From Acclaim to Blame: Evidence of a Person Sensitivity Decision Bias

In a series of studies, the authors established empirical support for a general decision-making bias that they termed a person sensitivity bias . Specifically, a person sensitivity bias consists of a person positivity bias ( D. O. Sears, 1983 ) under positive performance conditions and a person negativity bias under negative performance conditions. The authors conducted the first empirical studies of a direct comparison between individuals and objects performing the same task under both positive and negative performance conditions. Two additional studies tested the boundaries of the sensitivity bias within negatively framed decision dilemmas. The results are discussed in terms of their relevance toward a more comprehensive theory of person-object evaluation differences.