A recent Journal of Personality and Social Psychology says we are biased to be generous in evaluating people we are intimate with, especially for mating-related traits, and are more biased for happier relationships. We are also aware that we and others are biased in these ways:
If we take a game-theoretical view, people in an intimate relationship are more likely to view the game as repetitive therefore more likely to cooperate; more cooperation enhances trust; and higher trust may lead to a positive bias.
Gordon Worley,Why do you say only one has to lie to keep the relation stable?Isn't it more likely that from time to time both will need to at least not tell truths the other would find discomforting?John
And even if you encounter someone who does desire to overcome all biases in order to better see the truth, they may overcome the bias but still act as though they hadn't in order to keep their relationships healthy. After all, unless you happen to have a significant other who will accept any truthful comment without shunning you for making negative ones, it's in your interest to act biased if you want to keep your significant other (although we might debate the health of a relationship where one partner has to lie to keep it stable).
Yan, I don't see why trust must lead to a positive bias. I find it more plausible that a positive bias is taken as a signal of trust.
If we take a game-theoretical view, people in an intimate relationship are more likely to view the game as repetitive therefore more likely to cooperate; more cooperation enhances trust; and higher trust may lead to a positive bias.
Gordon Worley,Why do you say only one has to lie to keep the relation stable?Isn't it more likely that from time to time both will need to at least not tell truths the other would find discomforting?John
And even if you encounter someone who does desire to overcome all biases in order to better see the truth, they may overcome the bias but still act as though they hadn't in order to keep their relationships healthy. After all, unless you happen to have a significant other who will accept any truthful comment without shunning you for making negative ones, it's in your interest to act biased if you want to keep your significant other (although we might debate the health of a relationship where one partner has to lie to keep it stable).
In this case, they probably lack the desire to overcome their biases...
I'm not sure that this counts as a bias at all. Sounds more like a mis-labeled preference.