Question

which of the following is true regarding the actor/observer effect?question 1 options:a) when you are the observer, you only have the current situation to consider so you overvalue situational factors.b) there is a tendency to underestimate situational influences on behaviour when you are the actor.c) you are less likely to overvalue dispositional factors on your friends' behaviour, even though you are the observer, because you know them well.d) it is easier to accurately identify situational influences on your behaviour when you are the actor.

Answer 1

The true statement regarding the actor/observer effect is that as an observer, you are less likely to overvalue dispositional factors on a friend's behavior because of your familiarity with them, providing context to their behavior. The correct option is c.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question concerns the actor/observer effect, which involves the tendency for individuals to attribute their own behavior to situational factors while attributing others' behavior to dispositional factors.

Specifically, the correct answer to the question posed is option (c): 'you are less likely to overvalue dispositional factors on your friends' behavior, even though you are the observer, because you know them well.'

This recognizes that close relationships can mitigate the actor/observer bias to some extent, due to greater knowledge of situational influences on the behavior of friends.

Actor-observer bias is the phenomenon of explaining other people's behaviors as due to internal factors and our own behaviors due to situational forces.

According to research, when we observe others, we lack complete information about the situational factors that may explain their behavior, hence we tend to make dispositional attributions. In contrast, as the actor, we are privy to more information about the situational contexts that affect our own behavior, leading us to make situational attributions. The correct option is c.