Reading absurdist literature amplifies affirmation of one’s cultural identity.

Evidence

As predicted, participants more strongly affirmed their cultural identity after reading Kafka’s absurd parable (M = 21.0, SD = 2.94) than after reading Aesop’s meaningful parable (M = 18.2, SD = 4.33), F(1, 51) = 7.57, p < .01, η2 = 0.13. Participants in both conditions reported equivalent positive and negative feelings on the PANAS, both Fs < 1. — Travis Proulx, Steven J. Heine, and Kathleen D. Vohs, When Is the Unfamiliar the Uncanny?…, 38

Categorization

• QUESTION: The mood equivalence on the PANAS is striking with respect to the general-mechanism hypothesis versus a pure affective account.
• XREF: Connects directly to the reader’s meaning-maintenance framework question about whether group-boundary defense is a special case of a broader system. — connects to: Absurdist art may arouse uncanny feelings and provoke defensive affirmation — Travis Proulx, Steven J. Heine, and Kathleen D. Vohs, When Is the Unfamiliar the Uncanny?…, 10; Absurdist humor constitutes a meaning threat worthy of psychological study. — Travis Proulx, Steven J. Heine, and Kathleen D. Vohs, When Is the Unfamiliar the Uncanny?…, 42