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self perception
You believe your virtues are rarer than they actually are.
The false uniqueness effect causes people to underestimate the number of others who share their positive personality traits.
You want to feel special, so your brain rationalizes that your skills or ethical standards are exceptional. Research shows that most people believe they are more cooperative and more moral than the average peer.
We all think our good intentions are a unique commodity.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Suls and Wan, 1988
- What the check found
- The attribution to Suls and Wan (1988) is accurate, though the study also included Sanders as a co-author. The effect is correctly identified as an underestimation of peer participation in desirable traits.
- 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.