How Do We Judge the Positive Change of Other People?

Imagine Student A and Student B both scored 20 on the last exam. In the next round, they improved—Student A scored 30 and Student B scored 50. Both failed (the passing grade is 60).

Now imagine another scenario: A and B scored 65 and 75, respectively. This time, both passed.

In both scenarios, Student B did better than Student A.

But do we actually perceive it that way?

When Effort Is Discounted

O’Brien (2022) explored this very question. His findings suggest that when there is a categorical threshold—such as 60 for passing—we tend to judge Student A and Student B as essentially the same if they both failed. But when they both passed, we clearly see B as better than A. That's right, 75 is better 65. 

In other words, when people fall short of a threshold, we flatten the differences between them, even if one person shows much more progress than the other.

Interpreting Failure as Lack of Effort

Why does this happen? 

The research suggests that when someone fails to reach a threshold of change, or a goal they set themselves (like losing 5 kilos), we often interpret it as a lack of genuine intent to improve. Even if they made some progress, we’re reluctant to give them credit if they did not “make it.”

So even though Student B (score of 50) did far better than A (score of 30), we may still judge them as equally lazy—because they both failed to reach the passing score.

But this can be a dangerous mindset. Student B may still care and may have tried significantly harder than Student A. If a teacher sees them both as unmotivated, Student B may miss out on the support they deserve. 

The outcome itself shouldn’t be the only thing we look at when we judge the genuineness of intent. Other signals might be harder to capture but they are also more telling. This is especially problematic in the judgment of others as compared to that of ourselves because we are more inclined to judge ourselves by intention and judge others by their behaviors.

Implications for Inequality

This research also has broader implications. A student who improves from 65 to 75 might be rewarded much more than one who improves from 20 to 50—even though the latter made a bigger leap. But failing to cross the threshold makes us less inclined to invest in them.

If we only support those who have already “made it,” we risk overlooking those who are actively trying—those with untapped talent, motivation, or resilience. . More importantly, the upbringing of these two students might be fundamentally different, and the gap in resources might have left them with very different starting points. This tendency to reward those who are already good instead of those who are improving might exacerbate the existing inequality. 

Similarly, this idea applies to assessing the climate efforts of 'already green' vs. 'striving to be green' countries and extends to various other domains. 

My Takeaway

I want to end with my takeaway from this paper, and hopefully, it helps us to be more compassionate towards others and ourselves in the new year.

Don't lose sight of piecemeal progress—neither in others nor in ourselves. 

Even if that progress does not cross some predefined threshold, and even if it feels small, it might be a milestone worth celebrating.