Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 17, 2026

Post-Movie Subliminal Measurement (PMSM), for Investigating Implicit Social Bias
Published on: February 29, 2020
Metaperceptions of bias in intimate relationships
Alice D Boyes1, Garth J O Fletcher
1Department of Psychology, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand. aliceboyes@gmail.com
Abstract:
Meta-awareness of bias in intimate partner judgments was investigated in 3 studies. In Study 1, participants rated fictional partners in happier relationships as more positively biased in their partner perceptions. In Study 2, participants thought their judgments of their own current partners were positively biased and that they were judged by their partners in a positively biased fashion. Using a sample of couples, Study 3 showed that metaperceptions of bias were anchored to actual levels of bias at the individual and relationship levels. In addition, positive bias was accentuated for traits that were more relevant to mate evaluation. These findings (as expected) suggest that positive bias in partner judgments can be a normative and consciously accessible feature of intimate relationships.
Related Concept Videos
Motivational Bias
Jealousy in Romantic Relationships
Equity Theory
First Impression
Bias
In statistics, a sampling bias is created when a sample is collected from a population, and some members of the population are not as likely to be chosen as others (remember, each member...
Stereotype Content Model
