Less Care, More Respect: Low Concern About Social Evaluation Signals Competence
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Concern about social evaluation motivates impression management, yet how observers judge people who appear more or less concerned remains unclear. We propose that appearing less concerned about social evaluation consequences can elicit greater respect by functioning as a signal of competence. In a preregistered study (N = 360), participants evaluated targets described as having either higher or lower concern about social evaluation. Targets who appeared less concerned were judged as more competent and, in turn, more deserving of respect, with perceived competence mediating this effect. A second preregistered study (N = 367) showed that this pattern did not extend to targets who displayed indifference to financial loss, suggesting that the effect is specific to concern about social evaluation rather than general nonchalance. These findings highlight stances toward social evaluation as a consequential cue for competence inference.
Source: The Journal of Social Psychology
Authors: Xianwei Meng, Shaojun Huang, Yuka Mizuno, Akira Ono
Institutions: Nagoya University, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
Language: English
Subfield: Safety Research
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7214699415