Dispositional Vengeance and Anger on Schadenfreude

Abstract

The aim of this study was to construct a model of the elicitation of schadenfreude through vengeance, envy, and trait anger. Japanese undergraduates (239 men, 284 women) completed questionnaires assessing dispositional vengeance, trait anger, and empathy. Then, participants read two scenarios: one about a target person's success and one about his or her misfortune. After reading the first scenario, the participants were asked to rate their envy toward the target person, then their feelings of schadenfreude after the second. A Japanese version of the Vengeance Scale was developed, and its construct validity and test-retest reliability were confirmed. Structural equation modeling was applied to examine how dispositional vengeance, trait anger, and envy were related to schadenfreude. The results indicated that envy and dispositional vengeance were significantly related to scores on the schadenfreude scale, with no gender effect, whereas vengeance was associated with envy only for women.