Reactive Devaluation
Updated 2026-08-02
INTRODUCTION
English translation pending.
CORE DEFINITION
Reactive devaluation describes the tendency to value a proposal less when it is attributed to an adversary, regardless of its content. The core claim is that people often reject the source rather than the substance, so identical offers are rated differently depending on who is said to have made them. The key qualification is that the effect grows with the perceived hostility of the relationship and that it makes mutually beneficial agreements harder to reach.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- Blind the source: evaluate the proposal with the author's name removed from it. - Separate person from content: judge the substance on its merits before reacting to who offered it. - Use an intermediary: have a neutral party repackage and present the same terms again.
Anchor fast decisions
In a hostile relationship, accepting an opponent's proposal feels like conceding or being manipulated, so the mind discounts the offer before examining it. Identity and group loyalty attach to the judgment, and the same terms are rated as less fair when attributed to the other side. Because the discount applies to content that would also benefit the receiver, it produces settlements that both parties would have accepted had the authorship been hidden.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reactive_devaluationverified
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