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Positive Illusions about Oneself and One's Group

Antecedents and Consequences

University of Texas

Roderick M. Kramer

Margaret A. Neale

Stanford University

This study examined antecedents (rewards and threats to self-esteem) and consequences (group conflict and performance) of selfand group-enhancing positive illusions. Hypotheses regarding the magnitude of these illusions were derived from attention-based and self-esteem-based explanations for why people engage in positive illusions. The authors tested these hypotheses in a laboratory experiment in which 408 subjects performed a decision-making task both individually and in a group. Results showed that threats to self-esteem affected the magnitude of illusions more than rewards, the two types of illusions differentially affected group conflict and performance, and selfand group-enhancing illusions were positively related. The authors discuss several implications of their results and of simultaneously studying illusions about both oneself and one's group.

Small Group Research, Vol. 28, No. 2, 243-266 (1997)
DOI: 10.1177/1046496497282004


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