Experimental study demonstrates that awe increases salience of universalism and humility in UK adults, indicating mechanisms driving transformative behavioral inspiration.
Key Points
To clarify how the emotion of awe influences human values and whether it inspires individuals to act in alignment with those values.
Conducted five experimental investigations (four preregistered; Ntotal = 1,679) using UK community and student samples between 2023 and 2025.
Tested multiple awe induction methods against neutral and active positive emotion controls (amusement), evaluating nature-based versus social contexts.
Awe consistently increased the salience of universalism, stimulation, and humility values compared to neutral and amusement control conditions across Experiments 1a–3.
Value salience statistically mediated the relationship between awe and heightened inspiration to pursue value-congruent actions in Experiments 2b–3.
Nature-elicited awe activated distinct value profiles compared to awe elicited within social contexts (Experiments 2a–2b).