RESUMO
The theory-perseverance bias was investigated in 3 related studies. In Study 1, a test of the hypothesis that group discussion attenuates this bias, male and female Canadian undergraduates examined information suggesting that either a positive or a negative relationship exists between risk preference and firefighting performance; they were then informed that this information was fictitious. They then recorded their beliefs regarding the actual relationship between these variables (a) immediately, (b) after 7 min of thought, (c) after a 7-min group discussion, or (d) after perusing a transcript of one of the discussions. Only the participants in the first condition made biased judgments. Study 2, which used Vinokur and Burnstein's (1974) procedures and which again drew a sample of Canadian students, provided support for a persuasive-arguments explanation of this group-discussion effect. The results of Study 3, which used procedures similar to those of Study 1, ruled out a social-comparison explanation for this effect. Factors that might enhance or diminish the effects of group discussion on this bias are suggested.
