r/technology • u/Choobeen • 9h ago

Society Research shows the 'compliment sandwich' is no longer effective - University of Western Ontario

https://phys.org/news/2025-08-compliment-sandwich-longer-effective.html
1.1k Upvotes

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735

u/rerunderwear 9h ago

Was it ever?

753

u/rostron92 8h ago

Going to college for graphic design, we all would critique each other's work, and one of the requirements was to come up with at least one nice thing to say. And it was always the least helpful or least genuine thing said during a critique.

741

u/faaded 7h ago

“I liked the colour schemes, the parts about bringing Fascism back though I would definitely dial down”

185

u/AxelNotRose 7h ago

You forgot to close the sandwich.

152

u/vote4boat 7h ago

Millennial toast

45

u/BurningPenguin 6h ago

But where's the avocado?

28

u/faen_du_sa 3h ago

We cant afford it anymore, spent all my money on Netflix

1

u/Starstroll 1h ago

Have you considered hoisting the sails

25

u/faaded 6h ago

It’s just open faced

9

u/Sirtriplenipple 2h ago

It’s an open face sandwich, which is still technically a sandwich.

1

u/PineapplePizzaAlways 1h ago

It's a canapé

2

u/fartew 23m ago

It's a bruschetta now

7

u/lucklesspedestrian 1h ago

You said that and everybody thought "Liked the color scheme? Blood red and black looks so tacky though"

1

u/ShadyG 17m ago

Yet somehow it reminds me of the blood of angry men AND the dark of ages past.

3

u/Glorfendail 1h ago

I’ve reached more of a “surgically removed and then incinerated” stage for bringing back fascism.

51

u/cez801 3h ago

Least helpful is probably true.

Least geniue is probably not ( I am pretty sure that someone looking at your design did not hate everything about it - meaning that the nice thing would have most likely been true ).

I am not a designer, but did do software product management for a while. I used frame it with users as ‘while compliments are nice, things you don’t like are something I can do something about. So I’d prefer to hear about the annoying parts of the software’

43

u/rollingForInitiative 3h ago

Also depends a bit on the context. If I get code reviews at work I don’t need my coworkers to give me mandatory compliments just because.

If I am coaching a junior dev I’ll make sure to let them know what they’re doing well, since it’s nice to get some positive feedback when you’re new, and you don’t want to feel like you’re doing all things wrong.

16

u/MTri3x 2h ago

The compliment sandwich can actually be a good way to remind yourself to also give good feedback. When I'm working on something that I am confident about and that I've been working for a while I like my superior to just give me the critiques without fluffing. If it is a new project, the compliments help not only in terms of confidence but also by allowing me to understand what is going well and put in perspective the reasons why X is going well, while Y isn't, so I can change Y accordingly

4

u/rollingForInitiative 1h ago

Yeah. I can totally see the article's point about the specific format not really being useful, in always starting and ending with something nice, that can feel artificial. But just as a reminder to make sure you do both.

2

u/xXSpookyXx 39m ago

Something a really great coach or teacher does is give their student feedback that is not only constructive and useful but also useful given the current skillset of the student.

I trained taekwondo for many years and one of the best instructors I had was great at this. For a new student throwing a roundhouse kick he would emphasise the basics (make sure to turn your non kicking foot as you throw the kick. Remember to chamber the kick by bringing your knee up in a straight line), as students got more advanced the feedback did too (When you're landing you're putting your foot down so you're off balance. You're not rotating your hips fully and losing power on each kick. every time you kick your eyes drop and it's really obvious you're about to throw)

This is useful because there's no point overloading a starting student with tips they're not ready for, but if you're not careful you can demotivate a promising student because if you're only giving constructive criticism it can feel like nothing you do is right, when actually the opposite is true: you're doing more and more right things so now you're ready to go from good, to great!

The compliment sandwich, or at least including positive feedback mixed in with criticism is great because it puts the steady improvement in perspective and it keeps the student motivated. You want to be able to keep the student motivated while also giving them honest feedback that helps them improve. I've never in my life seen someone motivated solely by a list of things they need to improve with no context

3

u/gyroda 2h ago

Similarly, when I'm working with a junior, I will be very deliberate in owning my mistakes. Sometimes I leave a comment and it turns out I'm wrong - gotta make it clear that I'm far from infallible and they can and should call me out when I'm wrong.

1

u/rollingForInitiative 1h ago

Oh yeah. It probably helps a junior to see all the senior devs criticising each other back and forth all the time, while still being perfectly nice and friendly with each other.

5

u/ThatGuyFromBRITAIN 2h ago

Same but in film we called it a shit sandwich

3

u/rerunderwear 1h ago

Ever pull the “Hairy Arms” strategy on a design proof so the client didn’t shit all over with stupid changes? I can vouch that’s effective

1

u/f8Negative 22m ago

Ours was if it had a flag in it you could say "symbolism"

117

u/Zomunieo 6h ago

🍞That’s an excellent question, rerunderwear.

🥓The answer is no.

🍞Thank you for your inquiry, rerunderwear. Your thirst for knowledge is inspiring.

47

u/0ttr 6h ago

People can tell when you are not sincere. That's what matters, IMO.

37

u/Krags 4h ago

It helps me. I easily experience rejection sensitive dysphoria, so I need this stuff as a reassurance.

I think there's a large minority of people like me.

24

u/Ruddertail 2h ago

It's anecdotal but basically everyone I've asked regardless of age says it's easier to accept criticism if there's something positive to go with it. Pure criticism triggers this reaction to reject it.

5

u/EconomicRegret 1h ago

This!

Also, much easier if criticism were a two-way, "us vs challenge" conversation and formulated as figuring out how to get to a specific outcome.

E.g. "how would you increase J processing speed to L and how can I help you with that?" , instead of a blunt "you're too slow".

1

u/rwilcox 30m ago

The problem with me is that now when I hear a compliment or something positive, I’m waiting for the “meat” of the compliment sandwich to drop.

So,stoked they’re just being nice, and here I am bracing for the tear down.

2

u/chileangod 2h ago

An extremely large minority of 2%.    /jk

3

u/krebstar4ever 2h ago

Kinda. It's a way to show the other person that you're offering constructive criticism.

2

u/AngledLuffa 3h ago

It was a good proposal for figuring out how to work in negative things to say without really angering someone.  Ultimately I can see why it wouldn't necessarily take away the sting of the criticism.  Still, it's important to try to come up ways to make criticism less painful and more effective

1

u/I-hit-stuff 1h ago

Well… It made the person giving the feedback feel better.

1

u/Much-Syllabub7293 58m ago

In theory yes. Other than that? No, not really.

1

u/Nulligun 36m ago

Only on people who weren’t in it for the paycheque.

0

u/Valendr0s 1h ago

If I'm so great, why are you firing me?

When this was tried with me, I told my boss to F off. And that was 20 years ago. So I sure hope not.