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Significance in the psychology of causal attribution. Casual Attribution: Meaning and Applications

Attribution is about understanding and correctly understanding own behavior... It also includes how other people manifest themselves. The personality traits characterized by this concept are not clearly distinguished. They are not in the field of perception. That is, attribution is the traits that are attributed to people based on logical reasoning and intuition. The concept also indicates the result, which may well not correspond to reality. There is also always the possibility that the analysis will be wrong.

What is attribution

It all started with the desire of people to explain the motives of their own behavior and the behavior of other people. Very soon the term was expanded, as a result of which it was possible to go beyond the initial framework.

Attribution is the assignment of various psychological properties to a person based on observation of him. Even unconscious inferences about someone can take place here, as well as the reasons for behavior can be considered.

Now attribution is not only about identifying the characteristics of someone's behavior. It is a set of psychological characteristics that can be directed towards other objects. In any case, attribution is the main mechanism of social perception.

Causal attribution

Causal attribution is a concept in psychology that arose from attempts to explain the motives of one's own and other people's behavior. But the term was soon expanded. Modern psychology is aimed at identifying the causes of behavior, which is accompanied by the attribution of various kinds of characteristics.

Causal attribution is a concept in psychology that was introduced by the psychologist F. Haider. Sometimes you need to predict someone's behavior, but there is not enough data for this. Therefore, the motives and personality traits are often thought out. Also, characteristics of various kinds (not represented in the field of perception) can be attributed to social community and the group.

In addition, causal attribution is in psychology an example of explaining the actions, thoughts, feelings of another person. Thus, there is a search for reasons explaining the behavior of the individual. Studies have shown that each person prefers a number of causality schemes. That is, he explains someone else's behavior, guided by familiar patterns. In addition, each person has their own set of systems and options. Also, there are certain personal methods of causality that explain other people's behavior.

Need for attribution

The information that can be obtained through observation is insufficient. It is not enough for a full-fledged human interaction with what is happening. Therefore, such information needs to be "completed".

Everything happens to predict the actions of the individual of interest in the future. A team or individual can be used to carry out attribution.

It can be difficult to understand someone's behavior. For this, there is not enough sensitivity, knowledge in psychology, or just information. As a result, other people's behavior is subject to speculation.

Attribution types

People who have developed personal attribution are focused on finding the culprit of what happened. If attributed to the cause of the situation to a certain person, then personal attribution is manifested in psychology. The examples are not difficult: "We didn't arrive on time because you missed the train."

If a person has developed detailed attribution, then he often blames external factors. He is not interested in the search for a specific person.

Stimulative attribution consists of blaming the subject. The glass fell and broke, as it was on the edge of the table. Also, the reason may be that the victim himself is to blame.

Perceptual errors

The study of causal attribution has led to the identification of various patterns that lead to errors of perception. It is noteworthy that people explain the success of outsiders and personal failure using situational attribution. We usually try to be softer and more loyal to ourselves than to strangers. But to analyze their own successes and the failures of others, personal attribution is used in psychology. This is the peculiarity of the human psyche.

Also interesting is the fact that the reason for success is usually associated with their own merit. But circumstances are blamed for failures. The person believes that they are successful because they are hardworking and intelligent. And his failure occurred solely through the fault of external factors.

But if it comes to another person, then attribution in the psychology of communication is manifested in the opposite way. Example: he is lucky, he is a sneaky and sneaky, this person has a relationship with a leader that is not formal. Or his failures are due to laziness, lack of mind.

Attribution when assessing subordinates

Conflicting attribution biases are common in any organization. This mainly applies to different situations, namely the prevailing biases.

When managers are asked to talk about the reasons for the ineffectiveness of their subordinates, they mainly cite internal factors as the reasons. They consist of a lack of effort and ability. At the same time, external factors, such as insufficient support, are indicated by them much less often. Thus, there is a reassessment of the influence of individual factors in the behavior of other people. These results indicate a tendency to underestimate the impact of situational and exaggerate the impact of individual factors.

