Deck 6: The Fundamental Attribution Error

Question 1

According to the text,observers tend to attribute a person's behavior to _____ the more the time passes.

A)the situation
B)his or her personal characteristics
C)both the situation and his or her personal characteristics
D)neither the situation nor his or her personal characteristics

Answer 1

the situation

Question 2

Those who make regarding poverty and unemployment tend to adopt political positions that

A)offer more direct support to the poor.
B)are unsympathetic to the poor.
C)tend to blame the poor for their problems.
D)are more neutral regarding poverty and unemployment.

Answer 2

are unsympathetic to the poor.

Question 3

Burger and Pavelich (1994)found that voters were more likely to attribute the outcome of an election to a candidate's personal traits and positions the day after a presidential election,and to a nation's economy a year after the election.This represents which of the following explanations for the fundamental attribution error?

A)actor-observer difference
B)camera perspective bias
C)changing perspectives trend
D)self-awareness phenomenon

Answer 3

changing perspectives trend

Question 4

Based on the experiments conducted by Jerry Burger and Julie Pavelich (1994)and Pronin and Ross (2006),which of the following is the most likely reason for the attribution error?

A)People are biased toward others of their own community.
B)People's cultures are unlikely to affect their perspective.
C)People are partial to individuals of the opposite gender.
D)People find causes where they look for them.

Question 5

Which of the following best illustrates the fundamental attribution error?

A)Gertrude is nervous about attending his high school reunion because he is conscious that he is overweight.He feels that others will make fun of him.
B)Sarah is set to take her driving test.Although she has practiced innumerable times,she still feels agitated and unprepared at the prospect of the test.
C)Although her fellow students being freshers are as nervous as Maria,she assumes that they are happy and relaxed because they are talking and laughing with each other.
D)Bernard is aware of the fact that all his colleagues consume alcohol,whereas he is a teetotaler.He feels apprehensive about joining them for an after office party.

Question 6

Inferring that Cinderella is truly meek as she cowers in her oppressive home is an example of how we often

A)focus on internal traits.
B)ignore temporary moods.
C)forget about situational influences.
D)notice public and private behavior.

Question 7

In a study conducted by Lassiter and his colleagues (2002),participants observed a suspect confessing during a police interview.The results indicated that participants were more likely to perceive the confession was coerced when they viewed the confession

A)live.
B)through a two-way mirror.
C)through a camera focused on the suspect.
D)through a camera focused on the detective.

Question 8

Those who make regarding poverty and unemployment tend to adopt political positions that

A)offer more direct support to the poor.
B)are unsympathetic to the poor.
C)tend to blame the poor for their problems.
D)are more neutral regarding poverty and unemployment.

Question 9

What commands our attention as we shop for groceries each week is the environment around us,such as the number of people in front of us at the checkout counter.Yet,when we watch another person's behavior at the grocery store,he or she,rather than the environment,occupies the center of our attention.As a result,we tend to engage in the attribution error.That is,we are irritable because the lines are long,but the other person is cantankerous because he or she is an unhappy person.Which of the following best explains this use of the fundamental attribution error?

A)the actor-observer difference
B)the camera perspective bias
C)the changing perspectives trend
D)the self-awareness phenomenon

Question 10

In their Fidel Castro study,Jones and Harris (1967)reported that

A)participants were able to differentiate opinions that were chosen from those that were assigned.
B)even when they knew that a position was assigned,participants still reported that the feelings articulated in the essays reflected an author's true opinions.
C)participants believed that all authors were against Castro's policies regardless of what they wrote.
D)participants believed that all authors were for Castro's policies regardless of what they wrote.

Question 11

People in Western cultures are more inclined to assume that others' behaviors

A)reflect inner traits.
B)are caused by the situation.
C)do not reflect inner traits.
D)do not cause events.

Question 12

According to Daniel Lassiter's research (2002)on the camera perspective bias,New Zealand and some parts of Canada and the United States now require that police interrogations be filmed with

A)the suspect as the primary focus.
B)equal focus on the officer and the suspect.
C)the officer as the main focus.
D)focus on the observer inside the interrogation room.

Question 13

Researchers randomly assigned participants to play the part of either a quiz game contestant or a host,while other participants merely observed the game.Results indicated that

A)both contestants and observers thought the hosts were more knowledgeable than the contestants.
B)both contestants and observers thought the contestants were more knowledgeable than the hosts.
C)observers thought the hosts were more knowledgeable,but contestants attributed the outcomes to the situation.
D)hosts thought themselves more knowledgeable,but contestants attributed the outcomes to the situation.

Question 14

According to Malle's (2006)analysis of research on the actor-observer difference,we are more likely to attribute our behavior to the situation when

A)we act badly.
B)we fail.
C)we act intentionally.
D)we act admirably.

Question 15

We tend to underestimate the situational determinants of others' behavior but not our own because we observe others from a different perspective than we observe ourselves.This is known as the

A)actor-observer difference.
B)camera perspective bias.
C)changing perspectives trend.
D)self-awareness phenomenon.

Question 16

In _____ cultures,people are less likely to perceive others in terms of personal dispositions.

A)individualistic
B)collectivistic
C)religious
D)secular

Question 17

According to a study by Burger and Pavelich (1994),voters were more likely to attribute the outcome of an election to _____ the day after a presidential election,and to a _____ a year after the election.

A)poor weather on Election Day; candidate's oral presentation skills
B)a candidate's oral presentation skills; poor weather on Election Day
C)a candidate's personal traits and positions; nation's economy
D)a nation's economy; candidate's personal traits and positions

Question 18

In a study conducted by Lassiter and his colleagues (2002),participants observed a suspect confessing during a police interview.The results indicated that participants were more likely to perceive the confession as genuine when they viewed the confession

A)live.
B)through a two-way mirror.
C)through a camera focused on the suspect.
D)through a camera focused on the detective.