Too Reluctant to Reach Out: Receiving Social Support Is More Positive Than Expressers Expect.
Level 3 - non-randomized controlled study
Series of non-randomized behavioral and experimental psychological studies
PubMed 35802611 · doi:10.1177/09567976221082942
What was done
Across four behavioral and survey studies, researchers tested whether individuals hold miscalibrated expectations about how their social support will be received. Study 1 assessed the link between expectations and the likelihood of reaching out in 100 online adults. Study 2 examined 120 students sending support messages to known individuals. Study 3 evaluated 50 adult pairs expressing support in person to a new acquaintance. Study 4 evaluated 300 adults to test the underlying mechanism regarding expressers' focus on competence versus recipients' focus on warmth.
What was found
The abstract reports no exact numbers, effect sizes, or p-values. Directionally, expressers' expectations predicted their likelihood of expressing support (Study 1). Expressers sending support to familiar contacts (Study 2) or new acquaintances (Study 3) consistently underestimated how positively recipients would respond. Study 4 observed a perspective gap where expressers focused on how competent their support seemed, whereas recipients focused on the warmth conveyed.
Why it matters
These findings identify a psychological barrier to reaching out to others, showing that social reluctance stems partly from miscalibrated pessimism about how support will be received.
Limits
The abstract reports no numerical estimates, confidence intervals, or statistical significance metrics. The samples were drawn from online adults and university students, limiting generalizability to high-stakes crises, clinical populations, or deeply strained relationships.
Cited by
- supports Experimental psychological research demonstrates that people are systematically overly pessimistic about how positively others will respond to social engagement.