Examines the effects of consensus information on the prediction of behavior as a function of social desirability of consensus information and the presence or absence of vignette information about target persons. Discusses the different manners in which consensus information can be used. (Author/RK)

The research literature on defensive attribution of responsibility is reviewed within the framework of a nonmotivational information-processing model which proposes that attributed responsibility is a function of the difference between the perceived contingent probability (congruence) of an outcome, given a perpetrators' behavior, and the…

Undergraduates analyzed a story in which an agent's intervention was followed by the target's compliance, noncompliance, or countercompliance to the request. Influence was attributed to the agent in conditions demonstrating change, regardless of direction of change. Influence decreased if the target delayed final compliance. (Author/CP)

Investigates two factors as determinants of defensive attributions of responsibility for accidents and provides some clarification of the role of outcome severity in responsibility assignments. (Author/RK)

The typical bargaining paradigm is described and the limitations of general theories of bargaining are discussed. The results of relevant experiments are then reviewed and evaluated. (Editor/RK)

The results of three studies clearly indicate that ongoing behavior is organized into perceptual units, and that these units may be validly identified by the Newtson (1973) unit marking procedure. (Author)

Evidence from four studies demonstrates that social observers tend to perceive a "false consensus" with respect to the relative commonness of their own responses. Implications of these findings for our understanding of social perception phenomena and for the analysis of the divergent perceptions of actors and observers are discussed. (Editor/RK)

In a study to test whether imagery accounts for the effects of empathy on attributions, it was determined that the imagery explanation of empathy effects was untenable and that the recall of perspective-relevant details was unlikely to mediate attributions of causality in imaginary scenarios. (Author/MH)

A number of bipolar personality dimensions were investigated, some of which were selected a priori as being primarily concerned with interpersonal differences in skill (such as unintelligence--intelligence), and others of which were thought to describe differences in preferences (such as indoor--outdoor). (Editor)

An experiment was conducted to test the proposition that rewards undermine or enhance intrinsic interest in a task to the extent that individuals interpret their behavior as being motivated by the reward. It was predicted that when subjects were denied the opportunity to develop and confirm this attribution, rewards would not produce an…

Previous studies have indicated that explaining a hypothetical event makes the event seem more likely through the creation of causal connections. However, such effects could arise through the use of the availability heuristic; that is, subjective likelihood is increased by an event becoming easier to "imagine". Two experiments were designed to…

Explores whether or not systematic attributional differences between active and passive observers occurs similar to those that exist between actors and observers. (Author/RK)

Jones and Nisbett (1972) hypothesize that actors attribute their actions to situational requirements whereas observers attribute the same actions to personal dispositions. This hypothesis is critically examined and a reconceptualization is proposed. (Editor/RK)

Of what importance are our impressions and perceptions of others? This empirical investigation suggests that social perceptions can and do exert powerful channeling effects on subsequent social interaction such that actual behavioral confirmation of these beliefs is produced. Outlines a theoretical account of the processes believed to underlie…