability to detect gender differences in expressive behaviors.
While there is some evidence that brief segments of expressive
behaviors accurately reflect expressive behaviors over longer
durations (e.g., Ambady & Rosenthal, 1992), results from the
present study do not support this position. Other possible
explanations for similar rates of expressive behaviors for boys
and girls over a longer coding epoch are that: (a) girls may

demonstrate leakage of negative expressions over time; (b)
boys may demonstrate more positive expressions over time; or
(c) both.
The above findings illustrate the potential complexities and
constraints introduced when using a Western-derived behav-
ioral coding system cross-culturally. In future investigations, it
is important that coding systems are developed by cross-
cultural collaborators who work collectively to determine
which behaviors and expressions are emotionally meaningful
DEVELOPMENT, 2007, 31 (2), 161–169 167
in each culture. Future studies should also examine children’s
emotional reactions in the presence of different audience
members. Ekman and Friesen (1969) have suggested that the
appropriateness of display rule use in various social contexts is
largely determined by cultural norms that take into account the
characteristics of the displayer (e.g., status, role, sex, age,
ethnicity), as well as those of other persons present when the
display is evoked. Indeed, Zeman and Garber (1996) found
that children reported that they would control their emotional
expressions more in the presence of a peer than with either
their mother or father. Those children who use display rules
appropriately receive higher ratings from their teachers and
peers on measures of social competence (Garner, 1996; Jones,
Abbey, & Cumberland, 1998; McDowell et al., 2000;
McDowell & Parke, 2000). If CA children do not use appro-
priate emotional displays with their North American teachers

and peers, these children may be perceived as less socially
competent and mature, and this perception may help set the
stage for less than optimal future social interactions. Further,
studies of emotional displays in which the audience figure is
varied will provide useful information regarding the flexibility
of children’s voluntary emotional control in various social
contexts. Future studies should also assess the actual experi-
ence of emotion through the use of multiple physiological
measures (e.g., salivary cortisol, heart rate, etc.) to ensure that
emotion induction attempts were indeed successful. Lewis,
Ramsay, and Kawakami (1993) found an inverse association
between emotional expressivity and cortisol reactivity in
infants. These findings highlight the possible incongruence
between affective experience and behavioral expression and the
importance of incorporating multiple physiological assess-
ments into investigations in which emotional experience is
inferred.
Although the present study represents one of the first known
to observe cultural differences in the emotional reactions of
young children, establishing the existence of these differences
is merely the first step. To better understand the origins of
these differences, it will be important to investigate the ways in
which cultural–emotional frameworks affect parental values,
beliefs, and expectations about children’s emotional expression
and control and, in turn, how these values, beliefs, and expec-
tations influence both implicit and explicit emotion socializa-
tion strategies. The nature of this crucial input will likely
influence the specific aspects of an emotional experience to
which children attend, process, and ultimately internalize to
inform their own understanding of emotions and subsequent
affective functioning.
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THECOUNSELINGPSYCHOLOGIST / July 2002Wester et al. /
SEXDIFFERENCES INEMOTION• PROFESSIONAL FORUM
Sex Differences in Emotion:
A Critical Review of the Literature and
Implications for Counseling Psychology
StephenR.Wester
University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
DavidL.Vogel
Iowa State University
PageK. Pressly
University of Florida
MartinHeesacker
University of Florida
This article examines the findings of several reviews of the
empirical literature on biolog-
ical sex and emotion, focusing on the degree to which perceived
sex differences in emo-
tionality are, and in most cases are not, supported while at the
same time addressing the
implications this body of research has for counseling
psychologists. This article also
explores potential explanations, such as gender role
socialization or situational influ-
ences, for the profession’s continued acceptance of large innate

sex-based affective dif-
ferences. Finally, the third section discusses several concerns
this continued acceptance
raises for the practice of counseling, whereas the last section
offers a research agenda
building on the review presented herein.
The purpose of this article is to explore the literature
surrounding the
sex-emotiondebate,with aparticular focuson the issues important
to coun-
seling psychologists. Emotion, defined as an individual’s
“experience and
expression of [affective information]” (Greenberg & Safran,
1987, p. vii),
playsasignificant role incounseling,
regardlessofwhetheremotionisafun-
damental part of the counseling psychologist’s theoretical
framework (e.g.,
Self Psychology: Kohut, 1977; Gestalt Therapy: Perls, 1969) or
whether
emotion is considered to be a significant, although not primary,
element of
the counseling process (e.g., Cognitive Therapy: Ellis &
Grieger, 1977;
630
Thecontributionof thefirst
twoauthorswasapproximatelyequal.WewouldliketothankEliza-
bethSkowron, Ph.D., in theDepartment
ofCounselorEducation,CounselingPsychology, and
RehabilitationServicesatPennStateUniversity,HannaM.Frost,
inthePsychologyDepartment
at theUniversityofFlorida,andDawnMarieWester for
theircommentsonearlierdrafts.Corre-

