Pollyanna principle Pollyanna principle The Pollyanna principle (also called Pollyannaism or positivity bias) is the tendency for people to remember pleasant items more accurately than unpleasant ones. Research indicates that at the subconscious level, the mind has a tendency to focus on the optimistic; while at the conscious level, it has a tendency to focus on the negative. This subconscious bias towards the positive is often described as the Pollyanna principle and is similar to the Forer effect. The name derives from the 1913 novel "Pollyanna" by Eleanor H. Porter describing a girl who plays the "glad game"—trying to find something to
Edward S. Porter Edward S. Porter Edward S. Porter (October 19, 1848 – June 13, 1902) was a physician in Louisville, Kentucky. He was a physician for the Louisville city sanitary force, the Orphan's home, at the nearby insane asylum, and at Simmons College of Kentucky. Edward S. Porter was born in Delaware on October 19, 1848 to Jesse and Priscilla Porter. He attended Lincoln University in Oxford, Pennsylvania for seven years, finally getting a Bachelor of Arts in 1873. He then attended the Brooklyn Medical College graduating in 1876. He was also a graduate of Bellevue Hospital Medical College in New York