In this study we were interested in seeing what factors influence whether people share videos of a misfortune online. Previous research has pointed out a relationship between schadenfreude, sharing...Show moreIn this study we were interested in seeing what factors influence whether people share videos of a misfortune online. Previous research has pointed out a relationship between schadenfreude, sharing, deservingness and envy and explored the link between social stereotyping and scha- denfreude. Therefore, the present study (N= 150) explored whether the two dimensions of the Stereotype Content Model, warmth and competence have an effect on schadenfreude and whether schadenfreude is related to sharing videos. We also tested whether competence and warmth are related to schadenfreude through envy, deservingness, and expectancy. Results showed that schadenfreude is related to sharing videos. Furthermore, we obtained evidence that high competence and low warmth elicit schadenfreude. Additionally, unlike we anticipated competence and warmth did not lead to deservingness and envy. However, a main effect of high competence on expectancy was found which states that perceiving a person as highly competent leads to more expectancy of their misfortune. Finally, this research concludes that people find it pleasing when highly competent and cold individuals go through a bad experi- ence, and this increases their willingness to share their schadenfreude with others.Show less