spondenceconcerning thisarticleshouldbeaddressed
toStephenR.Wester,Ph.D.,Department
of Educational Psychology, EnderisHall, University
ofWisconsin–Milwaukee, P.O.Box 413,
Milwaukee,WI 53154; phone: 414-229-4774; e-mail:
[email protected]
THECOUNSELINGPSYCHOLOGIST,Vol. 30No. 4, July 2002
630-652
©2002by theDivision ofCounselingPsychology.
2016tcp.sagepub.comDownloaded from
http://tcp.sagepub.com/
Behavior Therapy: Skinner, 1974). Indeed, “emotion and
emotion-related
processeslieat
theheartofcounseling”(Heesacker&Bradley,1997,p.201),
and, accordingly, counseling psychologists’ increased
understanding of
affectivephenomenamay increase their ability to facilitatecertain
therapeu-
ticchangeprocesses (e.g.,Greenberg&Safran,1989).However,at
thesame
time, less than6%of themostpopularcounseling
textsmentionbasic theory
or researchonemotion (Heesacker&Bradley,1997).Our
reviewconfirmed
these findings, suggesting thatgraduate instruction
inemotionscience tends
to be reduced to generalist discussions of “a sentence or two
rather than a
full-length treatment” (Heesacker & Bradley, 1997, p. 202) or
subsumed

under courses reviewing theories of counseling, psychotherapy,
or
psychopathology. Unfortunately, such generalist training tends
to “leave
unchallengedconscious and/or unconsciousbiaseswhich
canbeharmful to
clients” (LaFromboise, Foster, & James, 1996, p. 49) who do
not meet our
ideals regarding emotions and emotional expression.
One example of an “unchallenged conscious and/or unconscious
[bias]”
(LaFromboiseet al., 1996,p. 49) is thedegree
towhichmenandwomenare
considered to be emotionally different. For example, there seem
to be two
distinct perspectives about the interaction of sex, defined as the
“biological
[categories] male and female” (Lips, 1997, p. 4), and emotion
within the
counseling psychology literature (seeHare-Mustin&Marecek,
1988). The
first perspective, traditionally informed by writings on
counseling specific
clients (e.g., see Brooks, 1998; Brooks & Good, 2001a, 2001b;
Pollack &
Levant, 1998) and reinforced by popular culture (e.g., see
Farrell, 1999;
Gray,1992;Tannen,1990), tends toemphasizesexdifferences
inemotion. It
stemsfromthebelief in“deep-
seatedandenduringdifferencesbetweenmen
and women in core self-structures, identity, and relational
capacities”
(Hare-Mustin&Marecek, 1988, p. 456). In contrast, the
secondperspective

concludes that “[sex] differences [in emotionality] are not
universal, dra-
matic, [or] enduring” (Hare-Mustin & Marecek, 1988, p. 456).
Instead, if
observed they tend to be either context dependent (e.g., Vogel,
Tucker,
Wester,&Heesacker,1999)orofsmallermagnitude
thansuggestedbysoci-
etal perceptions (e.g., Shields, 1995).
During thecourseof thisarticle,wewill clarify these
twoperspectivesby
identifying the degree to which each is, or is not, supported by
empirical
research. It should be noted here that we differentiate biological
sex from
gender,whichcanbedefinedas“theculturalexpectationsfor
femininityand
masculinity” (Lips, 1997, p. 4). This is an important distinction
tomake, as
counselorsoften seeemotionaldifferencesbetween femaleclients
andmale
clients stemming not frombiological sex but rather from
socialized gender
roles.Researchintheareasofmalegenderrolestrain(Pleck,1981,199
5)and
malegender roleconflict (seeO’Neil,Good,&Holmes,1995, fora
review),
Wester et al. / SEXDIFFERENCES INEMOTION 631

