Awe has become a kind of emotional currency in Western wellness circles – revered for its ability to boost mental and physical health and even social interactions. There are findings linking awe to increased prosocial behaviour, curiosity, humility, wellbeing, lower post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and more adaptive physiological profiles. And yet across cultures, awe can provoke veneration and wonder or it can stimulate feelings of dread. What if awe does not travel?
That’s the question posed by a new set of cross-cultural studies that I co-authored with researchers from a wide range of academic institutions. The research offers direct evidence of how awe may not be a universal feel-good emotion.
Using daily emotion diaries and physiological data, we found evidence that while awe may be typically experienced as a positive emotion by people in the US in western contexts, in China, it can be experienced with some fear and tension by people in China.
Our findings challenge the assumption that awe always leads to connection or improved wellbeing – and raises big questions about how awe is used in mental health programmes, leadership training, and marketing around the world.
Awe can feel different across cultures
Psychologists and pioneers in the study of awe, Dacher Keltner and Jonathan Haidt define awe as:
“The feeling of being in the presence of something vast that transcends your current understanding of the world.”
Awe is an emotion we experience when we’re faced with something vast and mind-stretching. But this research shows that while the spark may be the same, how we actually feel can be very different depending on culture.
In two studies, we found awe took on a different emotional flavour, depending on where – and how – it was experienced. In the US, awe was more often accompanied by appreciation and amusement. In China, it came with more fear and signs of emotional pressure.
What is ‘awesome’ among student populations?
The first study was based on more than 2,500 diary entries recording moments of awe or joy among 166 university students in China and the US over a two-week period.
The pattern was clear: Chinese-born students studying in Beijing reported feeling more fear during moments of awe than students born and raised in the US.
But that difference did not show up for experiences of joy, suggesting this mixed emotional response was specific to awe.
Looking at the diary entries, we found that the US students felt more awe in response to nature, monuments, or architecture – 18% of the time, than students in China – just 10%. Chinese participants, on the other hand, were more likely to describe awe linked to other people, making up 59% of their entries versus 50% in the US.
Cultural psychology suggests that compared to the US, China’s culture tends to be more collective and more hierarchical. It is possible that feeling awe toward someone powerful may more often come with a feeling of being smaller or less in control, which could explain the higher number of diary entries relating threat-based awe among Chinese students.
Even shared experiences of awe trigger diverging reactions
To examine if these differences persisted in controlled laboratory settings, in a second laboratory-based study we showed American and Chinese participants the same nature video. The clip, taken from the film Planet Earth featured giant waterfalls and sweeping aerial shots of mountain ranges, all set to orchestral music with no narration. The Chinese students reported more fear than the US students – even though both found the video awe-inspiring. The US students, on the other hand, reported feeling more of the good stuff: appreciation, even a bit of amusement.
The physiological data we collected during the viewing backed up what the students reported. Both groups showed similar signs – such as sweating, which signals emotional arousal and steady breathing patterns. But heart rate told a different story: the US students’ heart rate showed a drop, a sign of calm, while the Chinese students’ heart rate showed a slight rise, suggesting tension or alertness.
Why awe’s emotional impact isn’t one-size-fits-all
These findings carry weighty implications. Awe is being used everywhere – in therapy, schools, and even marketing. From nature retreats to big-brand ads, there’s a whole industry built on the idea that awe makes us feel good. But if awe brings fear for some, its effects – on mental health, creativity, or team connection – might not be so straightforward.
An earlier study I co-authored in 2018 with fellow experts Maria Monroy, and Dacher Keltner, shows how awe can help ease post-traumatic stress disorder, especially for military veterans spending time in nature. But if the sense of awe comes with fear, the benefits could fade, or even flip.
This matters for business, too. Companies are using awe in ads, travel and brand events to wow people and build loyalty. But if awe feels unsettling in some cultures, those big emotional plays could fall flat or even push people away.
Our research is not saying awe doesn’t work – just that it does not feel the same for everyone. Culture shapes how we feel, even with emotions we may think are hardwired. The view of awe as purely uplifting might be the exception, not the norm. Knowing that is crucial for creating experiences that can actually work across cultures.
A weekly e-mail in English featuring expertise from scholars and researchers. It provides an introduction to the diversity of research coming out of the continent and considers some of the key issues facing European countries. Get the newsletter!
Craig L. Anderson ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
