Recall the "Castro study" conducted by Jones and Harris. In this study, participants were asked to read an essay that was supposedly written by another student. The essay was always about Castro, but it was either pro-Castro or anti-Castro. Also, participants were told either (a) that the essay-writer got to choose which side to take (pro- or anti-), or (b) that the essay-writer was ASSIGNED to one side or the other. The researchers found that ____.
A) participants made the fundamental attribution error-but only for the pro-Castro essays
B) participants made the fundamental attribution error-but only for the anti-Castro essays
C) participants made the fundamental attribution error for both types of essays
D) participants only made the fundamental attribution error when they themselves had strong views about Castro

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Participants made the fundamental attribution error for both types of essays. The researchers found that participants tended to think that the essay-writer's attitude toward Castro reflected his or her genuine beliefs, even when they were told that the essay-writer had no choice but to take that position. This showed that people tend to make dispositional attributions (e.g., "the essay-writer is pro-Castro because he/she likes him") rather than situational attributions (e.g., "the essay-writer is pro-Castro because he/she was assigned that position") when inferring other people's attitudes and beliefs.

Recall the "Castro Study" Conducted by Jones and Harris