for example, suggests that the socializedmale role, coupledwith
situational
factors,may influencehowsomemenexpress their
emotions.Ourassertion,
however, is thatobservationsof thesesmall, situationally
influenced, learned
differences in emotional behavior have become so ingrained in
our profes-
sionalconsciousnessthattheymaybemasqueradingasobjectivetruth
sabout
women’sandmen’saffectiveabilities (e.g.,Heesackeret al.,
1999;Kiselica,
2001).Therefore,whereas thisarticledoesexplore
theroleofsuchfactorsas
gender, it focusesprimarilyonbiological sexand thedegree
towhich itdoes
ordoesnotaccountforaffectivedifferencesbetweenmenandwomen.
Over-
all, we hope to facilitate the improvement of both the delivery
and the out-
come of counseling, aswell as the training of counseling
psychologists, by
addressing an area of work not typically explored within most
counseling
psychology training programs (Heesacker&Bradley, 1997).
REVIEW OF RESEARCH ON SEX AND EMOTION
To ensure that we surveyed all of the reviews in this area, we
used
PsycLIT,PsycINFO,andERICasdatabases.Thesearch
terms“sex,”“emo-
tion,” and“sexandemotion”were employed.This resulted in12
reviewsof
theempirical researchonemotion: (a)Canary,Emmers-

Sommer,andFaulk-
ner(1997),whofocusedonemotionwithinpersonalrelationships;
(b)Brody
(1996), who reviewed the empirical research on sex and emotion
within a
developmental framework that focusedonparent-
childboundaries; (c)Brody
andHall (1993),whoconducted
tworeviews(Brody&Hall,1993,2000)on
the sexandemotional experience literature; (d)Guerrero
andReiter (1998),
whoreviewedresearchonsexandemotion in thecontextof social
skills and
emotional communication; (e) Hall (1987), who conducted two
meta-
analyses (Hall, 1978, 1984) on sex and nonverbal
communication; (f)
LaFranceandBanaji
(1992),whoreviewedtheempiricalresearchonsexand
emotion published through the early 1990s; (g) Manstead
(1998), who
reviewed the research on sex and emotion across several areas,
including
psychophysiology, facial expressiveness, andaccuracy
inperceivingothers’
emotionalstates;
(h)Shields(1995),whoreviewedsexandemotionresearch
in the context of gender development; (i) White and Mullen
(1989), who
reviewedthe jealousyresearchonrelationship-
relatedfactorsandprocesses;
and(j)
Ickes,Gesn,andGraham(2000),whoreviewedresearchonempathic
accuracy.
We summarize the key findings from these reviews using
Lang’s (1968,

1994) tripartite framework, which conceptualizes emotion
across three
dimensions: (a) overt actions, such as observable behaviors; (b)
subjective
reports,
suchasaclient’sdescriptionofhisorherfeelings;and(c)physiolog-
632 THECOUNSELINGPSYCHOLOGIST / July 2002
ical responses, such as heart rate or breathing.Wechose this
framework for
three reasons. First, although emotion has been defined in many
different
ways and incorporated in various interventions throughout the
counseling
process,organizingthis
reviewwithaunifyingframeworkallowsmanyrele-
vantaspectsofanindividual’semotionalexperiencetobeaddressed.S
econd,
thisperspectivepresentsandencouragesanexaminationof the
relationships
among its domainswithin client-specific affective contexts
(Bradley, 2000).
For example, whereas clients can verbally describe affective
responses,
counselors can nonverbally evaluate such descriptions through
observation
in session, behavior measurement, and/or a sampling of
physiological

responses. Such a “triangulation” approach, accounting for
verbal, nonver-
bal, and physiological indicators of emotion, affords counseling
psycholo-
gistsabetterchanceof fullyunderstanding
theemotionbeingexpressedand
increases the likelihood that they will design more client-
specific interven-
tions. Indeed, disjunctions between the three dimensions are
considered by
sometobe important indicatorsofpsychologicaldistress
(Maxmen&Ward,
1995; Safran&Greenberg, 1991). Finally, Lang’s (1968, 1994)
framework
allows for an easier translation of emotion science, therefore
increasing
scholarlyexchangesbetweenemotionresearchersandcounselingpsy
cholo-
gists(e.g.,Heesacker&Bradley,1997;Heesacker&Carroll,1997)an
dplac-
ingcounselingpsychologists
inabetterpositiontointerpretandusethework
ofemotionresearchersby“base[ing][their]psychologicalpracticeo
nabody
of scientifically attained knowledge” (Forsyth&Leary, 1997, p.
187).
Overt Actions
Researchinthisareainvolves theuseofactualperformancemeasures,
the
assessmentofobservablefacialexpressions,verbalandnonverbalbe
haviors,
and reaction time. We summarize the research under two
subheadings: (a)
verbal expression and (b) nonverbal expression. Overall, these

