Donald, once poor, inherited $5 million and decided to donate $1,000 to a local charity. Donald believes he took this step because he is a kind and generous man. Donald might be demonstrating _____.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Donald is demonstrating self-serving bias, which is the tendency to attribute positive outcomes to internal factors (such as his own generosity) and negative outcomes to external factors (such as his prior financial situation). This bias can help maintain a positive self-image. The fundamental attribution error would be if Donald assumed others who did not donate were not kind or generous, while hindsight bias would be if Donald believed he had always known he would donate to charity after inheriting the money. Cognitive dissonance would only apply if Donald experienced psychological discomfort after donating and had to justify his decision to himself.

Donald, Once Poor, Inherited $5 Million and Decided to Donate