Negativity bias: how negative experiences cloud our judgement

Paying attention to your surroundings is a typical human behavior exhibiting the will to survive. Being wary about the environment that you are in will make you more likely to survive and pass on your genes.

However, in the current era having negativity bias actually inhibits us to think rationally and make the right decisions.

We make decisions based on the information that we have. However, we tend to be more reliant on the negative more than the positive. This causes two outcomes:

1. Risk aversion – where we prefer an assured outcome over a gamble with a higher expected outcome; and

2. Loss aversion – where we tend to shy away from losses in comparison to the acquirement of tantamount gains.

People with negativity bias are less likely to be motivated and have clouded judgement.

• Pay attention to your thought
• Take time for self-reflection
• Make positive routines
• Use mental models to guide your decisions.