The news about bad news

You must have been in a situation where you have been asked, “Do you want the good news or the bad news first?” Maybe you have even been the person asking that question. It is a question that is often asked by professionals delivering news like doctors or lawyers, but it can also be applicable for the lay-person at times such as when a relationship is ending. So do you want good news or bad news first? According to a new study the answer to that is not dependant on individual choice and it has some interesting implications.

The new research involved three separate experiments designed to test whether people liked their good news or bad news given first. It is a difficult decision both for the receiver of the news and the giver of the news. The results of this study overwhelmingly showed that people about to receive bad news want to receive the bad news first. Unfortunately, news-givers want to give some good news first to soften the blow of the bad news but this in fact is counter-productive. By giving good news first the news-giver, according to this research, creates tension in the news-receiver which can diminish communication and result in poor outcomes for both giver and receiver.

So although a news giver might think they are making it better for the receiver by delaying bad news, in fact they are making things worse for all concerned. The moral here appears to be that you should always open with the bad news but there is a wrinkle in the tale.

These experiments showed that when bad news is given first the motivation to act and change behaviour is reduced. So if there is something that can be done about the bad news then a good news-bad news order might be justified. However, if the bad news can’t be acted upon then it’s best to get it out of the way. This might play out in a relationship scenario where there is no hope for reconciliation like this, “The bad news is that it’s over between us and I never want to see you again as long as I live. The good news is that you don’t have to buy me a birthday present next year.”