>Following this reasoning, high-competence individuals might hold adaptable attitudes and recur to cynicism only when it seems warranted, while their less com

>Following this reasoning, high-competence individuals might hold adaptable attitudes and recur to cynicism only when it seems warranted, while their less competent counter- parts might show more cognitive rigidity and—relying on the “better safe than sorry” heuristic—tend to endorse cynicism indiscriminately. Consistent with evolutionary principles, such a “better safe than sorry” strategy can prove efficient when one lacks the ability to correctly identify the relevant features of the sociocultural context one is confronted with and determine whether cynicism is warranted or not (Brumbach, Figueredo, & Ellis, 2009; Gross, 1996). In this sense, at lower levels of competence, holding a negative, cynical view as a default (assuming that people are guided by self-interest unless proven otherwise) might represent a more viable strategy than holding an overly positive view of others’ morality. So the narrative is about competence and intelligence is a factor as it correlates with competence.