Question

What cognitive distortion is this? You read a story about a family whose home was destroyed by a tornado and think "well it's their fault for choosing to live in such a disaster-prone area"

a) Stereotyping
b) Belief in a Just World
c) Fundamental Attribution Error
d) Prejudice

Answer 1

The cognitive distortion represented in the scenario is 'Belief in a Just World', which involves blaming victims for their misfortunes. By attributing the destruction of the family's home to their choice of living in a disaster-prone area, the person is disregarding the situational factors.

Step-by-step explanation:

The cognitive distortion represented in the given scenario is Belief in a Just World. This distortion involves the tendency to think that people get what they deserve, and therefore, blaming the victims for their misfortunes.

By attributing the destruction of the family's home to their choice of living in a disaster-prone area, the person is disregarding the situational factors, such as natural disasters, that led to the event. This type of thinking ignores the impact of external circumstances and places the blame solely on the individuals.