The rocky road from acts to dispositions

Examines the attributional error of overestimating dispositions as a cause of behavior, with reference to the attitude attribution paradigm. The author observes that earlier experiments were open to criticism on artifactual grounds, but the overattribution-to-persons tendency has proved to be a remarkably robust and easily replicated phenomenon. It can be undermined or overcome when the perceived constraints on behavior are extreme or when instructions specifically set the S to consider the importance of situational factors. The functional significance of the attributional error is not clear, though it probably stems from a perceptually generated hypothesis that is insufficiently adjusted for contextual constraint. (21 ref)