Final answer:
George's tendency to blame external factors for failure and claim personal credit for success is an example of self-serving bias. This helps maintain one's self-esteem by creating favorable interpretations of events, which disregards the potential impact of situational factors.
Step-by-step explanation:
If George blames new software for his group's poor performance in the most recent quarter but attributes the group's success in the prior quarter to his outstanding managerial skills, he is most likely exhibiting self-serving bias. The self-serving bias is a tendency for individuals to make internal attributions for their successes and to blame external factors for their failures. This bias helps to protect a person's self-esteem by allowing them to take credit for good outcomes while deflecting blame for bad ones.
For example, if a sports figure credits their own hard work and talent when they win, but blames the referee for incorrect calls when they lose, they are demonstrating self-serving bias. The businessman who believes hard work is its own reward, rather than seeking validation through a raise, may be attempting to justify the status quo, which is different from the self-serving bias.
An example of the fundamental attribution error can be seen when people underestimate the situational factors affecting someone's behavior. This is due to having limited information about the situation they are in. Comparatively, confirmation bias is when individuals seek out information that supports their existing beliefs or stereotypes.