Focalism vs Egocentrism and Comparative Optimism

Abstract

The article presents and confronts empirically two popular conceptions explaining the phenomenon of comparative optimism: egocentric and focalistic ones. The results of two consecutive experiments unequivocally supported the validity of the focalistic conception. The studies proved that the reversal of the direction of comparison in such a way that subjects had to compare the situation of the generalized other with their own situation (instead of comparing their own situation with the situation of the generalized other) resulted in the reversal of well known relationship between the perceived frequency of events