studies sug-
gest that in the absenceof societal
demandsonaffectivepresentations (e.g.,
Lips, 1997),womenandmendonot differ in their ability to
process, under-
stand, andexpress emotion. Indeed, the
reviewsweexamineddemonstrated
fewdifferences betweenwomen andmen, particularly in the area
of verbal
expression.Furthermore, thosedifferences thatwere
foundappeared incon-
sistently across studies and across reviews, suggesting that they
were the
resultofsituationalfactorsratherthaninnatedifferencesinaffectivea
bility.
Verbal expression. Empirical researchdoesnot reveal
anyconsistent pat-
tern of sexdifferences in the verbal communicationof emotions.
For exam-
ple, theIckesetal.
(2000)reviewofmen’sandwomen’sverbalexpressionof
empathy showed no sex differences across 7 of 10 studies. They
also noted
that resultsdemonstratingdifferences
inverbalexpressionsofempathywere
due toparticipants’beingmotivated topresent themselves in a

stereotypical
manner rather thanbiological
sex(Ickesetal.,2000).Furthermore,although
bothwomenandmenreportedexperiencingsadnessatsimilar
levels,women
tended to show more behavioral displays of sadness (i.e.,
crying), whereas
men tended towithdraworparticipate indiversionaryactivities
(e.g.,Brody,
1996; Guerrero & Reiter, 1998). Hall’s (1987) review
demonstrated that
although women’s voices generally have greater variation in
pitch than
men’s, potentially allowing more precise communication of
emotions,
women’soverallabilitytoexpressemotionsverballyisnotsuperiorto
men’s.
Shields (1995), in turn, suggested little difference in emotional
ability
betweenmenandwomen.Sheconcludedthatwhensexdifferencesocc
urred
in emotional expression (e.g., sadness, anger), they tended
tobemore influ-
encedbyboththecontextofasituationandsex-
basedemotionalstereotypes,
rather than by innate differences in emotional ability.
Nonverbal expression.Researchon
thenonverbalexpressionofemotions
has also produced inconsistent findings independent of
situational factors.
For example, Hall’s (1978, 1984) meta-analyses indicated that
women
smiled and gazed at othersmore, hadmore expressive faces, and
displayed
more expressive bodymovements thanmen.Womenhave also

consistently
shownaslight advantage in encodinganddecodingbothnonverbal
andver-
bal emotional expression (Brody, 1996; Brody & Hall, 1993;
Hall, 1987;
Manstead,1998;Shields,1995).Specifically,womenappeartobeso
mewhat
better at decoding surpriseor indifference
thanmen,whereasmenappear to
be somewhat better at encoding sadness than women (Brody,
1996;
Manstead,1998).Furthermore,onereviewindicatedthatmenhavean
advan-
tageinthecontrolofnonverbalexpressionsofanger(Canaryetal.,199
7).On
theother hand, several of the reviews suggested that
thesedifferences in the
nonverbal expressionof emotionwere basedmore on situational
influences
than on fundamental sex differences in affective ability. For
example,
although women were somewhat more nonverbally expressive of
sadness
thanmen,thisexpressionseemstobemorecontextdependentthanindi
cative
ofsexdifferencesinemotionality(LaFrance&Banaji,1992).Suchinc
onsis-
tencies have also led some researchers to speculate that any
conclusions
aboutsexdifferences in theencodinganddecodingofemotionmaybe
influ-
enced by the affective valence or intensity of the situation
(Brody & Hall,
1993).
Implications of overt actions research. This body ofwork has

important
implications for
theprofessionandpracticeofcounselingpsychology.First,
although counseling psychology has been demonstrated to view
women as
hyperemotional (American Psychological Association Task
Force, 1975;
Broverman, Vogel, Broverman, Clarkson, & Rosenkrantz, 1972;
Shields,
1995), andmenashypoemotional (e.g.,Heesackeret al.,
1999;Plant,Hyde,
Keltner, & Devine, 2000; Shields, 1995), the inconsistent
findings (Brody,
1996; Brody & Hall, 1993; Hall, 1987; Ickes et al., 2000;
Manstead, 1998;
Shields, 1995) suggest that any observed differences between
men’s and
women’s overt emotional behaviors aremore the result of
situational influ-
ences than innate emotional abilities. Counseling psychologists
may there-
fore wish to widen their focus to include the situational
influences on their
clients’ affective presentation, as well as the nonverbal and
verbal expres-
sions, rather than merely relying on biological sex as a heuristic
for under-

