The Role of Anxious Emotions in Group Cohesion in Emergency Situations Compared to Non-Emergency situations From an Observer Perspective

Velthuis, Youki (2026) The Role of Anxious Emotions in Group Cohesion in Emergency Situations Compared to Non-Emergency situations From an Observer Perspective. Bachelor thesis, Psychology.

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Abstract

Effective collective responses are crucial in emergency situations and previous research has shown that individuals often display prosocial cooperative behavior rather than selfishness when facing shared threats. However, most of this research has focused on the experiences of individuals directly involved in emergencies, leaving open the question of how such situations are perceived by external observers. The present study addresses this gap by examining how perceived anxious emotions relate to perceived group cohesion from an observer perspective and whether this relationship differs between emergency and non-emergency situations. Group cohesion was measured through two components, common fate and solidarity. It was hypothesized that higher levels of perceived anxious emotions would be positively associated with perceived group cohesion in emergency situations, but negatively associated with perceived group cohesion in non-emergency situations. An online experiment was conducted using Qualtrics (N = 69), in which participants were randomly assigned to either the emergency or the non-emergency condition. Results showed that the moderating effect of situation type on the relationship between perceived anxious emotions and perceived group cohesion (Common Fate and Solidarity) was not significant. However, a significant positive association was found between perceived anxious emotions and common fate. These findings suggest that anxious emotions may increase perceptions of common fate among group members, even if they do not necessarily lead to stronger feelings of solidarity or group bonding.

Item Type:	Thesis (Bachelor)
Supervisor name:	Willemsen, L.J.
Degree programme:	Psychology
Differentiation route:	None [Bachelor Psychology]
Date Deposited:	26 Jan 2026 13:28
Last Modified:	26 Jan 2026 13:28
URI:	http://gmwpublic.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/6084

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