The mood congruence model of temporal comparison characterizes the cognitive processes that unfold when individuals reflect upon themselves in the past. This model explains an interesting observation: namely that self reflections improve the self esteem of individuals who are typically happy but impair the self esteem of individuals who are typically unhappy (Gebauer, Broemer, Haddock, & von Hecker, 2008).
The model, formulated by Gebauer, Broemer, Haddock, and von Hecker (2008), comprises three specific principles. First, according to this model, individuals experience a sense of congruence when they reflect upon past experiences that align with the prevailing mood or attitude towards themselves. Specifically, individuals who tend to be happy experience this sense of congruence when they recall positive experiences in their past--achievements, victories, and promotions, or instance. Individuals who wo tend to be unhappy experience this sense of congruence when they recall negative experiences in their past--failures, disappointments, and criticisms, for example.
Second, when individuals experience this sense of congruence, these reflections seem more recent in time. Hence, if happy individuals reflect upon positive experiences in their lives--or if unhappy individuals reflect upon negative experiences in their lives--they experience a sense of congruence, and hence these episodes seem recent in time. Conversely, if happy individuals reflect upon negative experiences in their lives--or if unhappy individuals reflect upon positive experiences in their lives--they experience a sense of incongruence, and these events thus seem distant in time.
Finally, events that seem recent in time are not deemed to be obsolete. Positive episodes that seem recent in time will thus inflate attitudes towards the self and negative episodes that seem recent in time will deflate these attitudes, called an assimilation effect (e.g., Broemer, Grabowski, Gebauer, Ermel, & Diehl, 2008). In contrast, events that seem distant in time are perceived as obsolete--and thus incompatible with the present state of affairs. Positive episodes that seem remote in time will, therefore, deflate attitudes towards the self and negative episodes that seem remote in time will inflate these attitudes, called a contrast effect (e.g., Broemer, Grabowski, Gebauer, Ermel, & Diehl, 2008).
Although these principles seem reasonable, the application of these tenets does generate some interesting hypotheses. Specifically, if happy individuals reflect upon positive or negative events, their self esteem will, temporarily at least, improve. Positive events will seem congruent, recent, and thus valid, which confers an assimilation effect and inflate self esteem. Negative events will seem incongruent, remote, and thus invalid, which provokes a contrast effect and thus improves self esteem.
Conversely, if unhappy individuals reflect upon positive or negative events, their self esteem will, transiently, decline. Positive events will seem incongruent, remote, and thus obsolete, which confers a contrast effect and hence diminishes self esteem. Negative events will seem congruent, recent, and thus valid, which promotes an assimilation effect and also reduces self esteem.
In a series of studies, Gebauer, Broemer, Haddock, and von Hecker (2008, Experiment 3) corroborated these hypotheses. That is, self esteem, as measured by the item "I have a high self esteem" increased after happy individuals reflected upon their positive or negative attributes five years ago. In contrast, self esteem decreased after unhappy individuals reeflected upon these attributes.
Gebauer, Broemer, Haddock, and von Hecker (2008) did indeed demonstrate that happy individuals are more inclined to experience a sense of congruence when they reflect upon positive experiences in their lives. In contrast, unhappy individuals are more inclined to experience a sense of congruence when they reflect upon negative experiences in their lives.
In this study, the PANAS was used to differentiate happy and unhappy individuals. Then, individuals reflected upon either achievements or failures they experienced in the last 3 to 5 years. Finally, using a single semantic differential scale, participants evaluated the degree to which their current mood is very similar or different to the mood they experienced dring this episode, to reflect congruence. Congruence was indeed related to memories of achievements in happy individuals and memories of failures in unhappy individuals.
Several mechanisms could underpin the relationship between a sense of congruence and temporal distance. In particular, congruent events might be more easy to retrieve (cf., Kenealy, 1997), and ease of retrieval is a heuristic that is sometimes used to judge temporal distance (see Sanna & Schwarz, 2004). Similarly, congruent events might be more vivid (cf., Kenealy, 1997), and vividness also informs judgments of temporal distance (Gebauer, Broemer, Haddock, & von Hecker, 2008).
Regardless of the precise mechanisms, Gebauer, Broemer, Haddock, and von Hecker (2008, Experiment 1) did show that congruence was related to temporal distance. Participants recalled previous achievements or failures. Subsequently, using a single semantic differential scale, participants rated the extent to which their current mood is very similar or different to the mood they experienced dring this episode, to reflect congruence. In addition, using two semantic differential scales, they rated the extent to which the episode feels close and near or distant and far away.
The inclusion-exclusion model of social judgment can explain the relationship between temporal distance and assimilation or contrast effects (see Schwarz & Bless, 1992, 2007). According to this model, assimilation prevails when the prime, in this instance memories of the past, overlap conceptually with the target, in this instance judgments about the self today. Contrast prevails when the prime and target are conceptually distinct.
Past episodes that seem close in time are assumed to overlap with the self today, which thus fosters assimilation. When individuals recall positive experiences, they perceive themselves now more favorably& when individuals recall negative experiences, they perceive themselves now less favorably. Conversely, past episodes that seem distant in time are assumed to be distinct from the self today, which fosters contrast effects.
In Experiment 3 of the paper published by Gebauer, Broemer, Haddock, and von Hecker (2008), temporal distance was manipulated . That is, in one condition, individuals adopted the perspective of themselves 25 years in the future. As a consequence, past events should seem closer in time. Temporal distance did indeed affect whether assimilation or contrast prevailed.
Broemer, P., Grabowski, A., Gebauer, J. E., Ermel, O., & Diehl, M. (2008). How temporal distance from past selves influences self-perception. European Journal of Social Psychology, 38, 697-714.
Gebauer, J. E., Broemer, P., Haddock, G., & von Hecker, U. (2008). Inclusion-exclusion of positive and negative past selves: Mood congruence as information. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95, 470-487.
Kenealy, P. M. (1997). Mood state-dependent retrieval: The effects of induced mood on memory reconsidered. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 50, 290-317.
Sanna, L. J., & Schwarz, N. (2004). Integrating temporal biases: The interplay of focal thoughts and accessibility experiences. Psychological Science, 15, 474-481.
Schwarz, N., & Bless, H. (1992). Constructing reality and its alternatives: Assimilation and contrast effects in social judgment. In L. L. Martin & A. Tesser (Eds.), The construction of social judgments (pp. 217-245). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Schwarz, N., & Bless, H. (2007). Mental construal processes: The inclusion/exclusion model. In D. A. Stapel & J. Suls (Eds.), Assimilation and contrast in social psychology (pp. 119-141). New York: Psychology Press.
Last Update: 5/22/2016