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A study by Schwarz and colleagues illustrates the power of testing competing theories by investigating how individuals judge their own assertiveness. They compared two conflicting theories: one suggesting judgments are based on the number of examples recalled, and another suggesting judgments rely on the ease of recalling examples. By asking participants to recall either six (easy) or twelve (difficult) examples, the theories made mutually exclusive predictions. The finding that people recalling fewer examples felt more assertive provided decisive evidence supporting the ease-of-retrieval theory over the number-of-examples theory.

Example of Testing Competing Theories: Self-Judgment

In Schwarz and colleagues' study testing competing theories on self-judgment, what did the findings reveal when participants were asked to recall either six or twelve examples of their assertive behavior?

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