See Also
Attribution bias refers to the systematic errors people make when evaluating or trying to find reasons for their own and others’ behaviors. Essentially, it’s a cognitive shortcut our brains take when we don’t have all the information, leading us to draw conclusions that are often related to a person’s character rather than the situation they’re in.
Common Types of Attribution Bias:
- Fundamental Attribution Error (FAE): This is the most well-known attribution bias. It’s the tendency to overestimate the role of internal factors (personality traits, disposition) and underestimate the role of external factors (situational influences) when explaining others’ behavior. Example: You see someone cut you off in traffic and immediately think, “What an aggressive and reckless driver!” rather than considering they might be rushing to an emergency.
- Actor-Observer Bias: This bias explains the difference in how we attribute causes for our own behavior versus the behavior of others. We tend to attribute our own behavior to situational factors and others’ behavior to internal factors. Example: If you’re late to a meeting, you might blame heavy traffic (external). But if a colleague is late, you might assume they’re disorganized or irresponsible (internal).
- Self-Serving Bias: This bias involves our tendency to attribute our successes to internal factors (our abilities, efforts) and our failures to external factors (bad luck, difficult circumstances). This helps us maintain a positive self-image. Example: You ace an exam and think, “I’m so smart and I studied hard!” (internal). You fail an exam and think, “The test was unfair, or the teacher didn’t teach well” (external).
- Hostile Attribution Bias: This is the tendency to interpret ambiguous behavior from others as being deliberately hostile or aggressive, even when there’s no clear evidence for it. Example: You see two people whispering and assume they’re talking negatively about you, even though they could be discussing anything.
- Ultimate Attribution Error (Group-Serving Bias): This is similar to self-serving bias but applied to groups.