this post was submitted on 12 Feb 2025

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Why does the ability to take something to heart have a negativity bias? (lemm.ee)

submitted 12 hours ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

6 comments fedilink hide all child comments

One could say this counts as a general question. Some of the people here, though, invoke this in ways which I find unique.

To give an idea of what this is about (by flashing back to an old no-context passage), as a certain person here has said...

Donate a thousand dollars to charity and you won't naturally get any memorial. Take two back and you have a criminal record for years. Greatly contribute to justice in a dictatorship, and it's only you who will be praised. Commit a heinous crime, though, and the punishment would be collective on your whole family. Plead guilty to a misdeed and the officers will automatically take your word for it. Admit to a good deed and they'll ask for proof. Spread a damning rumor and it will be the talk of the town. Spread an encouraging rumor and nobody will be talking. Ask if you can get recognition for donated blood, or even just meet the person you're giving to, and you will be treated as haughty. Ask why the news is always about bad things and you'll be treated as idealistic and naive.

This doesn't cover everything though. It's an issue that one can find in a lot of places.

Everywhere I look, I see people down on themselves. Do you know what they're not doing in this land imbued with ideas of freedom of speech? Living to the fullest and unleashing their inner braggart. Why do we have such a bias? A part of why I am who I am is to fight this mindset. Most people don't even question it though. How about you? And what reason do you have?

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

I don't see anything in the block-quote about "taking things to heart".

If you're asking why bad news is more believable than good news, it's because reality sucks and we're preconditioned to believe it will continue to sucks.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

By taking things to heart, I meant it two ways, as in taking someone's word (like if they spoke of a deed or misdeed they did) or as in listening to what someone thinks of as ethical.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 hours ago

That's not what "Taking something to heart" means.

It means to hear a complaint or comment and take it personally. Which may have a bad connotation "I mentioned white privilege and they took it to heart and got defensive about not being a racist" or good connotation "I guess they took my comments about the layout to heart, because this flows much better than before."

The question is still totally valid, but the title doesn't really describe what you're asking.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago)

Evolutionarily speaking, threats from outside are an existential threat and need spreading. Good deeds at home are already known by everyone who matters and the 'reward' is survival of your children, not you 'feeling good'. People do 'hero worship' though. I think you are downplaying that. Though the influence that comes from such a position probably means people are inclined to cooperate with 'power' because it has, de facto, already shown itself to be powerful. Whereas those 'asking' for power are necessarily weak.

This is all pop-sci evolutionary psychology so discard at will...

[–] [email protected] 2 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

Op has a history of trolling. To me this reads like bellyaching about being repeatedly calling out on it.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 hours ago

It has nothing to do with what you're thinking of. May we please not drag outside matters into irrelevant locations?