Cited by 1,698Emotions and Moral BehaviorPsychological Well-being and Life SatisfactionPsychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 144 of the 144 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Is gratitude a moral affect?

McCullough, Michael E., Kilpatrick, Shelley D., Emmons, Robert A., Larson, David B.·2001·Psychological Bulletin

DOI 10.1037/0033-2909.127.2.249

Open this paper in CoChat — free account

Abstract

Gratitude is conceptualized as a moral affect that is analogous to other moral emotions such as empathy and guilt. Gratitude has 3 functions that can be conceptualized as morally relevant: (a) a moral barometer function (i.e., it is a response to the perception that one has been the beneficiary of another person's moral actions); (b) a moral motive function (i.e., it motivates the grateful person to behave prosocially toward the benefactor and other people); and (c) a moral reinforcer function (i.e., when expressed, it encourages benefactors to behave morally in the future). The personality and social factors that are associated with gratitude are also consistent with a conceptualization of gratitude as an affect that is relevant to people's cognitions and behaviors in the moral domain.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1037/0033-2909.127.2.249

Cites

144 of 144 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Recomputing p-values needs the paper’s full text.

Claims the paper makes

This paper’s full text isn’t openly available, so its claims and self-check weren’t run. The registry and citation checks still apply.

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

The psychology of interpersonal relations
Heider, F. (1958) · American Sociological Review · doi:10.2307/2089062 · Cited by 17,189
Childhood and Society
Erikson, E. H. (2026) · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · doi:10.5281/zenodo.18614668 · Cited by 13,081
Emotion And Adaptation
Lazarus, R. S. (1991) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780195069945.001.0001 · Cited by 12,691
The norm of reciprocity: A preliminary statement
Gouldner, A. W. (1960) · American Sociological Review · doi:10.2307/2092623 · Cited by 12,001
Politeness : Some Universals in Language Usage
Brown, P. (1987) · Cited by 11,901
The Evolution of Reciprocal Altruism
Trivers, R. L. (1971) · The Quarterly Review of Biology · doi:10.1086/406755 · Cited by 11,010
A new scale of social desirability independent of psychopathology.
Crowne, D. P., & Marlowe, D. (1960) · Journal of Consulting Psychology · doi:10.1037/h0047358 · Cited by 8,686
An attributional theory of achievement motivation and emotion
Weiner, B. (1985) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/0033-295x.92.4.548 · Cited by 7,846
The Cognitive Structure of Emotions
Ortony, A., Clore, G. L., & Collins, A. (1988) · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511571299 · Cited by 6,208
What good are positive emotions?
Fredrickson, B. L. (1998) · Review of General Psychology · doi:10.1037/1089-2680.2.3.300 · Cited by 6,066

Flagged first, then by citations

Show all 143 references

Research works printed but not linked: 13

Batson, 1991, The altruism question.
10.1207/s15324834basp1601&2_12 · DOI
Baumgartner-Tramer, 1938, The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 53, 53
Costa, 1992, NEO-PI-R professionalmanual.
Davis, 1994, Empathy: A social psychologicalapproach.
de Rivera, 1977, A structural theory of theemotions.
10.1037/0022-3514.70.4.820 · DOI
Heider, 1958, The psychology of interpersonalrelations.
Kernberg, 1975, Borderline conditions and pathologicalnarcissism.
Moore, 1996, Americans most thankful for family and health:young also thankful for career/job.
Oatley, 1992, Best laid schemes.
Shapiro, 1984, Help seeking: Why people don't., Research in the Sociology of Organizations, 3, 213
10.1037/0012-1649.34.3.403 · DOI

