Severe Ostracism: A Common, but not Frequent, Experience

Being ostracized is a painful experience. Even subtle and minor ostracism experiences threaten fundamental human needs. However, not all ostracism is the same. Some experiences are subtle and minor, like being accidentally overlooked by a stranger walking by or being ignored as a friend uses their phone; while others are more serious, like family members shunning loved ones or entire communities banishing an individual from full membership. We present a framework and instrument for identifying instances of severe (versus mundane) ostracism. Responses from a large U. S. nationally representative survey (N = 1,124) indicate that severe ostracism is common (78% having experienced it in their lifetime), but not necessarily frequent as more people indicate that they have experienced mundane ostracism. Severe ostracism is also associated with notable decrements in basic needs satisfaction, especially when experienced recently. Severe ostracism appears to be common and useful to conceptually distinguish from less-severe forms.