The Downside of Showing Comparative Optimism
In a paper with my colleagues (Hoorens et al., 2016), we examined how people (observers) judge people who show comparative optimism (the belief that one’s future will be better than others’ future) versus people who show absolute optimism (the belief that one’s future will be good). In two experiments we found that observers attributed less warmth (but not less competence) to, and showed less interest in affiliating with, an individual displaying comparative optimism than with an individual displaying absolute optimism. Observers responded differently to individuals displaying comparative versus absolute optimism, because they inferred that the former held a gloomier view of the observers’ future. Consistent with previous research, observers still attributed more positive traits to a comparative or absolute optimist than to a comparative or absolute pessimist.
Negative Consequences of a Pessimistic Bias
The optimistic bias is easy to demonstrate – people generally believe that they are less at risk than other people. Generally people do not show a pessimistic bias – believing they are at greater risk than other people. In an article published in Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology (Helweg-Larsen, Sadeghian & Webb, 2002) we examined how people are viewed when they display a pessimistic bias. Two experiments showed that pessimistically biased individuals were less socially accepted and that this lack of acceptance originated in the presumption that pessimistically biased people are also hopeless, sad, and depressed. This research suggests one potential reason why people are optimistically biased, namely that pessimistically biased people are stigmatized and socially rejected.
Perceived Risk and Behavioral Intentions
One persistent question in the area of risk perception is whether perceived risk predicts behavioral change. In this research we investigated women’s risk assessments for intimate partner violence and the potential behavioral consequences of victim risk perception (Harding & Helweg-Larsen, 2009). Results from a survey of women in a domestic violence shelter (N = 56) indicated that women perceived lower risk of future violence if the abusive relationship were to end and higher risk of violence if it were to continue. Certain abuse experiences were related to elevated perceptions of personal risk for future violence. Further, perceived personal risk predicted the women’s intention to terminate their relationship upon leaving shelter. These results may inform interventions preventing intimate partner violence.