Power, defensive denigration, and the assuaging effect of gratitude expression

a r t i c l e i n f o This article examines the interactive effects of power, competency threats, and gratitude expression on the tendency to denigrate others. The results of two experiments indicate that (1) power holders whose competence has been threatened are more likely than others to denigrate interaction partners, and (2) receiving gratitude expression has self-affirming effects for insecure power holders. Experiment 1 demonstrated that high-power, but not low-power, individuals who received threatening feedback about their competence denigrated the competence of their partners. Importantly, this tendency was ameliorated when subordinates expressed gratitude for previous help provided from the power holder. Experiment 2 demonstrated that the ameliorating effect of gratitude expression on threatened power holders' tendency to denigrate subordinates is mediated by increased perceptions of social worth. Implications for research on power, gratitude expression , and the self are discussed. Introduction When power holders mistreat subordinates, they hinder the subor-dinates' performance, diminish morale, and introduce relationship-harming stress (e., less is known about what subordinates may do to reduce these tendencies. Indeed, as noted by Aquino and Thau (2009), given what we currently know, the best advice we can offer is to simply try to avoid abusive power holders in the first place. In the present article, we draw from recent findings in the power and gratitude expression literatures to illuminate the dynamic relationship between the powerless and the powerful. In particular, we examine whether gratitude expression may ameliorate the aggressive tendencies of insecure power holders by affirming their sense of social worth (Grant & Gino, 2010). Power has been shown to produce aggressive tendencies, including researchers have explored moderators of the relationship between power and aggressive tendencies. For example, Fast and Chen (2009) demonstrated that power holders who feel incompetent are more likely than others to display direct forms of aggression, a response driven largely by insecurity. Building on these findings, we hypothesize that threats to personal competence (e.g., Cuddy, Fiske, & Glick, 2008) lead the powerful to harm others indirectly as well, in the form of denigra-tion. We base this on the notion that denigrating others is a common form of ego defensiveness (e.g., Baumeister, Dale, & Sommer, 1998) and that lacking competence is especially threatening to the powerful (Fast & Gruenfeld, 2012). Avoiding denigration with gratitude expression These points uncover a clue as to how subordinates might assuage harsh treatment from insecure power holders. …