standing client emotionality. For example, counseling’s
exclusive focus on
verbal expressionof specificemotions (e.g., sadness, anger)
could influence
clients’emotionalpresentation;womenmayfeel
supportedandcomfortable
inbeingemotionallyexpressive,whereasmenmayfeel forced
toconformto
socially determined self-presentation stereotypes. Indeed, such
influences
havebeendemonstratedinotherareasofcounselingpsychology(e.g.,
Kelly,
2000;Snyder, 1987), and thus their role indetermining
emotionality should
be considered. Such a shift in focus could also (a) communicate
to clients
both tolerance and acceptance, thus allowing clients to
experience and
express awider rangeof emotionality, and (b) allow therapists to
assess and
understand amore comprehensive emotional picture.
In discussing the implications of overt action research, special
mention
needs to be made of the construct alexithymia, or the inability
to verbally
express emotions, as it applies to counseling male clients
because of its
increasing prevalence in the counseling psychology literature
(e.g., see
Brooks, 1998; Brooks & Good, 2001a, 2001b; Pollack & Levant,
1998).
Despite the view that during development, men suffer from
“deficits in the
arenas of intimacy [and] empathy” (Pollack, 1995, p. 35),
leading to their

experiencing a “narrowing of [verbal] emotional
expressiveness” (Pollack,
1998,p.41),empirical researchontheverbalexpressionofemotions
ingen-
eral (e.g., Guerrero & Reiter, 1998; Hall, 1987; Shields, 1995),
and
alexithymiaspecifically,donotdemonstrateaconsistentsex-
basedpatternof
results (Heesacker,2001;Kiselica,2001).Forexample,
tworecentstudiesof
college students revealed no significant differences in
alexithymia between
menandwomen(Levantetal.,2000;Mallinckrodt,King,&Coble,199
8). In
fact, researchershavesuggested thatanysexdifferences
inalexithymiamust
be understood in the broader context of research showing that
those with
lower verbal ability are more likely to be alexithymic (Lamberty
& Holt,
1995).Indeed,it
ispossiblethatmen’sdemonstratedlowerverbalability,and
not emotional deficits,may account for themisperception that
they experi-
ence greater levels of alexithymia.
Subjective Reports

Most of the published research in the literature is subjective
report
research involving people’s verbal descriptions of emotions and
emotional
experiences, aswell as the descriptions of the type, nature, and
intensity of
those experiences. We summarize the research under two
subheadings: (a)
participants’ self-reports of perceived emotional expression and
(b) partici-
pants’self-reportsof their subjectiveexperienceofemotion.Taken
together,
research in this area has produced either inconsistent findings or
findings
indicativeofmenandwomenpresenting themselves stereotypically
in reac-
tion tosituationaldemandsorsocietalpressures
(e.g.,Brody,1996;Brody&
Hall,1993,2000;Canaryetal.,1997). Indeed,LaFranceandBanaji’s
(1992)
review of subjective report research demonstrated that sex
differences in
emotionality were evident only when (a) measures were
indirect, (b) the
emotioninquestionwasperceptiblebyothers,and(c)thesituationwas
inter-
personal. Thus, although men and women may respond to
situational pres-
sures by altering their emotional behaviors, the subjective
report research
fails tounequivocallysupport
theideathatmenandwomenareinnatelyemo-
tionally different.
Participants’ self-reports of emotional expression. The most
common

findingfromthis researchwas thatwomenandmenreport
sexdifferences in
emotionality similar to the stereotypes about sexandemotion.For
example,
womenrated
themselvesasmorevocallyexpressiveaswellasbetteratemo-
tionalexpressionanddecoding
thanmen(Brody,1996;Brody&Hall,1993;
Hall, 1978). In turn,mendescribed
themselvesasbeingmoreskilledat con-
trolling theiremotions
thanwomen(Brody,1996;Brody&Hall,1993;Hall,
1978).At the same time, however,much of this literaturewas
inconsistent.
Forexample,whereasmenperceivethemselvestobesomewhatmoree
xpres-
siveofanger thanwomen(Hall,1978),other research indicates
thatmenand
womensee themselves as equallywilling toexpress
angerdependingon the
situation(Allen&Haccoun,1976).
Indeed,someresearchevensuggests that
women report being more comfortable expressing anger to their
romantic
partners
thanmen(Brody&Hall,1993).Additionally,bothmenandwomen
reportexpressingmoreemotiontopeopletheyknowthantothosethey
donot
know,althoughwomentended toreportexpressingemotions
tomorepeople
thandidmen,whoweremorelikelytoreportexpressingemotiononlyi
ninti-
materelationships(Brody&Hall,1993,2000).Furthermore,withthe
excep-
tionofanger,bothmenandwomenreportbeingmore likely
todisclose feel-

