Abstract
Sadness is elicited by various situations and pointed out the difference of quality. However, the difference isn't investigated. The purpose of this study is to categorize situations eliciting sadness and to show the order as a basic study of revealing the different aspects of sadness. As pre-research, 163 participants were asked to recall their sadness events and write about them honestly and openly. On the basis of that, 36 situations were chosen and represented on stimulus cards eliciting sadness, which consisted of six episodes by six situations. Using Russell's (1983) grouping method, 64 participants were asked to classify the 36 cards into groups of two, five, seven and twelve. The results of the multidimensional method analysis showed that all 36 situations fell roughly into a circular order in a space definable by two dimensions: toward oneself–toward others and the possibility of self-coping–the impossibility of self-coping. In addition, cluster analysis revealed six clusters. The results of the MDS corresponded pretty much to that of the cluster analysis. This study revealed that situations eliciting sadness may fall into six categories: “loss,” “unable to achieve their goal,” “romantic breakup,” “family friction,” “personal injury or disease,” and “loneliness.”
