Researchers asked pairs of friends to report their own level of cynicism and to say how cynical they thought their friend was. The team used a simple statistical test to see if people judged friends accurately or assumed friends were like themselves.
The results showed that people were somewhat accurate overall. But many participants described their friends as more kind and prosocial than the friends said about themselves. Newer friends were especially likely to be seen as less cynical than they reported.
The authors think people may want to see the best in others early in a friendship because positive views help friendships form and grow. Still, this positive view can sometimes cause problems.
Difficult words
- cynicism — a belief that people are not sincere
- cynical — not trusting other people or their motives
- prosocial — behaving to help other people or the group
- accurate — correct and without important mistakes or errors
- assume — to think something is true without proofassumed
- participant — a person who takes part in a studyparticipants
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- Do you usually see new friends in a positive way? Why or why not?
- Can a positive view of someone cause problems? Give a short example.
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