Sorted by citations

Items 401–500 of 1,003

The role of customer gratitude in relationship marketing: moderation and model validation
Mishra, A. A. (2016) · Journal of Strategic Marketing · doi:10.1080/0965254x.2016.1148762 · Cited by 35
“…the role of gratitude on customer behaviour (Carey, Clicque, Leighton, & Milton, 1976; Morales, 2005; Palmatier et al., 2009; Raggio et al., 2014; Soscia, 2007) and the lack of empirical research has been acknowledged even in the field of positive psychology (McCullough et al., 2001; Tsang, 2006).”
Background
Gratitude, psychological well-being, and perceptions of posttraumatic growth in adults who lost a parent in childhood
Greene, N., & McGovern, K. (2017) · Death Studies · doi:10.1080/07481187.2017.1296505 · Cited by 34
“Gratitude also plays an important role in helping individuals form and maintain relationships (McCullough et al., 2001).”
Background
Interpersonal Forgiveness as an Example of Loving One'S Enemies
Worthington, E. L., Sharp, C. B., Lerner, A. J., & Sharp, J. R. (2006) · Journal of Psychology and Theology · doi:10.1177/009164710603400104 · Cited by 35
COMMENTARIES
(2002) · Psychological Inquiry · doi:10.1207/s15327965pli1303_05 · Cited by 37
Identifying and encouraging high-quality healthcare: an analysis of the content and aims of patient letters of compliment
Gillespie, A., & Reader, T. W. (2020) · BMJ Quality & Safety · doi:10.1136/bmjqs-2019-010077 · Cited by 34
“13 Our analysis examined whether patients went beyond acknowledging behaviours and to also rewarding and promote them, because this would indicate that the compliments were attempts at patient and public involvement aimed at improving services.”
Emotional Reactions and Moral Judgment: The Effects of Morally Challenging Interactions in Military Operations
de Graaff, M. C., Schut, M., Verweij, D. E. M., Vermetten, E. H. G. J. M., & Giebels, E. (2014) · Ethics & Behavior · doi:10.1080/10508422.2014.975815 · Cited by 36
“Emotions may have a prolonged effect (cf. McCullough et al., 2001; Tangney et al., 2007; Thiel, Connelly, & Griffith, 2011).”
Background
Why Grateful Adolescent Athletes are More Satisfied with their Life: The Mediating Role of Perceived Team Cohesion
Chen, L. H., Kee, Y. H., & Chen, M. (2014) · Social Indicators Research · doi:10.1007/s11205-014-0798-0 · Cited by 34
Thanks, but no thanks: The role of personal responsibility in the experience of gratitude
Chow, R. M., & Lowery, B. S. (2010) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2009.12.018 · Cited by 34
“Although the receipt of such help often elicits gratitude (Bartlett & DeSteno, 2006; Lazarus & Lazarus, 1994; McCullough, Kilpatrick, Emmons, & Larson, 2001), people are not always grateful for help, even if they acknowledge the receipt of help (c.f., Broll, Gross, & Piliavin, 1974; Gross, Wallson,…”
The Influence of Gratitude in Physical, Psychological, and Spiritual Well-Being
Elosúa, M. (2015) · Journal of Spirituality in Mental Health · doi:10.1080/19349637.2015.957610 · Cited by 43
“In an extensive review of theoretical and empirical studies on gratitude, McCullough et al. (2001) proposed a conceptualization of gratitude as a moral emotion, analogous to other moral emotions, such as empathy and guilt.”
Background
Customer relationship investment and relationship strength: evidence from insurance industry in China
Shi, G. J., Bu, H., Ping, Y., Liu, M. T., & Wang, Y. (2016) · Journal of Services Marketing · doi:10.1108/jsm-03-2014-0088 · Cited by 34
Establishing a Positive Emotional Climate to Create 21st-Century Organizational Change
Vacharkulksemsuk, T., Sekerka, L. E., & Fredrickson, B. L. (2010) · Sage eBooks · doi:10.4135/9781483307961.n7 · Cited by 37
The psychometric properties of the 5‐item gratitude questionnaire in Chinese adolescents
Zeng, Y., Ling, Y., Huebner, E. S., He, Y., & Lei, X. (2017) · Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing · doi:10.1111/jpm.12372 · Cited by 35
Association of social support with gratitude and sense of coherence in Japanese young women: a cross-sectional study
Fujitani, T., Ohara, K., Kouda, K., Mase, T., Miyawaki, C., Momoi, K., Okita, Y., Furutani, M., & Nakamura, H. (2017) · Psychology Research and Behavior Management · doi:10.2147/prbm.s137374 · Cited by 37
“On the other hand, the emotion of gratitude draws attention to the aid that people receive in everyday life.(49) In addition, generalized resistance resources such as social support provide an individual with coherent life experiences and, therefore, build SOC over time.”
The role of gratitude and moral elevation in moral identity development
Pohling, R., Diessner, R., & Strobel, A. (2017) · International Journal of Behavioral Development · doi:10.1177/0165025417727874 · Cited by 38
“…person voluntarily and intentionally has done something good for the self (Haidt, 2003b), especially when those benefits needed high effort or costs by the benefactor and/or the effort by the benefactor was gratuitous and not merely determined by a role-based relationship (McCullough et al., 2001).”
