The Positivity Effect…so how’s that workin’ for you?
In general, the Positivity Effect refers to the tendency people have to evaluate people they already like in a favorable light. That is to say, if you like someone, you tend to believe that the good things that happen in their lives are due to their inherent position. And anything negative that happens to them, you attribute to the situations surrounding them. Sort of a “they are good, the world is hard on them.”
The inverse of this is the Negativity Effect – which occurs when evaluating what causes the behavior of someone you dislike. (The person’s behavior is the cause of their downfall, and the world and situations around them are good, or at worst, neutral.)
What’s interesting is that both effects are attribution biases. There is a thought process involved (cognitive process) that helps us come to this conclusion. But usually it happens quickly for us, as if by habit. So to us it looks like a fact that so-and so did this and that’s why he got the result…when in fact he may have totally flubbed it up, but still received the result due to something else that happened.
The great news is that if we want our interactions with others to improve, taking a look at how Positivity Effect and Negativity Effect play a role could be pretty significant.
An example of how this may be playing out is right in front of us is with the oil spill tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico.
There are many players in this drama, with new ones added almost every day. And it’s fair to say that people are attributing blame, bad juju to some people, and others are not being judged that way. (Just so you know, I’ve heard all sides of this issue being referred to as “the bad guy”, so there’s quite a bit of specialized attribution going on.)
With the Gulf Oil Spill, who are the players you “like” or feel the most affinity with or have the most in common with? Are they trying hard to deal with a catastrophic situation but keep getting hampered by forces out of their control, or by people out-to-build-a-name-for-themselves or out-of-touch other people you don’t like as much?
Notice – I did not name any names or interject an opinion, but you already knew who you liked (the good guys) and who you disliked (the bad guys).
If the good guys – for you – are the families and small businesses who are losing their livelihoods and are in a state of despair, then of course the bad stuff that happens is based on circumstances. They were going along with their lives, sometimes thriving, sometimes doing what they could to hang on, and in came the big bad wolf. Completely out of their control, and therefore no blame whatsoever.
With this attribution it would be virtually impossible to attribute the negative consequences to anything the US citizens might have done.
If the good guys – for you – are the leaders at BP who are doing everything they can to end the disaster, clean up afterwards, and make appropriate amends, then it would be reasonable that you would think all the bad things that are happening to them (the “government shakedown”, criticism about running PR campaigns, unfair judgments, etc.) are due to all those other unintelligent, uninformed people who don’t understand what’s really going on.
Even if you acknowledge that errors were made, if you fundamentally like BP, the oil industry, big business, etc., it would be virtually impossible to blame them entirely. We’re not talking a pass the buck avoiding the blame, but that you, because of the attribution you have made, will believe they are trying very hard to remedy a situation and that other people are getting in the way of the progress.
I’m definitely not making a case for either side…just pointing out that when you like someone (or a company, or a president or government) you will be more generous in your understanding, and more forgiving for their errors, mis-spoken terms in press conferences, and slowness or quickness to act.
But when you dislike them, you will believe, without a doubt, they they brought this badness upon them as a result of their bad behavior and poor choices.
This particular issue is extremely complex, so we often turn to generalizations in order to make sense of it all, or to even just be able to watch without collapsing into a heap of tears.
While it is complex, OUR behavior and assessments – who we attribute which behaviors and causes to – is not always so complex. In fact it’s pretty black and white…going right back to the Positivity Effect and the Negativity Effect.
To learn more about how the Positivity Effect plays a role in the quality of your individual life and relationships, you’ll want to check out this month’s featured book summary – Positivity, by Dr. Barbara Fredrickson on the Members Page.
Remember, you always have access to the resources for two months – the current month and the previous month, so make sure you download Positivity by Dr. Fredrickson before it is removed from the site on June 30th.
Where have you noticed the Positivity Effect or Negativity Effect showing up in your life?
With your husband? Children? The parent of your child’s playmate who never makes you completely comfortable? The tall burly, scruffy guy behind you in the grocery store? Your co-worker who always seems to get her reports in just before yours? Your neighbor with the obnoxiously loud car you hear at 6am everyday?
What would happen if you got to know them a little better? Maybe like them a little better?
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