ings towomen than tomen (Brody&Hall, 1993, 2000).
Participants’ self-reports of the subjective experience of
emotion. Few
consistentsexdifferenceswerefoundinmaleandfemaleperceptionsr
egard-
ingspecificemotionalexperiencesor theuseofemotion language
inconver-
sations. For example,White andMullen’s (1989) reviewof self-
descriptive
researchonjealousyrevealednoconsistentsexdifferences.Atthesam
etime,
however, research also suggested that whereas women report
experiencing
both positive and negative affect more often than men, sex
differences in
self-report are greatest for negative affect such as fear (Canary
et al., 1997;
Manstead, 1998; Shields, 1995) and jealousy (Guerrero &
Reiter, 1998).
Additional research also failed to demonstrate consistent sex
differences in
either other negative emotions (i.e., contempt, guilt, loneliness)
(Brody,
1996;Brody&Hall, 1993) or in the experienceof happiness
(Canary et al.,
1997).Findingsalsoindicate
thatmenandwomenreportexperiencinganger

with similar frequency and intensity (LaFrance & Banaji, 1992),
despite
some work demonstrating that consistent with their traditional
socialized
gender role,men reported beingmore likely to experience anger
in concert
with jealousy, whereas women were more likely to report
depression
(Guerrero & Reiter, 1998). White and Mullen (1989), however,
cautioned
that these observed sex differences could stem fromdifferent
definitions of
jealousy held by men as opposed to women. Shields (1995)
subsequently
speculated thatanyobservedsexdifferencesmight reflectcultural,
social,or
developmental factors rather than fundamental differences in
affective abil-
ity.One reviewsuggested thatmen reported
experiencingmoredifficulty in
expressing feardue to situational pressures tobemasculine
(Shields, 1995).
Again, these findings have led some researchers to suggest that
this effect
may be more influenced by situational pressures than by sex
differences in
emotional ability (Canary et al., 1997).
Implications of subjective report research. The inconsistent
nature of
these findingssupports the Ickesetal. (2000)position that
sexdifferences in
emotionmayemergeonlywhenindividualsexperienceincreasedmot
ivation
to present themselves in a certainway as a response to
normative pressure.

Thereviewsofsubjectivereport
researchalsosupportLaFranceandBanaji’s
(1992) assertion that sex differences in emotion are present only
under four
conditions: (a)when themeasureof emotionemployed is indirect,
(b)when
the self-reported emotion is potentially perceptible by others,
(c) when the
contextunder scrutiny is interpersonal, and(d)whengeneral
rather thandis-
crete emotion is examined.This is an important implication for
the practice
of counseling, becausemuchofwhat occurs in therapy could fall
under one
or more of these four criteria. For example, counseling is an
endeavor in
whichemotionsareperceptiblebyothers.Accordingly,maleandfema
lecli-
ents may exhibit or report more differences in their affective
ability,
especiallywhen talking toacounselorabout
interpersonalcontextsandgen-
eral feelings, perhaps to remain consistent with global
stereotypes and to
maintainapositiveconnectionwiththecounselor(e.g.,
seeKelly,2000,fora
relateddiscussion). Sucha scenariomeets threeof the four criteria

put forth
byLaFranceandBanaji,suggestingthatwhenworkingwithclients,co
unsel-
ingpsychologistsmaywish topayattention to (a) themanner
inwhich they
are assessing emotionality; (b) the counseling context; and (c)
the degree to
which demand characteristics, rather than affective abilities, are
potentially
dictating their clients’ emotional presentation, because these
factors may
play into socially sanctioned stereotypes (e.g., Heesacker et al.,
1999) and
overrepresent sex differences in emotional behavior.
Physiological Responses
Researchinphysiologicalresponsesincludesbodilyprocessesthatca
nbe
measured through psychophysiological methods, such as facial
electromyography (EMG) and functional magnetic imaging of
the brain
(fMRI) (e.g., Bradley, 2000; Lang, 1968, 1994). Findings in this
area have
been inconsistent, primarily because of our technological
inability to link
specific emotional states (i.e., sadness, happiness)with specific
anddistinct
physiological responses. Indeed, although some early research
suggested
that men experienced greater arousal than women on some
physiological
dimensions(e.g.,bloodpressure),
thosereviewsaddressingphysiology(e.g.,
Brody,1996;Brody&Hall, 1993,2000;Manstead,1998) indicated
that sex

