关键词: 慢性应激, 考试, 第三方惩罚, 意图

Abstract: It is known that stress influence social decision making by eliciting a “tend-and-befriend” or a “fight-or-flight” response. Third-party punishment is one of the most common forms of social decisions which are based on the intention behind and the outcome of a defection. Importantly, they could also be affected by the emotional states, such as stress. Previous studies have investigated the influence of acute stress on third-party punishment using economic games as paradigms. The effects of chronic stress on third-party punishment should be further tested using criminal vignettes considering that they are more morally and legally salient than the economic games. In addition, few studies have investigated the effects of stress on third-party punishment among people with legal expertise. Therefore, the current study aimed to investigate the effects of examination stress on third-party punishment among people with or without legal training. A 2 (between-subjects factor: group, stress vs. control group) * 2 (within-subjects factor: intention, clear vs. ambiguous) * 2 (within-subjects factor: outcome, severe vs. not severe) mixed design was employed in the study. In Experiment 1, sixty-one law students were recruited. The stress group would attend the National Judicial Examination in a couple of weeks whereas the control group had no stressful life events within a month. In experiment 2, sixty-three non-law students were recruited. The stress group would attend the Graduate Entrance Examination in two or three weeks whereas the control group had no stressful life events. All participants initially were required to fill in three self-assessment questionnaires (i.e. PANAS; STAI; JSI). In the formal study, they were asked to envisage themselves as a judge and complete third-party punishment in 12 criminal vignettes which varied on the clarity of intention and the severity of outcome. The results showed that the stress group experienced a higher level of negative emotion than the control group. The clarity of intention and the severity of outcome predicted the magnitudes of punishment. Penalties for the defendants with a clear intention were heavier than those with an ambiguous intention, and the crimes with a serious consequence were punished more severely than those with a less serious consequence. The chronic examination stress increased third-party punishment only in the law-students group. The negative emotion positively predicted the magnitudes of punishment and fully mediated the effect of chronic stress on punishment. Additionally, other justice sensitivity moderated the stress effect. Taken together, the findings suggest that chronic stress does have an influence on third-party punishment regardless of the level of intention or outcome. People are more punitive after experiencing stressful life events. But the effect of stress on third-party punishment is restricted to participants with legal expertise. Additionally, third-party punishment is also influenced by individual differences in justice sensitivity. These findings would deepen our understanding of how stress affects social decision making and might have some implications for judicial practice.

Key words: chronic stress, examination, third-party punishment, intention