Negativity Bias refers to what?

• A. When the focus of a piece emphasizes only negative aspects.
• B. When the focus is on positive aspects only.
• C. When the author uses neutral language.
• D. When the author cites many sources.

Answer: (A)

Negativity bias is the tendency to notice, pay attention to, and give more weight to negative information than to positive information. In writing or media, this shows up as a piece that foregrounds negative aspects—problems, risks, or dangers—more than positive or neutral ones. That’s why the description that a piece emphasizes negative aspects best captures negativity bias. The other options describe focusing on positives, neutral language, or citing many sources, which don’t reflect this tendency to overweight negative content.