Modern approaches to social psychology, however, take both the situation and the individual into account when studying human behavior (Fiske, Gilbert, & Lindzey, 2010). Social psychologists have tended to take the situationist perspective, whereas personality psychologists have promoted the dispositionist perspective. An internal factor is an attribute of a person and includes personality traits and temperament. In contrast, dispositionism holds that our behavior is determined by internal factors (Heider, 1958). Situationism is the view that our behavior and actions are determined by our immediate environment and surroundings. Subfields of psychology tend to focus on one influence or behavior over others. Situational and Dispositional Influences on Behaviorīehavior is a product of both the situation (e.g., cultural influences, social roles, and the presence of bystanders) and of the person (e.g., personality characteristics). Interpersonal topics (those that pertain to dyads and groups) include helping behavior, aggression, prejudice and discrimination, attraction and close relationships, and group processes and intergroup relationships. Intrapersonal topics (those that pertain to the individual) include emotions and attitudes, the self, and social cognition (the ways in which we think about ourselves and others). The field of social psychology studies topics at both the intra- and interpersonal levels. If we are in a new situation or are unsure how to behave, we will take our cues from other individuals. Essentially, people will change their behavior to align with the social situation at hand. Social psychologists assert that an individual’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are very much influenced by social situations. Social psychology examines how people affect one another, and it looks at the power of the situation. Describe the fundamental attribution error.Describe situational versus dispositional influences on behavior.We tend to believe that our team wins because it’s better, but loses for reasons it cannot control (Roesch & Amirkham, 1997).By the end of this section, you will be able to: For example, we might tell ourselves that the other team has more experienced players or that the referees were unfair (external), the other team played at home (unstable), and the cold weather affected our team’s performance (uncontrollable). In contrast, we are more likely to make external, unstable, and uncontrollable attributions when our favorite team loses. For example, we might tell ourselves that our team is talented (internal), consistently works hard (stable), and uses effective strategies (controllable). Research shows that we make internal, stable, and controllable attributions for our team’s victory ( Figure) (Grove, Hanrahan, & McInman, 1991). Obviously, those things that we have the power to control would be labeled controllable (Weiner, 1979).Ĭonsider the example of how we explain our favorite sports team’s wins. Controllability refers to the extent to which the circumstances that are associated with a given outcome can be controlled. The circumstances are considered stable if they are unlikely to change. In this context, stability refers the extent to which the circumstances that result in a given outcome are changeable. One model of attribution proposes three main dimensions: locus of control (internal versus external), stability (stable versus unstable), and controllability (controllable versus uncontrollable). We can understand self-serving bias by digging more deeply into attribution, a belief about the cause of a result. You can imagine that if people always made situational attributions for their behavior, they would never be able to take credit and feel good about their accomplishments. The tendency of an individual to take credit by making dispositional or internal attributions for positive outcomes but situational or external attributions for negative outcomes is known as the self-serving bias (Miller & Ross, 1975). When you do well at a task, for example acing an exam, it is in your best interest to make a dispositional attribution for your behavior (“I’m smart,”) instead of a situational one (“The exam was easy,”). Following an outcome, self-serving bias are those attributions that enable us to see ourselves in favorable light (for example, making internal attributions for success and external attributions for failures).
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