The Positivity of Negativity In a world where happiness is deemed to be the norm, psychologist Norbert Schwarz of the University of Michigan and Joseph Forgas of the University of New South Wales conducted separate studies on the positive effects of sadness. While chronic sadness has been found to be maladaptive, they found regular bouts of sadness experienced by everyone was normal and even had positive effects. Schwarz found that those in a bad mood are more likely to retain smaller details, are more likely to have better decision making and are more concerned about being fair to others. In contrast, those in a positive mood are more creative and playful. However it is important to note that we are not slaves to our moods. We can make our own decisions outside of them. What's good about this study is that we are able to appreciate both sides of the story. Now, we won't look at being sad as something negative when it obviously has evolutionary benefits when used in moderation. Contributor: Maria Carina RaymundoSource: Bower, Bruce. The bright side of sadness. Oct, 18, 2013. https://www.sciencenews.org/article/bright-side-sadness. Retrieved Jan 11, 2014.Schwartz, N. Feelings-as-information theory. In P. Van Lange et al., editors. Handbook of theories of social psychology. Sage, 2011.