Background: In many fields, active listening is considered an influential communication skill. While there has been an increasing amount of literature on active listening, there is little or hardly...Show moreBackground: In many fields, active listening is considered an influential communication skill. While there has been an increasing amount of literature on active listening, there is little or hardly any evidence of research about argumentative listening. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of active listening and argumentative listening to each other, in two different power settings: high power and low power, to see what difference these conditions make in the amount of shared information, feeling understood and social attractiveness. Design: 120 participants were randomly assigned to a 2x2 design. After writing down a story about a conflict, the participant engaged in a 5-minute conversation with a confederate. The power condition roles were manipulated and the confederate listened actively or argumentatively. Results: People share more information, feel more understood and evaluate the other person as more socially attractive when the listener is listening actively, compared to argumentatively. The power manipulation was not successful so no conclusions can be drawn in relation to perceived power differences. An explorative analysis suggested that with a stronger power manipulation there could be a difference in power settings and feeling understood, where in an argumentative listening setting, a person in high power could feel more understood than a person in low power. Conclusion: People do not only respond to an overall level of responsiveness of a listener, but the way someone is responding also matters. This study showed that we should listen to understand, not to reply.Show less