Background
How Regulatory Orientation and Feelings of Gratitude Shape Online Review Helpfulness
Mafael, A. (2019) · Journal of Consumer Psychology · doi:10.1002/jcpy.1116 · Cited by 33
Exploring role of gratitude in developing teacher leadership in Indian universities
Garg, N. (2020) · International Journal of Educational Management · doi:10.1108/ijem-07-2019-0253 · Cited by 40
When do frontline service employees feel more grateful?
Qi, J. “., Wang, S., & Michael A. Koerber, Jr. (2020) · European Journal of Marketing · doi:10.1108/ejm-06-2019-0496 · Cited by 38
Effect of Psychological Capital of Volunteers on Volunteering Behavior: The Chained Mediation Role of Perceived Social Support and Volunteer Motivation
Xu, L. P., Liao, J. B., Wu, Y. S., & da Kuang, H. (2021) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.657877 · Cited by 43
How Does It Feel to Be Outperformed by a “Good Winner”? Prize Sharing and Self-Deprecating as Appeasement Strategies
Zell, A. L., & Exline, J. J. (2010) · Basic and Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/01973530903540125 · Cited by 33
“Gratitude increases the likelihood of behaving prosocially toward the giver as well as removing envious motivations to harm the benefactor (McCullough, Kilpatrick, Emmons, & Larson, 2001 ).”
Background
Lenders’ blind trust and borrowers’ blind spots: A descriptive investigation of personal loans
Dezső, L., & Loewenstein, G. F. (2012) · Journal of Economic Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.joep.2012.06.002 · Cited by 34
“Ravina (2008) found that, after controlling for information dealing directly with credit-worthiness, personal characteristics such as beauty, race and military involvement significantly affected the interest rates obtained by borrowers.”
BackgroundResultInfluential
Construcción de un cuestionario para la evaluación de la gratitud: el Cuestionario de Gratitud – 20 ítems (G-20)
Valero, G. B., García‐Alandete, J., & Gallego-Pérez, J. F. (2013) · Anales de Psicología · doi:10.6018/analesps.30.1.135511 · Cited by 34
Display rules differ between positive emotions: Not all that feels good looks good.
Manokara, K., Fischer, A. H., & Sauter, D. A. (2022) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/emo0001078 · Cited by 36
“…research has investigated display rules for negative emotions (e.g., Christoforou & Ashforth, 2015; Halberstadt et al., 2013), little is known about display rules for positive emotions such as gratitude (McCullough et al., 2001), interest (Silvia, 2008), and being moved (Zickfeld et al., 2019).”
A Qualitative Review and Integrative Model of Gratitude and Physical Health
Lavelock, C. R., Griffin, B. J., Worthington, E. L., Benotsch, E. G., Lin, Y., Greer, C. L., Garthe, R. C., Coleman, J. A., Hughes, C. M., Davis, D. E., et al. (2016) · Journal of Psychology and Theology · doi:10.1177/009164711604400105 · Cited by 38
A Potential Role for mu-Opioids in Mediating the Positive Effects of Gratitude
Henning, M., Fox, G. R., Kaplan, J., Damásio, H., & Damásio, A. R. (2017) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00868 · Cited by 34
“Definitions of gratitude typically describe a situational, social, and moral emotional feeling, a mediator of social cohesion, and a reinforcer of reciprocal prosocial behavior (McCullough et al., 2001).”
Background
Cascading Effects of Gratitude: A Sequential Mediation Analysis of Gratitude, Interpersonal Relationships, School Resilience and School Well-being
Caleon, I. S., Ilham, N. Q. B., Ong, C. L., & Tan, J. P.-L. (2019) · The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher · doi:10.1007/s40299-019-00440-w · Cited by 41
The Body–Mind–Spirit Dimensions of Wellness Mediate Dispositional Gratitude and Life Satisfaction
Green, Z. A., Noor, U., & Ahmed, F. (2019) · Journal of Happiness Studies · doi:10.1007/s10902-019-00215-6 · Cited by 40
Is gratitude a moral virtue?
Carr, D. (2014) · Philosophical Studies · doi:10.1007/s11098-014-0360-6 · Cited by 33
A differentiated approach to the link between positive emotion, motivation, and eudaimonic well-being
Barrett-Cheetham, E., Williams, L. A., & Bednall, T. C. (2016) · The Journal of Positive Psychology · doi:10.1080/17439760.2016.1152502 · Cited by 38
The association of positive emotion and first smoking lapse: An ecological momentary assessment study.
Vinci, C., Li, L., Wu, C., Lam, C. Y., Guo, L., Correa-Fernández, V., Spears, C. A., Hoover, D. S., Etcheverry, P. E., & Wetter, D. W. (2017) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/hea0000535 · Cited by 33
Writing about gratitude increases emotion-regulation efficacy
Boggio, P. S., Giglio, A. C. A., Nakao, C., Wingenbach, T. S. H., Marques, L. M., Koller, S. H., & Gruber, J. (2019) · The Journal of Positive Psychology · doi:10.1080/17439760.2019.1651893 · Cited by 41
Moral Emotions Toward Others at Work and Implications for Employee Behavior: a Qualitative Analysis Using Critical Incidents
