Attributional Tendencies

We all make judgments all the time. It is a part of our human nature and how we protect ourselves to some extent. If someone doesn't feel safe we stay away from them etc...

What is attribution - from what I've read it can be explained like this, Attribution is how we explain or try to explain why something happened or why someone behaves the way they do. 

The funny thing about attribution is that they are made up of our own biases and experiences. When we decide from what we see happen why someone did something we are making judgments.

The funny thing about this is that we tend to judge ourselves and others differently. From what I've read we are more likely to judge like this;

If someone else is successful it's because of something outside of their control. They have great parents, went to a good school, lived in the best neighborhood. If someone does something bad it's because of a personal choice they made or they are just a bad person.

When judging ourselves we tend to think that if we have achieved something it's because we are awesome, and made great choices. If something bad happens to us or we make a bad choice it's because of something that happened to us or caused us to act in a certain way.

We tend to judge someone else or 'attribute' their actions in the opposite way.

Now not every culture acts this way. In fact, in certain Asian cultures, they are more likely to blame themselves when they do something wrong and internalize every mistake they make. 

Internal is when we make it personal and external is when we blame or give credit to something outside of ourselves. Stable and unstable refer to whether the factor can be changed or not. If we are tired at work because we stayed out too late with friends that's an unstable factor. We can choose not to be in that situation again. 

Our relationships with others can be affected by our attributional tendencies. Do we always think the worst about others but pay no attention to our own weaknesses? How often do these judgments or attributional tendencies leave us misjudging someone?  We need to make sure that we don't fall victim to fundamental attribution errors. The short video explains this concept.

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” ©2011-2022 EnjoyingTheChaos. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author EnjoyingTheChaos.blogspot.com