Attribution Theory and Person Perception

Social Psychology Perspective

• Studies how we think about, influence, and relate to others.

Attribution Theory

Judging the causes of a person's behavior.

Disposition attributions

• Attributing behavior to a person’s internal traits (e.g., personality, needs).

• example: Jack ate the cake because he is greedy

Situational attributions

• Attributing behavior to external factors (e.g., circumstances).

• Jack ate the cake because he hase’t eaten all day

Explanatory styles

• How we explain life events on a continuum.

  • Stable vs. Temporary: Is the event permanent or short-term?

  • Global vs. Specific: Will the event affect everything or just this situation?

  • Internal vs. External: Is it my fault or beyond my control?

Optimistic Explanatory Style:

• See setbacks as temporary.

• Blame negative events on external factors.

• View positive events as stable and internally caused.

• See challenges as opportunities.

• Believe they can overcome challenges.

Pessimistic Explanatory Style:

• See setbacks as permanent.

• Blame negative events on internal factors.

• View positive events as unstable and externally caused.

• See challenges as proof of failure.

• Lack confidence in overcoming challenges.

• At risk of depression.

Fundamental Attribution Error

• When we see someone do something, we often assume it's because of their personality rather than the situation they're in.

• Example: Assuming someone is rude (dispositional) rather than considering they might be having a bad day (situational).

Actor-Observer Bias

• We blame other people's actions on who they are, but explain our own actions by blaming outside factors.

• Example:

  • You (Actor): You speed and cut over because of things like bad signs or distractions.

  • Other Drivers (Observers): They think you're just a bad driver.

Self-Serving Bias

• We take credit for our successes but blame failures on outside factors.

• Example:

  • Success: "I studied hard" or "I'm smart."

  • Failure: "The test was unfair" or "My sister distracted me."

• This bias helps protect our self-esteem and keeps us feeling positive about ourselves.

Just-world phenomenon

The belief that the world is fair, and people get what they deserve.

Defensive attribution

• Believing good things happen to good people, and bad things happen to bad people.

• Example:

  • The rich might think their wealth is deserved and the poor deserve their struggles.

  • In the past, slaveholders justified slavery by believing slaves were naturally lazy and irresponsible.

• This belief often leads to victim-blaming.

Cultures affect on attributions

• Individualist Western cultures: More likely to attribute behavior to personal traits (dispositional attribution).

• East Asian collectivist cultures: More likely to consider the situation’s impact (situational attribution).

Locus of control

Refers to whether people believe they have control over their life outcomes.

• Internal Locus of Control: Believes outcomes are due to personal choices, effort, or abilities.

  • Example: A person might think homelessness is due to someone’s own faults or lack of effort.

• External Locus of Control: Believes outcomes are due to outside factors like luck, fate, or circumstances.

  • Example: A person might think homelessness is due to factors beyond one's control.

The mere exposure effect

• The more we're exposed to something new, the more we tend to like it.

• Evolutionary Reasoning: Familiar things were generally safe, while unfamiliar things were often threatening, so we are hard-wired to bond with what we know and be cautious of what we don't.

The self-fulfilling prophecy

• When a person's belief or expectation about something causes it to come true, because their actions align with that expectation.

• Example: If you expect someone to fail, you might treat them in a way that makes failure more likely, thus making your prediction come true.

Social Comparison Theory

• We determine our personal and social value by comparing ourselves to others.

• How it works: We assess our actions, accomplishments, and opinions by looking at how they measure up to those of others.

• Why it happens: This helps explain why we often compare ourselves to people around us.

Upward social comparison

• Comparing ourselves to people we see as better or more successful.

• Purpose: Can motivate self-improvement and personal growth.

• Example: Seeing someone excel in a skill or career and striving to reach their level.

Downward social comparsion

• : Comparing ourselves to people who are worse off.

• Purpose: Boosts self-esteem and makes us feel better about our abilities or situation.

• Example: “I may not be the best at this, but at least I’m better than them.”