Attribution for executives

If managers are asked to determine their inefficiency, then the majority chooses a lack of support, that is, an external situational factor. This is due to the tendency of bosses at different levels to deny their responsibility in a situation. This approach is also notable for accepting responsibility for success. Attribution in psychology is a characteristic that manifests itself in the assessment of their own performance by managers.

An increase in their efficiency was noted with an improvement in the level of support. They did not consider their ability, as well as willingness to work hard, to be significant factors. But in relation to subordinates, they insisted on the importance of these aspects.

But people with a developed sense of empathy quickly understand the feelings of others. In addition, they tend to view such behavior as their own.

That is, attribution is the speculation of someone's behavior in the absence of additional information... We all try to get the best possible idea of the interlocutor or the team based on some data. But with their insufficient number, attribution arises that can correspond to reality or contradict it. These points should be considered.

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Causal attribution: it is the process of attributing to another person the reasons for his behavior in the event that information about these reasons is not available. Attribution is carried out either on the basis of the similarity of the behavior of the perceived person with some other pattern that was available in the past experience of the perceptual subject, or on the basis of an analysis of his own motives, assumed in a similar situation.

The measure and degree of attribution depends on:

The degree of uniqueness or typicality of the act

The degree of its social « desirability "or" undesirability ". Experiments (John, Davis, Gergen): The subjects listened to interviews with people allegedly selected for astronauts and submariners. At the same time, the ideal astronaut was described as an introvert, and the submariner was described as an extrovert. Then they gave me a recording of interviews with people who were supposedly going to become submariners and astronauts and asked to determine the type of profession. Half of the subjects in the interviews clearly traced the traits of introversion and extraversion - the subjects accurately identified. In the other half of the subjects, the divers showed introversion in the interiors, and the cosmonauts - extraversion. There were no definite answers. Output : Behavior departing from role requirements requires additional behavior.

G. Kelly: Causal attribution theory:

1. covariance theory

With repeated observation, 3 criteria are triggered in a person:

Similarities (whether everyone behaves like this).

Differences (do they always behave this way)

Coincidences (does everyone always behave this way).

V different cases different types of attribution are selected

- personal attribution (the reason is attributed to the person who commits the act),

- incentive attribution (the reason is attributed to the object to which the action is directed),

- adverbial attribution (the reason for what is happening is attributed to the circumstances). It was found that the observer uses personal attribution more often, and the participant is more inclined to explain what is happening by the circumstances. This feature is clearly manifested when attributing the reasons for success and failure: the participant in the action "blames" the failure mainly on the circumstances, while the observer "blames" for the failure, primarily the performer himself.

2. configuration theory(one single observation).

Basic principles :

Strengthening (priority is given to a reason that meets an obstacle: a person clearly takes risks, commits an act, overcoming difficulties, etc.).

- depreciation (Thibault and Rickert experiment : People were asked to explain the reasons for this behavior after viewing passages of "obsequious behavior" of two people - high status and low. For low-status both the internal reason (powerlessness in life) and the external (desire for help) were chosen, and for high-status- only internal (he really is), since his status is high and people believed that he definitely could not need help. Output: the reason that has an alternative is discarded).

System distortion ( typical mistakes attribution).

A special place is occupied by the problem of attribution of responsibility. Hypothesis : the more serious the act, the more responsibility is on the individual, and not on the circumstances. Experiment: with a car on a hill (attribution of responsibility depending on the severity of the damage caused).

Attribution errors :

Fundamental error (overestimating personality characteristics versus situational)

5 reasons for a fundamental mistake :

The idea of false consent (the other's views are similar to mine).

We ascribe to the person what should be ascribed to the role.

Facts become more important than reasoning about them.

Illusory correlations (arbitrary connection of completely unrelated phenomena).

We do not take into account what has happened.

Fundamental attribution error is not absolute, as the participant and the observer attribute differently to causes. Why?

1. They have at different levels awareness.

2. Have a different angle of view, they have a different perceptual focus. Storms experiment : The conversation of two people was filmed on camera, and then shown to them - when interpreting their behavior after the conversation and after watching the tape, the interpretation of their behavior changed. And when viewing the tape, the interpretation coincided with the interpretation of the real observer of this conversation. And for real observers of the conversation, everything was the other way around - before watching the tape, they showed an attribution error, and after watching the tape, they "approached" in perception of the participants in the conversation.

