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What does true devotion look like?

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Title: What does true devotion look like?
Authors: Kim, Yena (AUTHOR), Yang, Fan (AUTHOR)
Source: Philosophical Psychology. Jan2026, Vol. 39 Issue 1, p88-109. 22p.
Subjects: Devotion, Trust, Choice (Psychology), Moral attitudes, Social perception, Social cues
Abstract: Devotion is associated with showing commitment to what individuals choose. But is perceived devotion influenced by how individuals react to what they did not choose? Two experiments (N = 1,000) indicate that rejecting alternatives is a key behavioral cue for assessing devotion. Study 1 documents the basic effect: individuals who reject alternatives were seen as more devoted than individuals who accept or are ambiguous toward alternatives. The result remained regardless of whether individuals self-identified with being devoted and exerted effort toward their target of devotion. Rejecting alternatives predicted greater likelihood of being trusted and viewed as living a good life, mediated by perceived devotion. Study 2 examined whether people distinguish between different types of devotees who reject alternatives, in terms of the process (mindful vs. mindless) and nature (neutral vs. harmful to the self) of their choices. Individuals who engaged in harmful devotion were less likely to be perceived as devoted, trusted, or living a good life than individuals who did not. Individuals who mindlessly rejected alternatives were also evaluated more negatively than individuals who mindfully rejected alternatives. Altogether, these findings not only illuminate how rejecting alternatives inform our understanding of devotion but also reveal its broader impact on social evaluations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Philosophical Psychology is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kim%2C+Yena%22">Kim, Yena</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Yang%2C+Fan%22">Yang, Fan</searchLink> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Philosophical+Psychology%22">Philosophical Psychology</searchLink>. Jan2026, Vol. 39 Issue 1, p88-109. 22p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Devotion%22">Devotion</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Trust%22">Trust</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Choice+%28Psychology%29%22">Choice (Psychology)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Moral+attitudes%22">Moral attitudes</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Social+perception%22">Social perception</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Social+cues%22">Social cues</searchLink>
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  Data: Devotion is associated with showing commitment to what individuals choose. But is perceived devotion influenced by how individuals react to what they did not choose? Two experiments (N = 1,000) indicate that rejecting alternatives is a key behavioral cue for assessing devotion. Study 1 documents the basic effect: individuals who reject alternatives were seen as more devoted than individuals who accept or are ambiguous toward alternatives. The result remained regardless of whether individuals self-identified with being devoted and exerted effort toward their target of devotion. Rejecting alternatives predicted greater likelihood of being trusted and viewed as living a good life, mediated by perceived devotion. Study 2 examined whether people distinguish between different types of devotees who reject alternatives, in terms of the process (mindful vs. mindless) and nature (neutral vs. harmful to the self) of their choices. Individuals who engaged in harmful devotion were less likely to be perceived as devoted, trusted, or living a good life than individuals who did not. Individuals who mindlessly rejected alternatives were also evaluated more negatively than individuals who mindfully rejected alternatives. Altogether, these findings not only illuminate how rejecting alternatives inform our understanding of devotion but also reveal its broader impact on social evaluations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Philosophical Psychology is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1080/09515089.2025.2453106
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        Text: English
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        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Trust
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      – SubjectFull: Choice (Psychology)
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      – SubjectFull: Moral attitudes
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              Text: Jan2026
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              Y: 2026
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