Horn Effect

The tendency to let a negative impression in one area unfairly influence your overall judgment of a person or thing — the opposite of the Halo Effect.

Just as positive traits create a halo, negative traits create a 'horn.' One bad quality makes us assume everything else is also bad, simplifying our evaluation.

• Dismissing someone's ideas because they have poor grammar.
• Rating an entire restaurant experience as bad because of slow service, despite great food.
• Judging a job candidate negatively for all qualities after noticing one weakness.

• Separate individual traits from your overall assessment.
• Ask: 'Is this one flaw actually relevant to what I'm evaluating?'
• Give people and things a fair chance beyond first impressions.
• Consciously list positive qualities alongside negative ones.