Tossup

Philip E. Tetlock authored a “social check” on this phenomenon, which was eliminated in an experiment centering on affirmative action. Thomas Pettigrew extended this phenomenon to an “ultimate” type for in- and out-groups. In an experiment demonstrating this phenomenon, students rated a quizmaster’s knowledge as “above average” despite being selected randomly. (-5[1])Lee Ross coined this phenomenon’s name in an essay discussing how people believed individuals assigned to write pro-Castro essays (-5[1])were actually pro-Castro. (-5[1])This cognitive bias (-5[1])under-emphasizes situational explanations (10[3])and overemphasizes trait-based explanations for an actor’s behavior. For 10 points, identify this “error” named in part for the process in which people infer causes for behaviors. ■END■ (10[2]0[4])

ANSWER: fundamental attribution error [or FAE; accept correspondence bias; prompt on attribution]
<Georgia Tech B, Social Science>
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