7/21/2023 0 Comments Examples of unrealistic optimismThe BTAE is the tendency to perceive one’s current abilities, attributes, and personality traits more favorably than the average peer ( Alicke, 1985). There is significant evidence, however, that the above-mentioned social comparisons are vulnerable to cognitive biases and errors, such as the BTAE. By comparing oneself with others, people gain a sense of their standing when absolute judgments are not possible and gain a relative standing compared with others like whether they do better or worse ( Festinger, 1954). Social comparisons are a basic element of human cognition. (RQ2): Do people estimate their readiness to vaccinate themselves as higher than that of others? (Study 2)Ĭomparing With Others in a Moment of Crisis: Better-Than-Average Effect (RQ1): Do people report their own adherence to COVID-19 guidelines as better than the average peer? (Study 1 and Study 2) The aim of the present study was to examine the role of BTAE in the perceptions of behavior and compliance to COVID-19 guidelines in three distinct countries: Poland, Iran, and Kazakhstan. Given the significant role of social, psychological, and behavior responses in a pandemic’s trajectory, by exploring BTAE and its impact on social cognition, the aim of the present paper was to introduce research on this social comparison bias in the moment of crisis, i.e., the COVID-19 pandemic. Notably, the better-than-average effect (BTAE) has yet to be examined in the context of public health emergencies. Yet within the context of health and, in particular, during global health emergencies such as the current pandemic, these factors remain less understood. Importantly – in the scope of this paper and special issue – a wealth of research has identified the critical role of social cognition processes and cognitive biases in shaping behavior in the moment of crisis ( Dolinski et al., 2020 Druică et al., 2020 Kulesza et al., 2020). Prior research has investigated many underlying psychological and cognitive mechanisms that determine health behaviors and behavior during crises (e.g., Dolinski et al., 1987). What are the psychological and social cognition factors shaping adherence to COVID-19 guidelines? In this paper, we search for cognitive biases that shape our understanding of other people’s behavior in comparison to our own. To manage this global crisis, countries implemented policies, but not everyone has followed the guidelines. We discuss implications for health communication.The SARS-CoV-2 virus quickly spread (at the time of writing) to 191 countries, infecting 63 million people, and causing 1.4 million deaths ( Mortality Analyses, 2020). Higher comparative optimism for infection, self-superiority, and allocentric impact perception were associated with information being sought from fewer sources higher self-superiority and egocentric impact perception were associated with lower trust. Individual differences in self-uniqueness were associated with differences in the number of information sources being used and trust on these sources. Except for participants below 25, who reported that they were affected more than average by these measures (egocentric impact bias), participants also generally reported that they were less affected than average (allocentric impact bias). As a group, participants reported that they were less likely to get infected or infect others or to suffer severe outcomes than average (unrealistic optimism) and that they adhered better than average to behavioural precautionary measures (illusory superiority). We administered an online survey to a community sample (N = 8696) of Dutch-speaking individuals, mainly in Belgium and The Netherlands, during the first lockdown (late April-Mid June 2020). We also examined the relationship of self-uniqueness with information seeking and trust in sources of information about the disease. We examined perceived self-other differences (self-uniqueness) in appraisals of one’s risk of an infectious disease (COVID-19), one’s adherence to behavioural precautionary measures against the disease, and the impact of these measures on one’s life.
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