The role of forgetting in undermining good intentions.

ABSTRACT: Evaluating others is a fundamental feature of human social interaction--we like those who help more than those who hinder. In the present research, we examined social evaluation of those who not only intentionally performed good and bad actions but also those to whom good things have happened (the lucky) and those to whom bad things have happened (the unlucky). In Experiment 1a, subjects demonstrated a sympathetic preference for the unlucky. However, under cognitive load (Experiment 1b), no such preference was expressed. Further, in Experiments 2a and 2b, when a time delay between impression formation (learning) and evaluation (memory test) was introduced, results showed that younger (Experiment 2a) and older adults (Experiment 2b) showed a significant preference for the lucky. Together th

SUBMITTER: Olson KR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3827336 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature