cheryl
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What Happens When You Give People the Benefit of the Doubt - Greater Good
People who view the behaviors of others in a positive light are happier, a new study suggests.
Imagine you made plans with a new friend to talk on the phone. You call, but there’s no answer—and you don’t get a call back.
What happened? Perhaps they got held up by caring for their children or a work obligation. Perhaps they didn’t want to meet but didn’t bother to cancel. Or maybe they had a hectic week and simply forgot to write down your appointment time. Or it’s possible that you called the wrong number.
In social situations like these, our minds can generate a variety of explanations, ranging from ones that are more charitable to ones that assign blame to the other party. Psychologists refer to this as our attributional style. Past research has found that individuals with a “hostile” attributional style—that is, who tend to assign malicious intent to others’ actions—tend to be less satisfied with their relationships.
People who view the behaviors of others in a positive light are happier, a new study suggests.
Imagine you made plans with a new friend to talk on the phone. You call, but there’s no answer—and you don’t get a call back.
What happened? Perhaps they got held up by caring for their children or a work obligation. Perhaps they didn’t want to meet but didn’t bother to cancel. Or maybe they had a hectic week and simply forgot to write down your appointment time. Or it’s possible that you called the wrong number.
In social situations like these, our minds can generate a variety of explanations, ranging from ones that are more charitable to ones that assign blame to the other party. Psychologists refer to this as our attributional style. Past research has found that individuals with a “hostile” attributional style—that is, who tend to assign malicious intent to others’ actions—tend to be less satisfied with their relationships.