MUM Effect: What It Is And How It Affects Relationships
People do not act the same way alone as when we are in a group. We don’t do it the same way when we are with another person either.
That is, the presence (real, imagined or implied) of others influences how we think, feel and behave. Social psychology is responsible for studying and understanding these relationships and influences.
Within it, there are numerous phenomena that appear in the interrelationship of people and in the perception we have of them. Today we will talk about one of them: the MUM effect We all like to give good news, but what about the bad news? Does the same happen with them? We will see it below.
When we must communicate bad news, it is common for us to resist them or distort them, even making them less negative. This happens even if we have nothing to do with such news.
The reason is that we do not want to be associated with the negative event, and as a consequence, considered less attractive.
The MUM effect occurs in the face of a wide variety of news, circumstances and possible recipients. Still, although it is a very frequent and validated effect, it is not a universal phenomenon. Let’s think, for example, about the news; We have the feeling that they “always” transmit bad news; or for example myths, rumors, etc.
It seems then that the MUM effect is associated with situations in which the news affects one’s own well-being or the potential recipient’s well-being
Why does it appear? Its causes
The MUM effect has to do with reinforcement theories in social psychology. Reinforcement theories (Lott and Lott, Byrne) tell us about attraction to people who are present or who do something that activates an affect, whether positive or negative
On the other hand, people, whether consciously or unconsciously, seek to be liked by others, to feel accepted, etc. This is a natural and human phenomenon, which occurs to preserve and enhance self-esteem.
In general, we can talk about several concerns that make it difficult or prevent us from communicating bad news:
These four explanations have been evidenced by scientific experimentation to explain the causes of the MUM effect. In this way, and in relation to the first point, concern for one’s own well-being, we are talking about a fear of having a feeling of guilt for communicating something negative to someone.
We can relate this to the “belief of a just world”, that is, believing that injustices do not exist and that we all have what we deserve (both good and bad). It would be a cognitive bias in the vision of reality, which many people manifest.
Thus, communicating something that, in addition to being bad, is unfair, would conflict with our beliefs about the world, and could also generate these feelings of guilt or even sadness. And, of course, people tend to avoid the feeling of discomfort or sadness.
Delving a little deeper into these concerns, it is known that We also don’t want the recipient to feel sad “because of us.”, even if it is an irrational thought and we have nothing to do with the news. We are the mere transmitter, but nevertheless, when people are asked why they should or should not communicate good or bad news, they usually focus their attention on the receiver.
The MUM effect also occurs when we make a common mistake: assuming that the recipient will not want to hear the bad news.
Let’s think for example of doctors; It has been seen in some surveys that many believe that patients do not want to hear bad news. However, the latter claim to want to listen to them.
It’s known that The better a message is, the more willing we will be to transmit it But it does not happen in the same way when the message is negative, since once it is bad; It does not matter if it is to a greater or lesser extent, since the willingness to communicate it will always be low.
Social rules and receiver in the MUM effect
There are often no clear rules about what to do with bad news, whether to communicate it or not. It seems that when the news is good, the rules are clearer than when it is bad.
Furthermore, many times, when telling bad news, consequences occur in the recipient (sadness, anger, anger…) that we will not always know how to manage. This can cause fear, as well as worry about not wanting to seem like a busybody To avoid these feelings, we hide the bad news.
The MUM effect is reduced when the senders know for sure that the recipient of the news (whether good or bad) wants to know it. Thus, the fear or concern of giving bad news dissipates, and we end up expressing it without distorting it.
