Introduction
It is human nature to never stop observing and analyzing others. Whenever an individual is confronted with something that is not easily explainable, he or she resorts to either internal (personal) or external attribution (Martinko & Mackey, 2019). A simple example would be the situation in the picture above. A man and a woman bump into each other on the street; one or both of them may trip over, fall, or drop their belongings. From the outside, the two people seem to be in a rush, not very attentive to their surroundings, and fairly inconsiderate of passers-by.
If their behavior is externally attributed, it is possible to speculate that the people might have had a busy day or been too much in their heads about something. All in all, situational factors made them act this way. If internal attribution is applied, each one of them might imply that the other person is simply rude and that it is their trait. It is easy to notice that these two types of attributions can lead to two different ways to perceive reality. People tend to make fundamental attribution errors when they underemphasize the situational and overemphasize personality and dispositional factors.
Personal Experience
Once I started noticing that my friend was withdrawing from me and neglecting our friendship. Whenever I wanted to meet her, she had an excuse not to come. My messages were left on reading for days to come, and sometimes she would even hang up on me when I tried to call her.
Given that we were very close before, the situation made me upset. At first, I was angry at my friend, and I attributed her new behavior to her changed personality. I knew she was changing jobs and meeting new people, so I figured that she no longer wanted me in her life. Yet, I was not ready to end this friendship, so I ended up confronting my friend and telling her everything I thought about her. To my surprise, she confessed that she was aloof and dismissive because her dad was seriously sick. The friend was not ready to tell me and, hence, preferred to keep a distance.
The Implications of the Fundamental Attribution Error
Committing fundamental attribution error (FAE) impacts our treatment of others. We make judgments about other people without considering the environmental and situational factors and, hence, evaluate their entire personalities based on one event. The mental stability of the judged person may be compromised as a result of FAE, especially if he or she is not yet ready to explain their behavior, as shown in my example. Furthermore, FAE affects our moral development and the ability to empathize with others. Making internal attribution leaves out the room for understanding a person who might be doing something, not to our liking. All in all, FAE poses a threat to effective communication and compassionate, trusting relationships.
Reference
Martinko, M. J., & Mackey, J. D. (2019). Attribution theory: An introduction to the special issue. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 40(5), 523-527.