Ford, M. T., Agosta, J. P., Huang, J., & Shannon, C. (2017) · Journal of Business and Psychology · doi:10.1007/s10869-016-9484-3 · Cited by 34
Compassionate acts and everyday emotional well-being among newlyweds.
Reis, H. T., Maniaci, M. R., & Rogge, R. D. (2017) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/emo0000281 · Cited by 36
Moral decline in the workplace: unethical pro-organizational behavior, psychological entitlement, and leader gratitude expression
Liu, W., Zhu, Y., Chen, S., Zhang, Y., & Qin, F. (2021) · Ethics & Behavior · doi:10.1080/10508422.2021.1987909 · Cited by 32
“When leaders express gratitude to employees, they are explicitly acknowledging that the actions of the employees have benefited the leader (McCullough et al., 2001; Tsang, 2006).”
Background
Corporate Social Responsibility and Consumer Emotional Marketing in Big Data Era: A Mini Literature Review
Shao, J. B., Zhang, T., Wang, H., & Tian, Y. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.919601 · Cited by 32
The Adolescent Response to Parental Illness: The Influence of Dispositional Gratitude
Stoeckel, M., Weissbrod, C. S., & Ahrens, A. H. (2014) · Journal of Child and Family Studies · doi:10.1007/s10826-014-9955-y · Cited by 32
The Moral Faculty: Does Religion Promote “Moral Expertise”?
Rossano, M. J. (2008) · International Journal for the Psychology of Religion · doi:10.1080/10508610802115727 · Cited by 33
“Not only has gratitude been identified as one of the character strengths that contributes to the virtue of transcendence, but philosophical and empirical work connects it to moral functioning as well ( McCullough, Kilpatrick, Emmons, & Larson, 2001 ).”
Background
Living with Gratitude: Spouse’s Gratitude on One’s Depression
Chang, Y.-P., Li, T.-S., Teng, H. Y., Berki, A., & Chen, L. H. (2012) · Journal of Happiness Studies · doi:10.1007/s10902-012-9389-4 · Cited by 32
“Researchers have defined gratitude as the positive emotion that is typically experienced when an individual perceives another person’s intentional generosity toward him or herself (McCullough et al. 2001).”
BackgroundInfluential
Promoting or preventing thanks: Regulatory focus and its effect on gratitude and indebtedness
Mathews, M. A., & Shook, N. J. (2013) · Journal of Research in Personality · doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2013.01.001 · Cited by 33
“In particular, it is known that trait gratitude and agreeableness are positively correlated (McCullough et al., 2001).”
Background
On Gratitude
Cohen, A. B. (2006) · Social Justice Research · doi:10.1007/s11211-006-0005-9 · Cited by 34
Gratitude
Nelson, S. K., & Lyubomirsky, S. (2015) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-397045-9.00040-9 · Cited by 34
Gratitude and personal functioning among earthquake survivors in Indonesia
Lies, J., Mellor, D. J., & Hong, R. Y. S. (2014) · The Journal of Positive Psychology · doi:10.1080/17439760.2014.902492 · Cited by 33
Effect of Gratitude Educational Intervention on Well-Being Indicators Among North Indian Adolescents
Khanna, P., & Singh, K. K. (2016) · Contemporary School Psychology · doi:10.1007/s40688-016-0087-9 · Cited by 31
Being moral and doing good to others
Septianto, F., & Soegianto, B. (2017) · Marketing Intelligence & Planning · doi:10.1108/mip-06-2016-0093 · Cited by 31
How to become more grateful? The mediating role of resilience between empathy and gratitude
Lasota, A., Tomaszek, K., & Bosacki, S. (2020) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-020-01178-1 · Cited by 35
Probing the Links Between Trustworthiness, Trust, and Emotion
Robbins, B. G. (2016) · Social Psychology Quarterly · doi:10.1177/0190272516657546 · Cited by 30
“…suggests that benefits received from others increases otherpraising emotions even if a benefactor’s motivations are perceived as instrumental (Elster 2007) but that other-praising emotions are strongest when a benefactor’s actions are perceived as benevolent and altruistic (McCullough et al. 2001).”
Background
Positive Education for School Leaders: Exploring the Effects of Emotion-Gratitude and Action-Gratitude
Waters, L. E., & Stokes, H. (2015) · The Educational and Developmental Psychologist · doi:10.1017/edp.2015.1 · Cited by 31
“Gratitude has been commonly conceptualised as a reciprocal behaviour and a prosocial motivator (McCullough et al., 2001; McCullough & Tsang, 2004).”
Background
Giving thanks: the relational context of gratitude in postgraduate supervision
Unsworth, K. L., Turner, N., Williams, H., & Piccin‐Houle, S. (2010) · Studies in Higher Education · doi:10.1080/03075070903348396 · Cited by 31
“Many have defined gratitude as an affective or emotional response (e.g. McCullough et al. 2001), while others have studied gratitude as an expressive response, such as saying 'thank you' (e.g. Okamoto and Robinson 1997).”
Multiplicity of Emotions in Moral Judgment and Motivation
Kaplan, U., & Tivnan, T. (2014) · Ethics & Behavior · doi:10.1080/10508422.2014.888517 · Cited by 31
Framing gratitude journaling as prayer amplifies its hedonic and eudaimonic well-being, but not health, benefits
