ITS NOT JUST WHETHER YOU WIN OR LOSE, ITS ALSO WHERE YOU PLAY THE GAME - A NATURALISTIC, CROSS-CULTURAL EXAMINATION OF THE POSITIVITY BIAS

The positivity bias-the tendency to make internal attributions for oth ers' successes and external attributions for others' failures-was exam ined in newspaper sports articles from the United States and Hong Kong . The positivity bias was observed in both cultures; however, the cult ures manifested this bias differently, There was a greater emphasis on enhancing winners (making internal attributions for successes) in the United States and on protecting losers (making external attributions for failures) in Hong Kong. The concept of preserving others' face as a universal social motivation may provide an explanation for the cross -cultural consistency of the positivity bias. East-West differences in attributional tendencies and in the values of independence versus int erdependence may explain cross-cultural differences in the expression of this bias.