Neural Effects of Varying Levels of Social Re-Inclusion After Varying Periods of Social Exclusion

This project studied the effects of social ostracism on individuals. Specifically, how conditions of exclusion and various levels of re-inclusion affect participant’s responses in terms of social pain and neural activation due to exclusion. Participants played a Cyberball paradigm where they were randomly assigned a varying condition of exclusion and then re-inclusion during a computerized social interaction. Event-related brain potentials in response to the game were measured via electroencephalography. Dependent measures were neural activation and survey responses. All data has been collected and data analysis is currently underway. Results will contribute to understanding the effects of ostracism, as well as whether specific levels of social re-inclusion alleviate social pain caused by exclusion.