Congratulations, So Happy for You! Promotion Motivation Predicts Social Support for Positive Events
People benefit when others react enthusiastically to their good news, a process known as capitalization. However, little is known regarding individual differences that predict who responds enthusiastically, and how capitalization might benefit responders. Drawing on regulatory focus theory, we hypothesize that responders with a stronger promotion predominance, who emphasize ideals and pursue goals eagerly, (a) provide more enthusiastic (active-constructive) responding following their partners’ capitalization attempts, and (b) experience positive capitalization outcomes, namely higher perceptions of interaction quality and greater positive mood. Findings from 1 correlational study (Study 1) and 2 dyadic studies (Studies 2–3) supported these hypotheses. These results are among the first to consider the role of motivation in the context of capitalization interactions and reveal important benefits associated with providing capitalization support.
