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Differential construal and the false consensus effect.

T Gilovich1

  • 1Department of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853-7601.

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
|October 1, 1990
PubMed
Summary

People overestimate how common their own beliefs are due to subjective interpretations of choices, not just objective factors. This "false consensus effect" is stronger when response options allow for varied personal construal.

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Area of Science:

  • Social Psychology
  • Cognitive Psychology

Background:

  • Individuals often overestimate the prevalence of their own beliefs and behaviors, a phenomenon known as the false consensus effect.
  • This bias may stem from a failure to recognize the subjective interpretation of response alternatives.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if the false consensus effect is influenced by the subjective construal of response alternatives.
  • To explore the role of differential interpretation in consensus estimates.

Main Methods:

  • Four studies examined the relationship between subjective construal and consensus estimates.
  • Methods included correlational analyses on items with varying construal latitude and experimental manipulations of question specificity.

Main Results:

  • Larger false consensus effects were observed for items allowing greater subjective construal.
  • Experimental manipulation showed a stronger effect when questions were general versus specific.
  • Participants' interpretations of response alternatives aligned with their choices, and shared construal led to shared choices.

Conclusions:

  • Subjective construal of response alternatives significantly contributes to the false consensus effect.
  • Understanding individual interpretation is key to explaining perceived social consensus.

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