ABSTRACT
This research examines the effect of social distance on the beneficiary’s emotion of gratitude after they receive kindness. The current study uses experimental design and includes daily behaviour. Confederates were involved as a part of the stimulus to induce the treatments given (socially proximal and socially distal). A total of 51 female students from the Faculty of Psychology of Universitas Indonesia participated in this study. Participants were randomly assigned into two groups, which were socially proximal (n = 28) and socially distal (n = 23). The emotion of gratitude was measured using a Gratitude Adjective Checklist (GAC) score from each participant. The results suggest that if the benefactor and beneficiary are socially distal, it yields in stronger gratitude emotion than if they were socially proximal. Several points about this finding are discussed: (1) having higher external validity, and (2) emphasizing on assistance given by people who are known well and not known well.
