← all facts
emotion
We spend more mental energy processing bad news than good.
A 2001 review concluded that humans consistently pay more attention to, and retain, negative information over positive information.
Evolutionarily, identifying a threat was more critical to survival than identifying a benefit. This mechanism ensures we prioritize managing danger, even if the 'danger' is now just an awkward social encounter.
Our brains are better designed for survival than for satisfaction.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Baumeister et al., 2001, Review of General Psychology
- What the check found
- The claim accurately summarizes the thesis of the 2001 study 'Bad Is Stronger Than Good' by Baumeister et al., which provides extensive evidence that negative stimuli have greater psychological impact than positive ones.
- Confidence
- Well replicated
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.