You are dating someone new. He is handsome, charming, and successful. Your friends and family describe him as “too good to be true,” and given the way you feel when you are with him, you believe they are right—literally. Instead of looking forward to the next date with excitement, you feel nervous. When you are together, instead of feeling contented, you feel cautious and uneasy. What is the explanation? The answer has to do with the fact that you are more perceptive than you think, but often make preliminary judgments based on inaccurate perceptions.

Lauren Gazzard Kerr et al. (2020)[i] investigated the role of distinctive accuracy on positive impressions of potential paramours. The researchers define distinctive accuracy as the extent to which personality impressions reveal unique characteristics, which often predicts positive social contact, including the experience of liking and relationship satisfaction. They examined how distinctive accuracy........

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