Negativity effect

The negativity effect is an attributional bias that occurs when subjects are asked what they think caused actions of other people whom they dislike. Under these conditions, the positivity effect is reversed and people rate the positive behavior of those they dislike to the situation and their negative behavior to something in their inherent disposition.

The negativity effect is sometimes called the ultimate attribution error because of its clear role in racial prejudice. (See fundamental attribution error.)

Studies have also found that people assign more weight to negative information in descriptions of others.

See also

trait ascription bias, list of cognitive biases.

References

• Regan, D. T., Straus, E. & Fazio, R. (1974). Liking and the attribution process. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 10, 385-397.
• Vonk, R. (1993). The negativity effect in trait ratings and in open-ended descriptions of persons. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 19, 269-278.