The problem with a bad news sandwich…
Sunday, October 22. 2023.
If there’s good news and bad news, which do you prefer to hear first… and which should you give first?
Sometimes I think Industrial psychology creates more fu*king problems than it purports to solve. Too many management handbooks and websites are now recommend the so-called ‘bad news sandwich’ strategy.
So the idea is that the bearer of bad news should bestow some good news first, then the bad news, then finish off with more good news.
However… according to more in depth psychological research, though, this is a selfish strategy.
The two doctors, who authored this research, Angela M. Legg and Kate Sweeny explain:
“Our findings suggest that the primary beneficiary of the bad news sandwich is news-givers, not news-recipients.
Although recipients may be pleased to end on a high note, they are unlikely to enjoy anxiously waiting for the other shoe to drop during the initial good news.”
Can we please have the bad news first?
In fact, a survey conducted for this research revealed that the vast majority of people prefer to receive the bad news first.
It’s the news-givers themselves who prefer to start off with the good news, the study also finds.
The study’s authors write:
“Doctors must give good and bad health news to patients, teachers must give good and bad academic news to students, and romantic partners may at times give good and bad relationship news to each other.
Our findings suggest that the doctors, teachers and partners in these examples might do a poor job of giving good and bad news because they forget for a moment how they want to hear the news when they are the patients, students, and spouses, respectively.
News-givers attempt to delay the unpleasant experience of giving bad news by leading with good news while recipients grow anxious knowing that the bad news is yet to come.
This tension can erode communication and result in poor outcomes for both news-recipients and news-givers.”
This is a damn nasty sandwich!
Here’s the thing. The bad news sandwich nonsense may even be counter-productive. While it may render humans less defensive, hiding the bad news can make them less likely to move toward change.
The bad news — which needs to be confronted, accepted, and acted upon, and should be the driving impetus for change. But when it gets commingled by the ‘good news’ it may leave the recipient bewildered and unfocused.
That said, this is another ‘your mileage may vary’ scenario
The study’s lead author, Dr. Legg, explained:
“It’s so complicated. It’s important to fit the delivery to the outcome goal.
If you’re a physician delivering a diagnosis and prognosis that are severe, where there is nothing the patient can do, tell them the bad news first and use positive information to help them accept it.
If there are things a patient can do, give them the bad news last and tell them what they can do to get better.”
Final thoughts
Begin with the end in mind. What are we supposed to do with this activating bad news? it seems to come down to agency. If we have no agency give us the horrible news first, and whatever ancillary ideas last.
But if we have agency, if we can engage the bad news with our personal power, Than tell us how to do that first, and then relay the bad news.
Be well, stay kind, and Godspeed.
RESEARCH:
Legg, A. M., & Sweeny, K. (2014). Do You Want the Good News or the Bad News First? The Nature and Consequences of News Order Preferences. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 40(3), 279-288. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167213509113
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