Schnitker, S. A., & Richardson, K. L. (2018) · The Journal of Positive Psychology · doi:10.1080/17439760.2018.1460690 · Cited by 30
“, 2014), and gratitude researchers have highlighted the social nature of gratitude (Emmons & Crumpler, 2000; McCullough et al., 2001).”
Background
Peer-To-Peer Interactions in the Sharing Economy: Exploring the Role of Reciprocity within a Chinese Social Network
Starr, R. G., Jr., Zhu, A. Q., Frethey‐Bentham, C., & Brodie, R. J. (2020) · Australasian Marketing Journal (AMJ) · doi:10.1016/j.ausmj.2020.06.002 · Cited by 36
Forgiveness and Gratitude: Links Between Couples’ Mindfulness and Sexual and Relational Satisfaction in New Cisgender Heterosexual Marriages
Eyring, J. B., Leavitt, C. E., Allsop, D. B., & Clancy, T. J. (2020) · Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy · doi:10.1080/0092623x.2020.1842571 · Cited by 36
Same gratitude, different pro-environmental behaviors? Effect of the dual-path influence mechanism of gratitude on pro-environmental behavior
Sun, J., Ma, B., & Wei, S. (2023) · Journal of Cleaner Production · doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.137779 · Cited by 33
Empirical Research and Logotherapy
Schulenberg, S. E. (2003) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.2466/pr0.2003.93.1.307 · Cited by 30
Feeling and Deceiving: A Review and Theoretical Model of Emotions and Deception in Negotiation
Methasani, R., Gaspar, J. P., & Barry, B. (2017) · Negotiation and Conflict Management Research · doi:10.1111/ncmr.12095 · Cited by 31
Exploring the Spirit in U.S. Audiences: The Role of the Virtue of Transcendence in Inspiring Media Consumption
Janicke‐Bowles, S. H., Raney, A. A., Oliver, M. B., Dale, K. R., Jones, R. P., & Cox, D. (2019) · Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly · doi:10.1177/1077699019894927 · Cited by 34
“, 2011), strengthening and building of social bonds (McCullough et al., 2001; McCullough & Tsang, 2004), and prosocial behavior (Bartlett & DeSteno, 2006; Ma et al.”
Background
Longitudinal Relations Between School Climate and Prosocial Behavior: The Mediating Role of Gratitude
Li, B., Hu, X., Chen, L., & Wu, C. (2023) · Psychology Research and Behavior Management · doi:10.2147/prbm.s395162 · Cited by 29
“According to moral affect theory, gratitude serves three essential functions, including a moral barometer function, a moral motive function, and a moral reinforcement function.(35)”
Background
Self-transcendent emotions as the locomotive of value co-creation in sustainable tourism: a horizon 2050 paper
Assiouras, I., & Bayer, R. (2024) · The Tourist Review · doi:10.1108/tr-02-2024-0100 · Cited by 17
Sport-domain gratitude uniquely accounts for athletes’ well-being across two cultures: Incremental validity above the general gratitude
Chen, L. H., & Chang, Y.-P. (2016) · The Journal of Positive Psychology · doi:10.1080/17439760.2016.1257052 · Cited by 29
Şükran: Ruh Sağlığı Alanında Güncel Bir Kavram
KARDAŞ, F., & Yalçın, İ. (2017) · Psikiyatride Guncel Yaklasimlar - Current Approaches in Psychiatry · doi:10.18863/pgy.334494 · Cited by 31
Syukur Sebagai Sebuah Pemaknaan
Haryanto, H. C., & Kertamuda, F. (2016) · Insight Jurnal Ilmiah Psikologi · doi:10.26486/psikologi.v18i2.395 · Cited by 29
Customer gratitude in relationship marketing strategies: a cross-cultural e-tailing perspective
Huggins, K. A., White, D., Holloway, B., & Hansen, J. (2020) · Journal of Consumer Marketing · doi:10.1108/jcm-08-2019-3380 · Cited by 25
When gratitude and cooperation between friends affect inter-brain connectivity for EEG
Balconi, M., Fronda, G., & Vanutelli, M. E. (2020) · BMC Neuroscience · doi:10.1186/s12868-020-00563-7 · Cited by 30
Rethinking the Relationships Between Time Perspectives and Well-Being: Four Hypothetical Models Conceptualizing the Dynamic Interplay Between Temporal Framing and Mechanisms Boosting Mental Well-Being
Burzynska-Tatjewska, B., & Stolarski, M. (2020) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01033 · Cited by 29
The dark side of gratitude: Gratitude could lead to moral violation
Zhu, R., Xu, Z., Tang, H., Wang, H., Zhang, S., Zhang, Z., Mai, X., & Liu, C. (2020) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2020.104048 · Cited by 31
The Case for Moral Consumption: Examining and Expanding the Domain of Moral Behavior to Promote Individual and Collective Well-Being
Loureiro, Y. K., Bayuk, J. B., Tignor, S. M., Nenkov, G. Y., Baskentli, S., & Webb, D. A. (2016) · Journal of Public Policy & Marketing · doi:10.1509/jppm.15.148 · Cited by 33
“Similarly, gratitude can also foster moral behavior by drawing consumers’ focus to long-term relationships (Bartlett and DeSteno 2006; McCullough et al. 2001).”
Background
A feasibility study of psychological strengths and well-being assessment in individuals living with recurrent depression
Macaskill, A. (2012) · The Journal of Positive Psychology · doi:10.1080/17439760.2012.702783 · Cited by 34
