Schadenfreude In Social Psychology

Another person’s misfortune can evoke feelings of anger or sympathy, but the same event can also evoke schadenfreude (Feather, 2006). How can this same event evoke two very different emotions? According to appraisal theory, emotional responses are evoked through the individual’s appraisal of an event (Roseman & Smith, 2001). Therefore, for someone’s misfortune to evoke schadenfreude, this should be appraised as being beneficial for the schadenfroh person (Frijda, 1988). Three concerns on how another person’s misfortune can be beneficial have received empirical support: deservingness of the unfortunate outcome, the opportunity to self-enhance from other people’s unfortunate events, and prior envy felt towards the unfortunate other.
Deservingness.
For example, a person who does not put much effort into writing an application and comes unprepared for a job interview, is seen as deserving of the negative outcome, which is to not get the job (Feather, McKee, & Bekker, 2011). In addition, personal responsibility of the outcome increases judgements of deservingness, which then leads to feelings of schadenfreude (Van Dijk, Ouwerkerk, Goslinga, & Nieweg, 2005).
The perceived deservingness of an outcome can also be influenced by the likeableness and moral character of the unfortunate person. Participants experienced more schadenfreude and rated the misfortune as more deserved when an unlikeable stimulus person suffered a misfortune, compared to when a likeable stimulus person experienced a misfortune (Hareli &
Weiner, 2002). The moral character of a person affects the likableness of this person (Feather
& Deverson, 2000). A study looked at the deservingness of punishment for an offence (child abuse or arson) committed by a person who was perceived as either having a strong or weak moral character (Feather & Atchison, 1998). The offenders who were judged to be more decent, reliable, worthy, and respectable (which together constitutes moral character)