{"id":503,"date":"2014-02-26T08:00:48","date_gmt":"2014-02-26T16:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rickhanson.net\/?p=15196"},"modified":"2014-02-26T08:00:48","modified_gmt":"2014-02-26T16:00:48","slug":"overcoming-the-negativity-bias","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/justonething\/2014\/02\/overcoming-the-negativity-bias\/","title":{"rendered":"Overcoming the Negativity Bias"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
\n

You were quoted in a short post about negativity bias in which you stated, \u201cThe brain is like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positives ones.\u201d Can you explain this in more detail?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

As the brain evolved, it was critically important to learn from negative experiences \u2013 if one survived them! \u201cOnce burned, twice shy.\u201d So the brain has specialized circuits that register negative experiences immediately in emotional memory. On the other hand, positive experiences \u2013 unless they are very novel or intense \u2013 have standard issue memory systems, and these require that something be held in awareness for many seconds in a row to transfer from short-term memory buffers to long-term storage. Since we rarely do this, most positive experiences flow through the brain like water through a sieve, while negative ones are caught every time. Thus my metaphor of Velcro and Teflon<\/a> \u2013 an example of what scientists call the \u201cnegativity bias\u201d of the brain.<\/p>\n

The effects include: a growing sensitivity to stress, upset, and other negative experiences; a tendency toward pessimism, regret, and resentment; and a long shadows cast by old pain.<\/p>\n

What are some good facts in your life that you don\u2019t usually notice? What are some positive facts that you do notice but don\u2019t usually have a positive experience about? Even when you do notice a good facts and have a good experience as a result, how often do you stay with that good experience for a dozen or more seconds?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The post Overcoming the Negativity Bias<\/a> appeared first on Dr. Rick Hanson<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You were quoted in a short post about negativity bias in which you stated, \u201cThe brain is like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positives ones.\u201d Can you explain this in more detail? As the brain evolved, it was critically important to learn from negative experiences \u2013 if one survived them! \u201cOnce burned, twice <\/p>\n

The post Overcoming the Negativity Bias<\/a> appeared first on Dr. Rick Hanson<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":270,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[25],"class_list":["post-503","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-blog"],"yoast_head":"\nOvercoming the Negativity Bias<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"You were quoted in a short post about negativity bias in which you stated, \u201cThe brain is like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positives ones.\u201d Can you explain this in more detail? 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