Comparing personal and social optimism biases: magnitude, overlap, modifiability, and links with social identification and expertise

Individuals are more optimistic about their own future than a comparable person’s future (personal optimism bias). In addition, they show overoptimism toward people or social groups they identify with compared with those they do not identify with (social optimism bias). However, commonalities and differences between personal and social forms of optimism bias remain to be addressed. Data from an experiment on anticipated performances in soccer (including 160 participants), revealed (a) comparable magnitudes of personal and social optimism biases, and (b) only partial overlap between personal and social optimism biases. We further found the magnitude of the biases to depend on (c) prior experience in the investigated area. Social optimism bias, however, did not correlate with (d) the extent to which the participants identified with a social in-group. In addition, we demonstrate that (e) despite the availability of objective feedback, both personal and social optimism biases are hard to overcome. Our data further suggest (f) the existence of qualitatively different social optimism biases; biases that can possibly be distinguished by their degree of automaticity or the adoption of a more affective vs. utilitarian stance. Consequently, the present research reveals that the phenomenon of social optimism bias needs further refinement to adequately address its specific sub-components.

Increased meaningful activity while social distancing dampens affectivity; mere busyness heightens it: Implications for well-being during COVID-19

Social distancing measures have been implemented in many countries to limit the spread of COVID-19. Emerging literature reveals that fear of acquiring COVID-19 has detrimental psychological ramifications. However, it seems likely that social distancing will have a further negative impact on well-being. The focus of this study was therefore to investigate whether changes in behaviour as a result of social distancing would predict changes in well-being. Participants (n = 95) rated their level of well-being as it was both during social distancing and retrospectively one month before beginning social distancing. Participants also indicated how much time they spent engaged in various activities both during social distancing and one month before social distancing and nominated how important each of these activities was for them. These measures employed scales created specifically for the present study. In addition, participants completed the Big Five Inventory–2 Extra-Short Form and the nine-item version of the Personal Optimism and Self-Efficacy Optimism Scale. We found that affectivity–both positive and negative–decreased with increased engagement in meaningful activities and that affectivity increased with increased activity in general. While both sorts of activity appear to improve some aspects of well-being, it appears that meaningful activity regulates psychological homeostasis while busyness in general does not.

The bright side of pessimism: Promoting wealth redistribution under (felt) economic hardship

Economic inequality is a collective issue that affects all citizens. However, people often fail to support redistribution strategies aimed at redressing inequality. In this work we investigated personal optimism and collective pessimism as psychological processes that contribute to hampering vs. promoting the demand for redistribution. Our prediction was that support for redistribution would require both a pessimistic economic outlook at the collective level and the perception of being economically disadvantaged. In two studies, one of which pre-registered, Italian participants (Study 1: N = 306; Study 2: N = 384) were led to feel relatively poor or rich, rated their perceived control over either their personal or the nation’s future and estimated either personal or national economic and general future risks. To measure support for redistribution, participants were invited to allocate their desired level of taxation to each of the five tax brackets included in the Italian personal income tax. Results showed that participants were optimistic about their personal future, but pessimistic about the fate of their nation. This difference was explained by respondents’ greater perceived control over personal future than over the nation’s future. Importantly, greater pessimism about national economic risks led to greater support for progressive taxation only for participants who felt relatively poor.

Social optimism biases are associated with cortical thickness

Optimism biases denote the tendency to see future desirable events as being more likely to happen to oneself than undesirable events. Such biases are important for mental health and may extend to other individuals or social groups (social optimism biases). However, little is known about whether social optimism biases relate to brain structure. Using sparse canonical correlation analysis, we associated cortical thickness (assessed by magnetic resonance imaging) with measures of social and personal optimism bias, trait optimism and related concepts. We identified a defensive self-enhancement dimension that associated significantly and reliably with the cortical thickness of the insula and inferior frontal cortex. This self-enhancement dimension included unfavorable biases toward unpopular out-groups and indicators of personal optimism and pessimism. A shared biological substrate underlying future expectancies that subserves the promotion of the self and the denigration of unpopular out-groups may render society-wide efforts to counteract stereotyping particularly difficult: such efforts may hinder the establishment of adaptive personal optimism biases.