When the glass is half-empty: Framing effects and evaluations of a romantic partner's attributes

Two studies examined how the framing of information influences evaluations of hypothetical relationships. Studies 1 (n = 183) and 2 (n = 247) examined how the framing of a hypothetical partner's attributes in gains or loss te rms influences (a) impressions of the future success of the relationship an d (b) the perceived importance of the partner's attributes. Generally, part icipants were less pessimistic about a relationship's future success when t he partner's attributes were framed in gains terms than when framed in loss terms, even though the attributes were objectively identical in each case. Participants also attached significantly more importance to intelligence w hen it was missing among a partner's strengths than when it was present, pa rticularly when the attribute was presented in a loss frame. This research has important implications for the integration of the decision-making and r elationship cognition literatures.