“Researchers define gratitude as a strength involving appreciation and thankfulness and suggest that it operates as a moral or pro-social affect or trait (Hershberger, 2005 ; McCullough, Emmons, & Tsang, 2002 ; McCullough, Kilpatrick, Emmons, & Larson, 2001 ; Miller, 1995 ; Watkins, Woodward, Stone, & Koths, 2003 ).”
The psychological, computational, and neural foundations of indebtedness
Gao, X., Jolly, E., Yu, H., Liu, H., Zhou, X., & Chang, L. J. (2024) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-023-44286-9 · Cited by 41
“These altruistic favors are widely known to foster the bene ﬁ ciary ’ s positive feeling of gratitude, which can motivate reciprocity behaviors that reinforce the communal relationship 6 – 9 .”
Mediating the Effect of Gratitude in the Relationship between Forgiveness and Life Satisfaction among University Students
Arıcıoğlu, A. (2016) · International Journal of Higher Education · doi:10.5430/ijhe.v5n2p275 · Cited by 28
Gratitude and Its Conceptualization: An Islamic Perspective
Ali, S. A., Ahmed, M., Bhatti, O. K., & Farooq, W. (2019) · Journal of Religion and Health · doi:10.1007/s10943-019-00850-6 · Cited by 28
Leader favorable feedback and withdrawal behavior: a moderated mediation model of gratitude and leader-member exchange
Jiang, Z., & Qu, Y. E. (2022) · Personnel Review · doi:10.1108/pr-04-2021-0228 · Cited by 31
Multiplicity of moral emotions in educational dark tourism
Dresler, E. (2023) · Tourism Management Perspectives · doi:10.1016/j.tmp.2023.101094 · Cited by 36
“Children strive for the betterment of themselves (McCullough et al., 2001; Tangney et al., 2007) and adopt a”
Background
The effectiveness of an altruistic appeal in the presence and absence of favors
Boster, F. J., Fediuk, T. A., & Kotowski, M. R. (2001) · Communication Monographs · doi:10.1080/03637750128074 · Cited by 28
The Rediscovery of Gratitude: Implications for Counseling Practice
Young, M. E., & Hutchinson, T. S. (2012) · The Journal of Humanistic Counseling · doi:10.1002/j.2161-1939.2012.00008.x · Cited by 29
Forgiveness and Vengeance: The Mediating Role of Gratitude
Satıcı, S. A., Uysal, R., & Ahmet Cumhur, A. K. I. N. (2014) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.2466/07.09.pr0.114k11w9 · Cited by 28
The Emotions Sumanai, Gratitude, and Indebtedness, and Their Relations to Interpersonal Orientation and Psychological Well-Being Among Japanese University Students
Washizu, N., & Naito, T. (2015) · International Perspectives in Psychology · doi:10.1037/ipp0000037 · Cited by 28
Associations between gratitude and spirituality: An experience sampling approach.
Olson, R., Carney, A. K., & Patrick, J. H. (2018) · Psychology of Religion and Spirituality · doi:10.1037/rel0000164 · Cited by 36
Gratitude among advanced cancer patients and their caregivers: The role of early palliative care
Borelli, E., Bigi, S., Potenza, L., Gilioli, F., Artioli, F., Porzio, G., Porro, C. A., Efficace, F., Bruera, E., Luppi, M., et al. (2022) · Frontiers in Oncology · doi:10.3389/fonc.2022.991250 · Cited by 27
“Specifically, the objectives were to (1) assess the proportion of patients and caregivers feeling gratitude in the EPC context; (2) record their sources of gratitude; (3) identify associations between gratitude and doctor–patient–caregiver communication, as a measure of their relationship; and (4) identify association…”
Background
Gratitude, Social Cognition, and Well-Being in Emerging Adolescents
Bosacki, S., Sitnik, V., Dutcher, K., & Talwar, V. (2018) · The Journal of Genetic Psychology · doi:10.1080/00221325.2018.1499607 · Cited by 27
“…show appreciation of the contribution of others to their well-being, appreciate their physical and mental well-being and show a sense of compassion for self and others (Peng et al., 2018), and have the tendency to appreciate simple pleasures (McCullough et al., 2001; Watkins et al., 2003, 2006).”
Background
Dispositional Gratitude Moderates the Association between Socioeconomic Status and Interleukin-6
Hartanto, A., Lee, S. T. H., & Yong, J. C. (2019) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-018-37109-1 · Cited by 29
“I can't express my thanks enough”: The “gratitude cycle” in online communities
Makri, S., & Turner, S. (2019) · Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology · doi:10.1002/asi.24257 · Cited by 27
“The findings highlight the cyclic nature of gratitude; gratitude functioned as moral barometer, motivator, and reinforcer (McCullough et al., 2001), evidenced by reports of a cascading effect of positive contagion (Fowler & Christakis, 2010).”
BackgroundInfluential
Does Self-esteem Mediate the Relationship between Gratitude and Subjective Well-being?
Yıldırım, M., Alshehri, N. A., & Aziz, I. A. (2019) · Polish Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.24425/ppb.2019.126030 · Cited by 29
The “gift effect” on functional brain connectivity. Inter-brain synchronization when prosocial behavior is in action
Balconi, M., & Fronda, G. (2020) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-020-62421-0 · Cited by 29
