Awe is valued in Western wellness for its health benefits but can evoke mixed feelings across cultures. Research indicates it may not universally enhance wellbeing, complicating its application in mental health and leadership.

Key Points

• Awe has become an emotional currency in Western wellness, praised for enhancing mental and physical health, social interactions, and prosocial behavior. However, it can evoke both positive and negative feelings across cultures.
• Cross-cultural research reveals that while awe is often positive in Western contexts, it can induce fear and tension in cultures like China. This challenges the notion of awe as a universally positive emotion.
• Studies with over 2,500 diary entries show that cultural context significantly influences the emotional response to awe, raising important questions about its application in mental health programs and marketing worldwide.

Awe has increasingly become recognized as an essential emotional currency within Western wellness communities, celebrated for its potential to enhance mental and physical health and foster improved social interactions. Research indicates that experiences of awe are linked to positive outcomes such as increased prosocial behavior, heightened curiosity, humility, and overall well-being, as well as potential reductions in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. However, cross-cultural investigations reveal that awe does not elicit universally positive responses; rather, it can evoke both uplifting and distressing emotions. This dichotomy raises critical questions about the universal applicability of awe as a beneficial emotional experience.

In a recent series of cross-cultural studies co-authored by researchers from various academic backgrounds, evidence has emerged suggesting that awe’s emotional impact may differ significantly across cultural contexts. Utilizing data from daily emotion diaries and physiological measurements, the studies reveal that while awe is often perceived positively in Western cultures, particularly in the United States, individuals in China may experience awe accompanied by feelings of fear or apprehension. This challenges the longstanding assumption that awe invariably cultivates connection or enhances well-being.

The implications of these findings extend to several domains, including mental health initiatives, leadership training, and global marketing strategies, necessitating a reevaluation of how awe is conceptualized and utilized across cultures. As psychologists Dacher Keltner and Jonathan Haidt define awe as an emotion resulting from encounters with vast and mind-bending experiences, the research underscores that the initial spark of awe may be consistent globally, yet the subsequent emotional response can diverge dramatically depending on cultural interpretations.

The first study, which analyzed over 2,500 diary entries from a cohort of 166 university students across China and the United States over a two-week period, serves to illustrate these nuanced emotional variances. This critical exploration of awe invites a broader understanding of emotional intelligence across cultures, highlighting the necessity for sensitivity in applying awe in various contexts.

Read the original article : Reinterpreting ‘awe’: why cross‑cultural emotional intelligence needs to be handled with care

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