At the party,Jenny overheard her friend say to Richard,"Be nice to Jenny! She's had a fight with her boyfriend and is feeling a bit low." Later Richard remarked to Jenny that she looked "so lovely tonight." Based on research by Gagné and colleagues,would Jenny believe that Richard was expressing his true opinion?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

DResearch by Gagné and colleagues suggests that Jenny would probably not believe Richard was expressing his true opinion due to the correspondence bias, which is the tendency to attribute a person's behavior to their personality or disposition rather than to situational factors. Knowing that Richard was told to be nice to her because she's feeling low might lead Jenny to doubt the sincerity of his compliment, thinking it's not based on his true opinion but rather on the situation. Additionally, if Jenny has low self-esteem at the moment due to the fight with her boyfriend, this could further contribute to her skepticism of Richard's compliment, as people with low self-esteem might be more prone to doubt positive feedback. However, the specific combination of low self-esteem and dating someone else (C) is not directly related to Gagné's research findings on belief in sincerity but is included as a plausible reason for skepticism.

At the Party,Jenny Overheard Her Friend Say to Richard,"Be Nice