differences were inconsistent. Women, for example, have been
found to
exhibit greater skin conductivity than men in certain situations
(Brody &
Hall, 1993,2000;Manstead,1998).Furthermore,Manstead (1998)
reported
three important findingsregardingsexandstress:
(a)womenhadhigherrest-
ing heart rates thanmen, (b)menhadhigher resting systolic
bloodpressure
than women, and (c) men had higher urinary epinephrine
responses during
stress.Additionally, researchonphysiological responses to
emotional stim-
uliusingEMGdemonstrated
thatwomenexhibitedmorefacialEMGactiva-
tion than men. In contrast, reviews of physiological studies
suggested that
men andwomen tended to respond inways that run contrary to
the general
stereotypes of sex differences in emotionality. In fact, the
majority of
research suggested that men showed more physiological signs of
emotion
than women (Brody & Hall, 1993, 2000; LaFrance & Banaji,
1992;
Manstead,1998). Inaddition, someresearchershave
reportednosignificant
fear-related differences in autonomic responses between men
and women,
suggesting that the stereotypical view of women as fearful and
men as the
“sturdyoak”(e.g.,Brannon,1985,citedinThompson&Pleck,1995,p.
142)
maybe incorrect.

Implication of physiological research. Results from
physiological tests
haveanimportant implicationforcounselingpsychology,as
thefindingsfail
to unequivocally support the belief that sex differences in
emotionality are
innate and/orbiological.Men, for example, seemtobenomoreable
to con-
trol their autonomic fear response
thanwomen.Furthermore,womendonot
seemtobeat themercyof theirautonomicresponses.Asaresult,
counseling
psychologistsmaywish to reconsider the degree towhich they
subscribe to
acceptedtruthsaboutmen,women,andemotion.Theymayalsowant
tocon-
sider focusing less on their own expectations about how
emotions “should
be” exhibited bywomenormen and focusingmore on their
clients’unique
affective presentation.
Conclusion
Reviewsofresearchacrossall
threeareasofLang’s(1968,1994)tripartite
perspective indicate that sexdifferences in emotionality are
small, inconsis-

tent, or limited to the influence of specific situational demands.
These
reviews do not support belief in sex-based affective differences.
In fact,
absent from situational demands, sex differences in
emotionality tend to
diminishand/ordisappear.Theseconclusions challengeboth
theperception
thatmenandwomenareemotionallydifferentandtheuseofbiological
sexas
a heuristic for understanding clients’affective behaviors. They
also pose an
importantquestion:Whydoescounselingpsychologyseemenandwo
menas
emotionallydifferent(e.g.,
seeHeesackeretal.,1999,foradiscussion)when
empirical research does not support such a view?
If not sex, then what?Onepotential explanation for the continued
accep-
tanceof large sex-based emotional differences is that factors
closely related
tobiological sexarebeingconfused forbiological
sex.Suchaneffectwould
be understandable, given thatmost counseling psychologists are
socialized
withinadominantculture
thatviewsmenandwomenascomingfromdiffer-
ent affective “planets” (e.g., Gray, 1992; Tannen, 1990). Gender
roles (i.e.,
socialization),culture,andcontextarethreeexamplesbecauseasLips
(1997)
noted, “cultural expectations forwomenandmen(gender) arenot
separable
fromobservations aboutwomen’s andmen’s bodies (sex)” (p. 4).
Research

on socialized gender roles and emotion, for example, suggests
that girls are
encouraged to express emotions,with the exceptionof anger and
contempt,
through words and facial expressions. Boys, conversely, are
discouraged
from expressing emotions, with the exceptions of anger and
pride (e.g.,
Brody & Hall, 1993; Levant, 2001; Levant & Pollack, 1995;
Plant et al.,
2000).Additionally, inEuro-American cultures, parents tend
todiscuss and
express a greater array of emotionswith their daughters as
opposed to their
sons (e.g., Flannagan & Perese, 1998; Fuchs & Thelen, 1988;
Kuebli &
Fivush,1992).Insum,empiricalevidencesuggeststhatgirlsaresocial
izedto
be emotional, nonaggressive, nurturing, and obedient, whereas
boys are
socialized to be unemotional, aggressive, achievement oriented,
and
self-reliant (Block,1973;Levant, 2001).Peers continue
thisprocess as chil-
drendevelop andmature (e.g.,Harris, 1995;Maccoby, 1998), in
effect con-
straining how, where, why, and with whom certain emotions are

