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One of the driving forces behind this bias is the (unconscious) need to feel good about ourselves. A number of theories can help explain why self-serving bias occurs: Self-serving bias is caused by several factors. Due to this, we tend to make external attributions when the outcome of our behavior is negative, while we tend to make internal ones when the outcome is positive.

Internal (or dispositional) attribution interprets our behavior as being caused by our personality traits.Īs a result of self-serving bias, our attributions help us feel positively about ourselves.

External (or situational) attribution interprets our behavior as being caused by situational factors beyond our control.

These processes occur without us even realizing it. Causal attributions in particular, like those relating to success and failure, are often distorted by feelings (called affective behaviors). Although we like to think that we are rational and objective in our attributions, these are in fact heavily subject to the same distortions as other forms of judgment. In psychology, attribution refers to how we perceive and explain the causes of behavior. As a result, we make decisions or form judgments that are less than accurate but nevertheless beneficial for us.

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We tend to attribute positive outcomes to our characteristics or abilities, while negative outcomes are attributed to external circumstances.įor example, we are more likely to take personal credit for a high grade on an exam (positive outcome), but more inclined to blame another driver or the weather for a car accident (negative outcome). Under the self-serving bias, how we explain the root cause of an outcome depends on whether the outcome is positive or negative. Actor-observer bias is a similar type of attribution bias. More specifically, self-serving bias is a type of attribution bias, which occurs when we try to explain certain behaviors or outcomes. This bias frequently manifests as a tendency to attribute success to the self and failure to external causes. Self-serving bias is a type of cognitive bias in which an individual distorts reality in order to protect their ego. Self-serving bias is evident when explaining our behavior in various contexts, such as job performance, sports, or even driving ability. Self-serving bias prevents us from learning from our mistakes.This can distort our self-perception and significantly impair our ability to reflect on negative outcomes. In the case of a poor performance, the same student would likely think that the exam was too difficult or that the questions did not correspond to the material taught. Example: Self-serving bias Α student who performs well on an exam may ascribe their success to their excellent preparation and intelligence. In other words, we like to take credit for our triumphs, but we are more likely to blame others or circumstances for our shortcomings. Self-serving bias is the tendency to attribute our successes to internal, personal factors, and our failures to external, situational factors.

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