When Darren's classmate earns a D on an essay for their history class, Darren figures the classmate is unmotivated and should have spent more time working on the paper and less time socializing. The classmate is disappointed with her grade, but she knows she didn't have much time to work on the essay because she had to work double shifts the entire week before the paper was due. The different attributions for the low grade on the essay illustrate
A)the actor-observer bias.
B)defensive attributions.
C)the self-serving bias.
D)cognitive dissonance.

Question

When Darren's classmate earns a D on an essay for their history class, Darren figures the classmate is unmotivated and should have spent more time working on the paper and less time socializing. The classmate is disappointed with her grade, but she knows she didn't have much time to work on the essay because she had to work double shifts the entire week before the paper was due. The different attributions for the low grade on the essay illustrate ​
A)the actor-observer bias.
B)defensive attributions.
C)the self-serving bias.
D)cognitive dissonance.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The actor-observer bias is illustrated here, as Darren (the observer) attributes his classmate's poor performance to dispositional factors (lack of motivation), while the classmate (the actor) attributes her performance to situational factors (having to work double shifts).

When Darren's Classmate Earns a D on an Essay for Their