Interpersonal issues Flashcards
Originally introduced attribution theory
Fritz Heider
Attribution model that suggests we attribute behaviours to events that co-vary with those behaviours over time e.g. if event A occurs when behaviour B occurs we assume event A causes behaviour B
Kelley’s covariant model
Attribution where a person’s behaviour is blamed on their character
Dispositional attribution
Attribution where a person’s behaviour is blamed on external factors
Situational attribution
The factor in attribution looking at how a person behaves compared to the people around them
E.g. if a student is late to history class - are other students late as well?
Consensus
The factor in attribution looking at whether a person’s behaviour in one specific situation is ‘normal’ compared to their behaviour in other similar situations
E.g. if a student is late to history class - are they also late to other classes?
Distinctiveness
The factor in attribution looking at how regularly a behaviour is performed in one situation over time E.g. if a student is late to history class - have they been late to history class on previous occasions?
Consistency
Most used factor in attribution
Consistency
Attribution made if consensus is low e.g. one student is late to class but others are on time
Dispositional
Attribution made if consistency is low e.g. a student is late to class when normally they are on time
Situational
Attribution error where the dispositional factors are overestimated in someone else’s behaviour - strongest when the behaviour is negative/undesirable
Fundamental attribution error
Attribution error where someone overestimates situational elements to their own behaviour, but others overestimate dispositional elements e.g. a student who is studying may say they are studying because they have an exam coming up, where others say they are studying because they are hard working
Actor-observer bias
Attribution error where enduring personality traits are inferred from a behaviour which could be explained by situational elements (similar to fundamental attribution error)
Correspondence bias
Attribution bias where someone attributes their successes to dispositional factors and their failures to situational factors
Self serving bias
Attribution bias where someone interprets another person’s ambiguous behaviour as negative towards them rather than benign
Hostile attribution bias
Attribution bias where someone projects their way of thinking onto others, and assumes others think the same way as they do, or views one person’s behaviour as representative of a group’s behaviour (can lead to e.g. racial stereotypes)
False consensus effect
Attribution bias where the belief that ultimately people get what they deserve leads to victim blaming culture
Just world hypothesis
The tendency to perceive people as entirely good or bad, or to make strong inferences about people based on limited or superficial information
Halo effect
The tendency for someone to believe general and vague personality descriptions or predictions apply to them specifically - often used in atrology
Barnum effect/Forer effect
Form of observer bias where someone changes their behaviour if they believe they are being observed - often leads to a short term improvement in behaviour
Hawthorne effect
Effect where people internalise either poor or high expectations of others and begin to behave accordingly
Pygmalion effect/Rosenthal effect
Age at which theory of mind develops
3.5 to 4 years
Test used to investigate people’s theory of mind
Sally-Anne test
Tasks relating to the understanding that other people can have their own thoughts about a situation
First-order false belief tasks