Productive partnerships? Driving consumer awareness to action in CSR partnerships
Rayne, D., Leckie, C., & McDonald, H. (2020) · Journal of Business Research · doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.06.037 · Cited by 27
Parental Warmth, Gratitude, and Prosocial Behavior among Chinese Adolescents: The Moderating Effect of School Climate
Luo, H., Liu, Q., Yu, C., & Nie, Y. (2021) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph18137033 · Cited by 27
“Previous studies have also shown that adolescents with good gratitude are more likely to adopt moral behaviors, such as prosocial behaviors [23], in order to experience stronger feelings of self-efficacy and social worth [19].”
Background
The Impact of Gratitude on Connection With Nature: The Mediating Role of Positive Emotions of Self-Transcendence
Chen, L., Liu, J., Fu, L., Guo, C., & Chen, Y. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.908138 · Cited by 36
The relative impact of gratitude and transactional satisfaction on post-complaint consumer response
Simon, F. L., Tossan, V., & Ghesquiere, C. C. (2013) · Marketing Letters · doi:10.1007/s11002-013-9271-0 · Cited by 27
“Empirical research in social psychology consistently supports the propositions that intentionally provided benefits induce gratitude and that gratitude increases compliance (e.g., Goei and Boster 2005; McCullough et al. 2001).”
Background
Collective Gratitude: Positive Organizational Scholarship Perspective
Müceldili, B., Erdil, O., Akgün, A. E., & Keski̇n, H. (2015) · International Business Research · doi:10.5539/ibr.v8n8p92 · Cited by 29
“Furthermore, 10% and 30% of individuals felt the emotion of gratitude regularly and often (McCullough et al., 2001).”
BackgroundInfluential
Can Good Memories of the Past Instill Happiness? Nostalgia Improves Subjective Well-Being by Increasing Gratitude
Li, B., Zhu, Q., Li, A., & Cui, R. (2023) · Journal of Happiness Studies · doi:10.1007/s10902-022-00616-0 · Cited by 32
“Research on gratitude suggests that receiving gifts or assistance from others stimulates the feelings of gratitude (Emmons & Crumpler, 2000; Grant & Gino, 2010; Mccullough et al., 2001, 2008; Tsang, 2006).”
Background
The Affective Processes of Ethical Leadership: The Role of Moral Emotions
Jeong, S. S., Sun, C., & Yam, K. C. (2024) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-024-05718-8 · Cited by 29
“Other-praising emotions have been associated with prosociality (Haidt, 2003a) and feelings of warmth and affection toward the target individual (McCullough et al., 2001).”
SYUKUR DALAM PSIKOLOGI ISLAM DAN KONSTRUKSI ALAT UKURNYA
Rusdi, A. (2016) · Jurnal Ilmiah Penelitian Psikologi · doi:10.22236/jipp-19 · Cited by 26
Effects of a Newly Developed Gratitude Intervention Program on Work Engagement Among Japanese Workers: A Pre- and Posttest Study
Komase, Y., Watanabe, K., Imamura, K., & Kawakami, N. (2019) · Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine · doi:10.1097/jom.0000000000001661 · Cited by 26
Embodied Phronetic Pedagogy: Cultivating Ethical and Moral Capabilities in Postgraduate Business Students
Berti, M., Jarvis, W., Nikolova, N., & Pitsis, A. (2020) · Academy of Management Learning and Education · doi:10.5465/amle.2019.0034 · Cited by 30
Self-Transcendent Aspirations and Life Satisfaction: The Moderated Mediation Role of Gratitude Considering Conditional Effects of Affective and Cognitive Empathy
Oriol, X., Unanue, J., Miranda, R., Amutio, A., & Bazán, C. (2020) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2020.02105 · Cited by 26
The Bright and Dark Side of Eudaimonic Emotions: A Conceptual Framework
Landmann, H. (2021) · Media and Communication · doi:10.17645/mac.v9i2.3825 · Cited by 26
Exchange through emoting: An emotional model of leader–member resource exchanges
Liao, Z., Wu, L., Zhang, H. J., Song, Z., & Wang, Y. (2022) · Personnel Psychology · doi:10.1111/peps.12506 · Cited by 30
Being Grateful: Does it Bring Us Closer? Gratitude, Attachment and Intimacy in Romantic Relationships
Murray, A. J., & Hazelwood, Z. J. (2011) · Journal of Relationships Research · doi:10.1375/jrr.2.1.17 · Cited by 26
Trait Gratitude and Grateful Coping as They Relate to College Student Persistence, Success, and Integration in School
Mofidi, T., El-Alayli, A. G., & Brown, A. A. (2014) · Journal of College Student Retention Research Theory & Practice · doi:10.2190/cs.16.3.b · Cited by 31
Reciprocating (More) Specifically to You: The Role of Benefactor's Identifiability on Direct and Upstream Reciprocity
Halali, E., Kogut, T., & Ritov, I. (2016) · Journal of Behavioral Decision Making · doi:10.1002/bdm.1966 · Cited by 26
Gratitude and leadership in higher education institutions
Garg, N., & Gera, S. (2019) · Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education · doi:10.1108/jarhe-09-2019-0241 · Cited by 26
Gratitude facilitates behavioral mimicry.
Jia, L., Lee, L. N., & Tong, E. M. W. (2014) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/emo0000022 · Cited by 25

