Final answer:
The tendency to falsely infer individual attributes from group relationships is known as an illusory correlation. It's a cognitive bias often reinforced by confirmation bias and can lead to prejudicial attitudes.
Step-by-step explanation:
Using information that shows a relationship for groups to infer that the same relationship exists for individuals when in fact there is no such relationship at the individual level is called an illusory correlation. This cognitive bias involves seeing relationships between two variables that do not actually have a relationship. Often, the belief in such illusory correlations is reinforced by confirmation bias, where individuals seek out information that supports their existing beliefs and ignore contradictory evidence.
An example could be attributing certain behaviors to a group of people and then assuming those behaviors apply to every individual within that group, leading to prejudicial attitudes and potentially discriminatory actions. It's important to distinguish that correlation does not equal causation and that making inferences about individuals based on group data can be misleading.
A related concept is the false cause fallacy of weak induction, where a causal relation is presupposed between events or things that are not causally connected.