Motivational error (caused by motivational processes, defenses).

Views:

1.reduction of motivation for positive self-esteem:

Counterprotective attribution (if a person knows that his actions will be critically assessed, he will attribute success to circumstances, and failure to himself).

Auto-hindrances (on the way to achieving the goal, a person creates obstacles for himself, i.e. he is justified in advance for failure).

2. motivation corresponding to the norm (false likeness).

3. the need for stability, security:

Faith in a just world

The illusion of control (ascribing to yourself more control than it really is).

Weiner: reasons for the motivational error:

Stable - unstable, internal - external, controlled - uncontrolled.

Depending on the motivation, a person may have a different set of reasons. The choice of each of the combinations is due to different motivation: either to justify weakness, or to assert oneself, i.e. motivation for achievement or against achievement. Usually, if explained your own success (failure), then success due to personal reasons, but failure- situational, and if someone else's success (failure) is explained, then the opposite is true... However, there is also impact of self-esteem: if a person has low self-esteem, then it is possible to attribute luck and circumstances. In addition, attribution of internal or external the reasons depend on the status perceived. The Thibault and Rickert experiment with high-status and low-status people who, after hearing the speech about the need for donation, both went to donate blood, but in the case of a high-status person, such a decision was attributed to his personality, and in the case of a low-status person - to the success of the speech.

Research Nikolyukina : considered study group- the participants were asked to rank the group according to their performance, and then each participant was given the information that the student who, according to his own classification, was “smarter”, got 2, and the student who was “dumber” - 5. In this case, the reasons were situational. And if “adequate” information was reported (ie, vice versa), then the reasons were attributed to the person.

Effects:

Installation effect plays a significant role in the formation of the first impression of a stranger, which was identified in experiments A. A. Bodaleva. Two groups of students were shown a photograph of the same person (the culprit is a major scientist). After that, each group was asked to compose a verbal portrait of the photographed person. The portrait turned out to be appropriate.

Halo effect experiments

- The assessments of two groups of children, given by the subject of perception, were registered: “beloved” and “unloved” children. Although the "loved ones" (in in this case more attractive) children made (deliberately) mistakes in the performance of the task, and the “unloved” did it correctly, the perceiver attributed positive assessments to “loved ones”, and negative ones to “unloved”. This is consistent with the theory of correspondence that people generally tend to reason in this way.: « bad person possesses bad features», « good man possesses good features». Output: attribution of reasons for behavior and characteristics is carried out according to the same model: bad people bad deeds are always attributed, and good deeds are always attributed to good.

- the transfer of physically attractive traits to the psychological characteristics of the perceived person was demonstrated: a group of men were shown photographs of beautiful, ordinary and clearly ugly women and asked to speak about their traits. Only the beautiful were endowed with such traits as strong, balanced, kind and even caring and attentive. The halo effect expresses the tendency to obscure certain characteristics and highlight others, plays the role of a kind of filter when "reading" a communication partner.

The effect of "primacy and novelty" - concerns the importance of a certain order of presentation of information about a person for drawing up an idea about him: previously presented information is considered as "primary", and later presented as "new". Experiment : A certain stranger was presented to four groups of students, who had to be described in terms of his personality traits, and about whom it was said: extrovert; introvert; first that he is an extrovert, and then that he is an introvert; the same, but in reverse order. In the first two groups, there were no problems with such a description. In the 3rd and 4th groups, the impressions about the stranger exactly corresponded to the order of presentation of the information: the one presented earlier prevailed. This effect is called "Primacy effect" and was registered in cases where perceived stranger... On the contrary, in situations of perception of a familiar person acts "Novelty effect", which consists in the fact that the latter, i.e. newer, the information turns out to be the most significant. However, there is no unequivocal answer to the question of what method of presenting information about another person is optimal.

Attribution of ancient monuments. Attribution methods. Engage in attribution. Attribution is based on analysis of style, plot, results of physical and chemical research.

