Affective states, neuroticism and cognitive immunization: How negative expectations persist despite disconfirming feedback

This study investigates the relationship between negative affect, neuroticism, and cognitive immunization tendencies in response to disconfirming feedback. Cognitive immunization refers to the psychological mechanism of maintaining negative expectations by devaluing contradictory positive experiences, such as unexpectedly good performance feedback. Building on previous research suggesting a link between neuroticism and resistance to positive expectation violations, this project aims to test whether individuals in a negative affective state are more likely to immunize against disconfirming feedback compared to those in neutral or positive states. The findings aim to contribute to the understanding of psychological mechanisms that stabilize negative assumptions and may have implications for the treatment of affective disorders. This study is part of a masters thesis.