Examining self-presentation as a motivational explanation for comparative optimism.

Abstract

Five studies examined a self-presentation explanation for comparative optimism. Experiments 1 and 2 laid the foundation for such an account by first showing that people associate a favorable identity-image with the conveyance of an optimistic outlook and that people recognize that an individual may be perceived in a negative light if his or her optimistic estimates are disconfirmed, hence raising the issue of potential accountability demands. Following the issue of accountability, the results across Experiments 3, 4, and 5 provided consistent evidence that people employ comparative optimism in their self-presentation efforts but only if the circumstances involve little risk of being held potentially accountable. Specifically, when self-presentational situations involved greater accountability demands, comparative optimism decreased (less optimistic), whereas, when these situations involved reduced accountability demands, comparative optimism increased (more optimistic). In short, the current experiments present compelling evidence demonstrating that comparative optimism may reflect an individual's goal to self-present a favorable identity-image, with the provision that such efforts are constrained by accountability pressures.

The Influence of Knowledge on Overconfidence: Consequences for Management and Project Planning

“…This explanation for increased overconfidence is in line with the findings of Tyler & Rosier (2009), who found that comparative optimism was linked to motivational efforts in self-presentation. Participants employed comparative optimism only if the circumstances involved little risk of being held accountable for the assessment.…”

Behaving Optimistically: How the (Un)Desirability of an Outcome Can Bias People's Preparations for It

“…While we see promise in these two possible explanations for why people might lean toward optimistic behavior, many other possibilities exist (for additional ideas, see Helweg‐Larsen, Sadeghian, & Webb, ; Krizan & Windschitl, ; Sharot, ; Shepperd, Carroll, Grace, & Terry, ; Taylor & Brown, ; Tyler & Rosier, ).…”

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“…Unrealistic optimism is a systematic error in predicting one's future, which manifests itself as an individual's tendency to overestimate the frequency with which good events will happen, and to underestimate the frequency with which bad events will happen to oneself in comparison to an average other (Hoch, 1985;Weinstein, 1980). Nevertheless, many researchers propose that unrealistic optimism is adaptive, because optimistic expectations make oneself feel good (Armor, Massey, & Sacket, 2008), and it may enhance the way one is perceived by others (Tyler & Rosier, 2009).…”