Psychol. An attempt to understand the behavior of a person, a group of persons, a social community in conditions of a lack of information by means of speculation; mechanism for explaining smb. behavior.

Social attribution. Personal attribution.

Encyclopedic information The works of F. Haider (1958), E. Jones, K. E. Davis (1965), H. Kelly (1967) served as the beginning of the theoretical and empirical study of attribution. The development of the concept of attribution began with the identification of how people explain to themselves the motives of someone else's and their own behavior (causal attribution). The modern concept of attribution covers the assignment of various mental properties to oneself and other people (personal characteristics, abilities), inferences (often unconscious) about the probable causes of their behavior and the prediction of the likelihood of various actions and their results in the future. The most common concept is "fundamental attribution error", which consists in the tendency to impart greater importance personal (dispositional) factors and ignore situational influences when describing people and their behavior, which can lead to incorrect, inadequate attribution. The term was introduced by L. Ross (1977). (T.V. Anisimova)

We often try to understand the reasons for the actions of others. At the same time, the assessment of behavior can be associated with both circumstances and personal characteristics. a specific person... This assessment is called "causal attribution." What is causal attribution theory is a question that requires detailed consideration.

What is causal attribution?

Experts in the field of psychiatry say that causal attribution is a separate phenomenon of interpersonal perception, which consists in interpreting, attributing the reasons for the actions of another person with a lack of information about the real reasons for his behavior. This term originated in the western social psychology and general idea was able to get in the attribution theory developed by the researchers.

Causal Attribution - Types and Errors

Causal attribution in psychology reveals various patterns that lead to perceptual errors. People can explain their own failures and the success of others using situational attribution.

Often we all try to be more loyal and gentle to ourselves than to the people around us. Personal attribution is used to analyze one's own successes and the failures of others. An interesting fact can be called the fact that the reason for success is often associated with their own merits, and circumstances can be blamed for failures. This is the peculiarity of the human psyche.

Types of causal attribution

When talking about what causal attribution implies, it is important to keep the types in mind. Psychologists name three types of causal attribution:

Object causal attribution - a causal relationship is attributed to the object to which the action is directed.
Personal - attributed to the person who committed the act.
Circumstantial - attributed to circumstances

Causal attribution errors

There are some common mistakes in causal attribution:

The tendency to overestimate the role of personality factors and the ability to underestimate the impact of a situation and circumstances. This error is typical for those who can be called observers. When assessing the behavior of another person, you can often see a certain pattern. So, in case of failures, they say that someone did not try very hard, or that people do not have enough abilities. When the result of the activity is successful, we can say that they were lucky. If it comes about self-attribution, the opposite trend can be observed, since its main goal is to maintain positive self-esteem.
False consent error - it is common for a person to interpret his own behavior as typical, which is characteristic of many people.
The error of different possibilities of role behavior is different social roles may suggest different behaviors. For this reason, during attribution, the perceiver interprets the behavior of others according to their social roles.
Ignoring the informational meaning of what did not happen - the tendency to take into account extremely obvious facts.

Causal attribution and interpersonal attraction

In psychology, interpersonal attraction is understood as sympathy, affection and relationships between people. Each of us not only perceives others, but also forms our own attitude towards them. Moreover, it will be individual for everyone. This attraction influences the very phenomenon of causal attribution. In other words, when the attitude towards a person is positive, then both the explanation of the reason for the actions and the behavior can be softer and more loyal. When a person is downright unsympathetic, the reasons for the person's actions can be mercilessly criticized.

Causal attribution in communication

To understand what causal attribution means, it is important to know when it occurs. It appears when unexpected obstacles arise in the path of joint activities - when difficulties and conflicts arise, clashes of interests and views. The moment all this is happening, people are applying causal attribution. In other words, we attribute the reasons for the behavior to other people and the more difficulties in interaction, the more seriously we approach the search for the cause.

An example of causal attribution would be being late for a meeting with friends. Some of the waiters are sure that this may be due to the weather, another believes that a friend is late due to frivolity, and the third even doubts whether the late was informed about the meeting place. So all friends have different ideas about the reasons for being late: circumstances, features and character traits, the reason is in itself.

