Which of the following is the most accurate statement about affective forecasting?

• A. People often overestimate the intensity and duration of their future emotional reactions to events.
• B. People tend to underestimate how strongly they will feel about future events.
• C. Affective forecasting is generally highly accurate for most people in most situations.
• D. Affective forecasting only applies to negative emotions, not positive ones.

Answer: (A)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Understand the concept of affective forecasting, which refers to people's ability to predict their future emotional states or reactions to upcoming events.
2. Step 2: Recognize that research in psychology shows people often make systematic errors when predicting their future emotions, particularly overestimating how intense and how long these emotions will last.
3. Step 3: Evaluate each statement by comparing it to empirical findings: the statement that people overestimate the intensity and duration of future emotions aligns with well-documented psychological evidence.
4. Step 4: Note that affective forecasting errors occur for both positive and negative emotions, so the idea that it only applies to negative emotions is inaccurate.
5. Step 5: Conclude that the most accurate statement is the one indicating people often overestimate the intensity and duration of their future emotional reactions.