Social attribution Theory Flashcards
Main definition of attribution theory
A set of ideas on how inferences about the causes of action are made when observing or hearing about a persons actions
Three things needed for attribution theory
Observer explains an actors behavior to an entity
What is self attribution
Where the actor and observer are the same person
What are dispostions
enduring characteristics that account for other people’s behaviour
Advantages of drawing dispositional inferences
You can take random facts about somebody and integrate it, using it to make predictions of their behaviour
Define correspondent inference theory (CIT)
how people use others behavior as a basis for inferring their stable dispositions
Who described Correspondent Inference Theory (CIT)
Jones and Davis’ in 1965
What factors are important in the process of correspondent inference theory (CIT)
Behaviour is freely chosen
Behaviour is a product of unique causes
Behaviour is unusual
Another way to work out the reasons of CIT
How are they working things out, how are they responding to their environment
How to determine intentions under CIT
consider range of behaviours of the actor, whether the efects of those actions are desirable or not. ONly the actions of the time are condsidered
What perspective does CIT take?
That of the actor
Define analysis of non-common effects
Comparison of the consequences of the behavioural options open to the actor and theorugh the identification of their distinctive outcomes
Define correspondence bias
People tend to judge personal causes of behaviour but underestimate situational aspects
Define co-variation theory
The actions of the actor are judged from the point of view of the observer
What does the observer do in co-variation theory
determine causes of behaviour by collecting data about comparison cases
Define distinctiveness info (co vari)
Evidence relating to how an actor responds to different entities under similar circumstances
Define Consistency information (covariation)
Evidence relating to how an actor’s behaviour towards an entity varies across different situations
Define Consensus information
covariation
Evidence relating to how different actors behave towards the same entity
Define causal schemas
People refer to existing ideas about how effects are produced in order to infer missing info
In covariation theory, why are inferences made?
the info is incomplete, or there is not enough time to collect all necessary info
Define the augmenting principle
Assumption that causal factors need to be stronger if an inhibitory influence on an observed effect is present
Define the discounting priniciple
Presence of a causal factor working towards an observed effect implies that other potential factors are less influential
(Example gravity makes the person on the bike go faster than pedalling might)
Limitations of covariation theory
People dont exhaustively sift theough all evidence available before making a judge of character
Who came up with abnormal condition focous
Hilton and Slugoski
What does abnormal condition propose?
People look for difference between what cognitive scripts predict, and what actually happens
Limitations of covariation theory
- covariation cant infer causation
- Predisposition to uncover causal powers rather to record observalbe regularites
- Probalisitic contrast
Define causal power
The intrinsic property of an object or event that enables it to exert influence on some other object or event
Define probabilistic contrast
covariations between competing potential causes and the observed effect
Go over probablistic contrast in text
I’m on it man! Riiight??
