Attribution of dispositions to an actor: Effects of perceived decision freedom and behavioral utilities.

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Abstract
Described situations in which a hypothetical actor was faced with a choice between alternative behaviors. Each situation varied along 2 dimensions: the actor's perceived decision freedom (high vs. low) and the utilities of the behavioral alternatives (high vs. low). 201 undergraduates estimated the probability that the actor would engage in each of the behavioral alternatives. Ss were told which alternative the actor had chosen and were asked to attribute attitudes or personality traits to the actor on the basis of his choice. Perceived behavior probabilities were shown to be influenced by the actor's decision freedom and by the utilities of the available alternatives. Also, consistent with expectations. The strength of an attribution was a negative function of behavior probabilities. The effects of decision freedom and of behavioral utilities on attribution strength could be predicted from the influence of these variables on behavior probabilities and from the inverse relation between behavior probabilities and attribution strength. Evidence is presented for the utility of a Bayesian approach to the prediction of attribution. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

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