Divisive negative discourse biases social experience: a live experiment at a massive public event
Abstract Linguistic choices, crucially including negatively valenced words and divisive messages, can bias people’s feelings, thoughts, and judgments. However, these phenomena have been typically captured with small groups in controlled settings, casting doubt on their robustness and ecological vali...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Springer Nature
2025-08-01
|
| Series: | Humanities & Social Sciences Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-05652-8 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849767004352806912 |
|---|---|
| author | Joaquín Ponferrada Jeremias Inchauspe Federico Zimmerman Gerry Garbulsky Joaquín Navajas Adolfo M. García |
| author_facet | Joaquín Ponferrada Jeremias Inchauspe Federico Zimmerman Gerry Garbulsky Joaquín Navajas Adolfo M. García |
| author_sort | Joaquín Ponferrada |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Linguistic choices, crucially including negatively valenced words and divisive messages, can bias people’s feelings, thoughts, and judgments. However, these phenomena have been typically captured with small groups in controlled settings, casting doubt on their robustness and ecological validity. Here we examined whether such effects hold in a massive public gathering. During a large TEDx event (n = 3139), participants engaged in an interactive musical game and then evaluated their perception of (active and vicarious) enjoyment and (ingroup and outgroup) performance through surveys that manipulated (a) the initial framing (‘divisive’ or ‘communal’) and (b) the questions’ valence (‘positive’, ‘neutral’, ‘negative’). Results showed that negatively valenced words reduced enjoyment and performance ratings, particularly under divisive framings. Active enjoyment also decreased under communal framings. These results were corroborated upon adjusting for sociodemographic variables. Briefly, linguistic manipulations of affect immediately altered a crowd’s perception of enjoyment and performance. These insights extend psycholinguistic models and contribute to discussions on public communication. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9eeeecc101e44410a86010c1d06a2612 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2662-9992 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | Springer Nature |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Humanities & Social Sciences Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-9eeeecc101e44410a86010c1d06a26122025-08-20T03:04:23ZengSpringer NatureHumanities & Social Sciences Communications2662-99922025-08-0112111010.1057/s41599-025-05652-8Divisive negative discourse biases social experience: a live experiment at a massive public eventJoaquín Ponferrada0Jeremias Inchauspe1Federico Zimmerman2Gerry Garbulsky3Joaquín Navajas4Adolfo M. García5Cognitive Neuroscience Center, University of San AndrésCognitive Neuroscience Center, University of San AndrésLaboratorio de Neurociencia, Escuela de Negocios, Universidad Torcuato di TellaAprender de Grandes, TEDxRíodelaPlataLaboratorio de Neurociencia, Escuela de Negocios, Universidad Torcuato di TellaDepartamento de Lingüística y Literatura, Facultad de Humanidades, Universidad de Santiago de ChileAbstract Linguistic choices, crucially including negatively valenced words and divisive messages, can bias people’s feelings, thoughts, and judgments. However, these phenomena have been typically captured with small groups in controlled settings, casting doubt on their robustness and ecological validity. Here we examined whether such effects hold in a massive public gathering. During a large TEDx event (n = 3139), participants engaged in an interactive musical game and then evaluated their perception of (active and vicarious) enjoyment and (ingroup and outgroup) performance through surveys that manipulated (a) the initial framing (‘divisive’ or ‘communal’) and (b) the questions’ valence (‘positive’, ‘neutral’, ‘negative’). Results showed that negatively valenced words reduced enjoyment and performance ratings, particularly under divisive framings. Active enjoyment also decreased under communal framings. These results were corroborated upon adjusting for sociodemographic variables. Briefly, linguistic manipulations of affect immediately altered a crowd’s perception of enjoyment and performance. These insights extend psycholinguistic models and contribute to discussions on public communication.https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-05652-8 |
| spellingShingle | Joaquín Ponferrada Jeremias Inchauspe Federico Zimmerman Gerry Garbulsky Joaquín Navajas Adolfo M. García Divisive negative discourse biases social experience: a live experiment at a massive public event Humanities & Social Sciences Communications |
| title | Divisive negative discourse biases social experience: a live experiment at a massive public event |
| title_full | Divisive negative discourse biases social experience: a live experiment at a massive public event |
| title_fullStr | Divisive negative discourse biases social experience: a live experiment at a massive public event |
| title_full_unstemmed | Divisive negative discourse biases social experience: a live experiment at a massive public event |
| title_short | Divisive negative discourse biases social experience: a live experiment at a massive public event |
| title_sort | divisive negative discourse biases social experience a live experiment at a massive public event |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-05652-8 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT joaquinponferrada divisivenegativediscoursebiasessocialexperiencealiveexperimentatamassivepublicevent AT jeremiasinchauspe divisivenegativediscoursebiasessocialexperiencealiveexperimentatamassivepublicevent AT federicozimmerman divisivenegativediscoursebiasessocialexperiencealiveexperimentatamassivepublicevent AT gerrygarbulsky divisivenegativediscoursebiasessocialexperiencealiveexperimentatamassivepublicevent AT joaquinnavajas divisivenegativediscoursebiasessocialexperiencealiveexperimentatamassivepublicevent AT adolfomgarcia divisivenegativediscoursebiasessocialexperiencealiveexperimentatamassivepublicevent |