expressed
(e.g., Shields, 1995).
Onerelatedarea,
importanttothisdiscussionandprominentincounseling
psychology, is theworkofGilligan (e.g., 1982/1993),Miller
(1976), and the
StoneCenter (see Jordan,Kaplan,Miller, Stiver,&Surrey, 1991,
aswell as
Jordan,1997,forexamples).Gilligancoinedthephrase“inadifferent
voice”
(p. xi) to describe a woman’s interpersonal style that she felt
resulted from
society’s differing expectations of men and women.
Specifically, society
expectswomentobeattachmentandrelationshipfocused,whereasite
xpects
men to be independent and achievement focused (Gilligan,
1982/1993).
Miller (e.g., 1976) includes the role of inequality in this
process, discussing
how it structures the emotional socialization of the sexes.
Indeed, “men are
encouragedfromearly life tobeactiveandrational;womenare
trained tobe
involved with emotions and with the feelings occurring in the
course of all
activity” (Miller, 1976, p. 39).All told, such different
expectations, and the
developmental experiences associated with them, can lead to
men’s and
women’s perceiving social pressure to express emotions
differently despite
the fact that their internal experience of these emotions is in
fact similar
(Miller, 1991). For example, even though anger serves as a

natural resource
forbothwomenandmen,one thathelpsmotivateus
toprotectourselvesand
standupforwhatweneed (e.g.,Miller&Surrey,1997), anddespite
the lack
of consistent evidence supporting sexdifferences in the
expressionof anger
(e.g.,Allen&Haccoun,1976;Brody&Hall, 1993;Hall, 1978), there
isevi-
dence that parents encourage anger expression in boys (Block,
1978)while
discouraging the overt expression of other emotions (e.g.,
Brooks&Good,
2001a, 2001b; Miller, 1976). As such, “boys and men feel . . .
many emo-
tions . . . [but] few can be expressed for what they are” (Miller,
1991, pp.
191-192). Women, conversely, are encouraged to do the
opposite and turn
their anger into more internal expressions of sadness (i.e.,
crying). Overt
expressionsofangerbywomenare typically
seenbysocietyaspathological
(Bernardez-Bonesatti, 1978; Miller, 1976, 1991) whereas men’s
overt
expressions of anger are seen as normal and/or expected.
Culture isanotherpotential factor thatcouldaccount
foranyobservedsex
differences in emotion (e.g.,A. Fischer&Manstead, 2000).
Culture can be
definedbroadlyas“behaviorwhosecomponentsandelementsareshar
edand
transmitted by the members of a particular society” (Linton,
1968, p. 32).

Some examples of cultural factors include ethnicity, nationality,
race, reli-
gion, andsexualorientation. Indeed,
society’soverrepresentationofcultural
differences has been well documented. For example, the
construct of
machismo is often used to describe the emotional passion,
sexuality, and
strength of all Latino males, despite evidence of large within-
group differ-
ences(e.g.,Arcaya,1996;Lazur&Majors,1995).Furthermore,Euro-
American
culture values emotional control on thepart
ofAfricanAmericanmen (e.g.,
Kochman,1981;seeLazur&Majors,1995,forareview),despitethefa
ctthat
their owncultural backgroundvalues emotionality
(e.g.,Majors&Mancini
Billson, 1992). In addition, gay men are stereotypically
considered more
emotionally expressive, despite documented within-group and
identity-
developmentdifferences (e.g.,Cass,1979).Thus, it ispossible that
counsel-
ing psychologists’concern about the degree towhich these
cultural charac-
teristicsaffectclient functioning is influencing
theirperceptionsofhowmen

andwomen experience and express emotion.
Additionally, gender roles are powerfully influenced by culture
(Fagot,
Rodgers,&Leinbach, 2000), and the degree towhich their
interaction dic-
tates perceptions of men’s and women’s emotionality cannot be
underesti-
mated (e.g., Fagot et al., 2000;Grossman&Wood, 1993;Hall,
1987; Lips,
1997). For example, the emotions Euro-American women are
thought to
expressmore thanEuro-Americanmen(e.g., fear,guilt,
happiness,nervous-
ness, warmth, shame) are stereotypically associated with their
traditional
gender roles (e.g., child care, social bonding) (seeLips, 1997,
for a review).
Conversely, the emotions Euro-Americanmen are thought to
expressmore
thanEuro-
Americanwomen(e.g.,anger,contempt,pride)arestereotypically
associatedwith the their traditional gender rolesof strength,
leadership, and
control (e.g., Brody & Hall, 2000; Levant, 2001; Lips, 1997;
Scher, 2001).
Thus,althoughthereisnospecificgenderroleforeithermenorwomen,
soci-
ety’s stereotypical assumptions aboutmen,women,
andemotionmayguide
our understanding of observed affective behavior (Lips, 1997).
Indeed,
because counseling may unintentionally reinforce such
traditional gender
roles (e.g., Enns, 2000), it may be that counseling is structuring
men’s and

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