In the process of social interaction, a person perceives the other together with his actions and "through" actions. The construction of interaction with another person and, ultimately, the success of joint activities largely depend on the adequacy of understanding the actions and their causes. There is a fairly broad area in social psychology: the study of processes and results causal attribution(attribution of reasons for) behavior.

Causal attribution refers to the desire of people to find an explanation for what is happening to them and around them. People need such explanations for various reasons.

When a person understands what is happening to him and around him, he is able to control what is happening and, as far as possible, avoid unpleasant consequences, unforeseen events both for himself and for people close to him.

2. A person in this case gets rid of the feeling of anxiety associated with a lack of understanding of what is happening.

3. Understanding what is happening allows a person to behave rationally in the current situation, to choose a rational way of acting.

Causal attribution. When does casual attribution arise? It arises at the moment when unexpected obstacles and difficulties arise in the path of joint activity. When difficulties and conflicts arise, when interests and views collide. When this happens, people resort to causal attribution, i.e. we try to attribute reasons for behavior to other people - to explain the behavior of others. The more difficulties we encounter in interaction, the more seriously we approach the search for causes.

As an example: someone is late for a date with their buddies. One of the waiters believes that this is due to the poor work of transport, the other that being late is the result of frivolity, the third doubts whether he has informed the late person who is late another, incorrect meeting place, and the fourth that they are deliberately made to wait.

So everyone has different ideas about the reasons for being late. 1 - circumstances, 2 - personality traits, 3 - reason in itself, 4 - deliberate and purposeful delay. The reasons for motivating attribution are different because buddies carry out attribution differently.

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We often try to understand the reasons for the actions of others. At the same time, the assessment of behavior can be associated both with the circumstances and with the personal characteristics of a particular person. This assessment is called "causal attribution." What is causal attribution theory is a question that requires detailed consideration.

What is causal attribution?

Experts in the field of psychiatry say that causal attribution is a separate phenomenon of interpersonal perception, which consists in interpreting, attributing the reasons for the actions of another person with a lack of information about the real reasons for his behavior. This term was formed in Western social psychology and was able to get a general idea in the theory of attribution developed by researchers.

Causal Attribution - Types and Errors

Causal attribution in psychology reveals various patterns that lead to perceptual errors. People can explain their own failures and the success of others using situational attribution. Often we all try to be more loyal and gentle to ourselves than to the people around us. Personal attribution is used to analyze one's own successes and the failures of others. An interesting fact can be called the fact that the reason for success is often associated with their own merits, and circumstances can be blamed for failures. This is the peculiarity of the human psyche.

Types of causal attribution

When talking about what causal attribution implies, it is important to keep the types in mind. Psychologists name three types of causal attribution:

Object causal attribution - a causal relationship is attributed to the object to which the action is directed.
Personal - attributed to the person who committed the act.
Circumstantial - attributed to circumstances

Causal attribution errors

There are some common mistakes in causal attribution:

The tendency to overestimate the role of personality factors and the ability to underestimate the impact of a situation and circumstances. This error is typical for those who can be called observers. When assessing the behavior of another person, you can often see a certain pattern. So, in case of failures, they say that someone did not try very hard, or that people do not have enough abilities. When the result of the activity is successful, we can say that they were lucky. If we are talking about self-attribution, then the opposite trend can be observed, since its main goal is to maintain a positive one.
False consent error - it is common for a person to interpret his own behavior as typical, which is characteristic of many people.
The error of different possibilities of role behavior - different social roles may imply different behavior. For this reason, during attribution, the perceiver interprets the behavior of others according to their social roles.
Ignoring the informational meaning of what did not happen - the tendency to take into account extremely obvious facts.

Causal attribution and interpersonal attraction

In psychology, interpersonal attraction is understood as sympathy, affection, etc. Each of us not only perceives others, but also forms our own attitude towards them. Moreover, it will be individual for everyone. This attraction influences the very phenomenon of causal attribution. In other words, when the attitude towards a person is positive, then both the explanation of the reason for the actions and the behavior can be softer and more loyal. When a person is downright unsympathetic, the reasons for the person's actions can be mercilessly criticized.