Rigid because we are familiar with our own groups we

rigid because we are familiar with our own groups& we appreciate differences among members
o Stereotypes persist because even incorrect stereotypes help process info about others quickly
1 It’s easier to rely on false stereotypes than discover true nature of targets.
2 Inaccurate stereotypes are reinforced by selective perception & application of language 
language is twisted to turn neutral info into unfavourable stereotypes; ex: “reserved” = “snobby”
Attribution: Perceiving Causes and Motives
 Attribution: process where causes or motives are assigned to explain people’s behaviour
 Dispositional attributions: explanations for behaviour based on an actor’s personality / intellect
 Situational attributions: explanations for behaviour based on an external situation/ environment
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1 Consistency cues : Does he engage in the behaviour regularly and consistently?
o Def.: Attribution cues that reflect how consistently a person engages in a behaviour over time
o Consistency = dispositional attributions; inconsistency makes us consider situational attributions
2 Consensus cues: do most people engage in the behaviour or is it unique to this person?
o Def.: attribution cues that reflect how a person’s behaviour compares with that of others
o Low-consensus behaviour = dispositional attribution, since it shows “true motives”
3 Distinctiveness cues: extent to which he engages in some behaviour across a variety of situations
o Low distinctiveness (occurs across many situations), it means dispositional attribution
Attribution in Action
 Highly consistent, low consensus, and not distinctive : Bob is absent a lot, his co-workers are never
absent, and she was absent in previous jobs  this is his personality (disposition )
 Highly consistent, high consensus, and distinctive : Sam is absent a lot, co-workers are also absent a
lot, but she was never absent in previous jobs  it’s a trend in this workplace ( situation)
 Inconsistent, high consensus, and not distinctive: Mike is absent never, his co-workers are absent
never, & he was never absent in previous jobs  external factor ( temporary situation)
Biases in Attribution
 Various cue combinations usually lead to correct attributions (but not always), but there’s bias
 Fundamental Attribution Error: overemphasize dispositional explanations for behaviour at the
expense of situational explanations (but social roles affect behaviour)!
o less likely when manager has actual experience in that specific job
 Actor-observer effect: tendency for actors & observers to view the causes of the actor’s behaviour
differently (AKA they disagree on the true causes of the act)
o As observers of similar behaviour in others, we’re likely to invoke dispositional causes
o Actors are prone to attribute their own behaviour to situations because they’re more aware than
observers of the constraints/advantages and aware of their own thoughts and intentions
 Self-serving bias: