Tension. To measure whether participants felt a negative state of tension, they were asked to indicate to what extent they felt anxious and tense about learning what the gift box contained on 7-point scales (1 = not at all and 7 = very much). These two indicators of tension were averaged to form the tension index ( = .69). Because participants in the control condition did not receive a gift box, conflict and tension questions were only presented to the participants in the high and low curiosity conditions. Results Manipulation Check. A one-way ANOVA on the curiosity manipulation check measure revealed a significant main effect of condition, F(1, 76) = 7.97, p < .006, such that curiosity was significantly higher in the high curiosity condition (opaque box; Mhigh = 5.18) than in the low curiosity condition (transparent box; Mlow = 4.14). The control condition was not included in the analysis since participants in this condition did not see questions pertaining to the gift box. Consumption Enjoyment. A one-way ANOVA revealed a significant main effect of condition (F(2, 102) = 4.04, p < .021), such that reading enjoyment was significantly lower in the high curiosity condition (Mhigh = 7.34) than in the low curiosity (Mlow = 7.97; t(102) = -2.16, p < .033) and control (Mcontrol = 8.17; t(102) = 2.60, p < .011) conditions, which did not differ (t(102) = .61, NS). These results provide further support for hypothesis 1. Rumination and Attentional Conflict. A one-way ANOVA on the thoughts about the gift, revealed a significant main effect of condition, F(2, 102) = 6.51, p < .002, such that gift-related
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