Authors: McCullough, M. E., Kilpatrick, S. D., Emmons, R. A., & Larson, D. B.
Affiliations: Southern Methodist University (US)
University of California, Davis (US)
ORCID: McCullough, Michael E.
Larson, David B.
Venue: Psychological Bulletin
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Published: 2001-03
Volume: 127
Issue: 2
Pages: 249-266
ISSN: 0033-2909 (ISSN-L)
1939-1455
DOI: 10.1037/0033-2909.127.2.249
OpenAlex: W2014281368
Cited by: 1,698
References: 143
Citations by year: 2026: 76 · 2025: 123 · 2024: 103 · 2023: 117 · 2022: 137 · 2021: 131 · 2020: 125 · 2019: 105 · 2018: 72 · 2017: 82 · 2016: 92 · 2015: 92 · 2014: 90 · 2013: 69 · 2012: 48
FWCI: 15.38
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Locations: Psychological Bulletin (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment
Keywords: gratitude, moral emotions, prosocial behavior, empathy, guilt, moral cognition, personality factors
MeSH terms: Affect, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Models, Psychological, Morals, Motivation, Social Behavior

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review

Is gratitude a moral affect?

Abstract

Overview

Integrity signals

Verification

Claims the paper makes

Claims other papers make about this one

Citations

Cites

Cited by

Related

Metadata

Record

About these checks