In Social Psychology, What is Fundamental Attribution Error?
The fundamental attribution error is a common type of cognitive bias in social psychology. Essentially, the fundamental attribution error involves placing a heavy emphasis on internal personality characteristics to explain someone's behavior in a given situation, rather than thinking about external situational factors. The flip side of the fundamental attribution error is the actor-observer bias, in which people tend to over-emphasize the role of a situation in their behaviors and under-emphasize the role of their own personalities.
Some people think of this cognitive bias as one of the root principles in social psychology. It certainly illustrates several interesting things about cognitive biases, like the fact that people tend to consider their own behavior in a different light than the behavior of others. It also illustrates the brain's genuine desire to comprehend a situation and the behavior which occurred in that situation in a logical way. The fundamental attribution error can also lead to other cognitive biases.
For an example of the fundamental attribution error at work, imagine yourself walking down a crowded sidewalk, carrying loaded bags from shops. If someone bumps into you, you are probably inclined to think “what an idiot! That person has no respect for others, he clearly saw me!” In this assessment of the person's behavior, you fail to consider situational factors like someone else bumping into that person, or your failure to realize that your bags are taking up more room than you think they are, thus forcing people to bump into you as they try to get around you.
Many people want to understand the reasons for human behavior, out of a natural curiosity and in an effort to avoid uncomfortable situations. Cognitive biases are one way that the brain processes human behavior; although a cognitive bias is often wrong, it can provide quick information about a situation which will allow you to make a rapid decision. However, people should be careful to be aware of cognitive biases, so that they can consider that a behavior might have more than one explanation.
To avoid making the fundamental attribution error, one of the best things you can do is “put yourself in the other person's shoes,” as the old saying goes. By thinking about what you might do in the same situation, you might come up with some situational factors for a behavior which could shed more light on the subject. Awareness of this common cognitive bias can help you look for hidden behavioral factors, making you a better observer and better able to read people and situations. Finally, when you are trying to explain your own behavior, avoid indulging the actor-observer effect, and make sure to give your personality some credit for your actions.
Written by S.E. Smith
