Students perceive themselves as less likely than the average classmate to develop drinking problems or drop out of school. This best illustrates

Question

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This scenario is describing the unrealistic optimism bias, which is the tendency for individuals to overestimate their likelihood of experiencing positive events and underestimate their likelihood of experiencing negative events. This is evident in the students' perception that they are less likely than their peers to develop drinking problems or drop out of school. The other options do not fit this scenario as well. The Barnum effect refers to the tendency to accept vague and general personality descriptions as accurate, the spotlight effect involves overestimating the extent to which others notice and evaluate our appearance and behavior, and the false consensus effect involves overestimating the extent to which others share our beliefs and behaviors.

Students Perceive Themselves as Less Likely Than the Average Classmate