Political Framing Raises Zero‑Sum Bias

When problems are presented as political contests rather than technical challenges, audiences are more likely to default to zero‑sum reasoning (anything one side gains is another's loss) and to favor identity‑affirming over efficiency‑oriented solutions. This cognitive shift reduces the likelihood of identifying integrative, pareto‑improving policies and makes public deliberation more adversarial. — If true, governments and media should avoid unnecessarily politicized frames on technical issues because framing itself degrades collective problem‑solving and polarizes policy outcomes.