Attribution Theory We often find ourselves wondering why people behave a certain way during an unforeseen event. By attaching meaning to people behavior, we gain an understanding of why they behave a certain way. This concept is referred to as the attribution theory. The attribution theory analyzes how we explain people’s behavior and what contributes to it (Myers & Twenge 2017). For example, is this person angry because he or she has a bad temper, or because something awful has occurred? According to the attribution theory pioneer Fritz Heider (1958), some of us tend to think people behavior is attributed to their internal causes which is referred to as dispositional attribution (Myers & Twenge 2017). Others tend to think their behavior is attributed to external causes which is referred to situational attribution (Myers & Twenge 2017). After researching the attribution theory (and from my own experiences), I believe people are more susceptible to situational attribution during an unforeseen event rather than dispositional attribution. As in the Stanford Prison Experiment and the scandal at the …show more content…
The offender became aggressive and started to fight both staff members. The remaining three officers, feeling pressured by the moment (or situation), made an irrational decision to enter the cell (without gaining proper authorization) and help their coworkers subdue the offender. The officers fought with the offender for several minutes but were unsuccessful in applying the restraints because the offender continued to be aggressive. The officers exited the cell and secured the door, leaving the offender in his current housing assignment. All officers involved in the unreported use of force decided not to report the incident fearing they would receive
Happening in today’s society, there have been countless number of citizens being killed by law enforcement. Some situations may not cause for force and others may. This case can be a reference in regards to making sure that the force you use is appropriate for the situation. As for the justice system, it is all about being fair and listening to both sides and issuing out the right punishment if there is any. Many people in today’s time needs to get educated when it comes to the reason behind why law enforcement uses force to handle the situations they have to deal with. But in the end it all comes down to right and
Conover inferred many times that when something bad happens there will always be another person pointing the finger at another o...
There have been a number of officers who have been accused and convicted of using excessive force. In one case in a maximum security prison in New York there were two correction officers that were caught on video hitting an inmate that was handcuffed behind the back. According to the video it did not appear that the inmate provoked the assault in anyway. Both officers that were involved in the assault were later fired by the prison and they were found guilty of a civil rights violation.
There are some human phenomena, which seem to be the result of individual actions and personal decisions. Yet, these phenomena are often - on closer inspection – as much a result of social factors as of psychological ones.
Police brutality is a very real problem that many Americans face today. The police carry an enormous burden each day. Police work is very stressful and involves many violent and dangerous situations. In many confrontations the police are put in a position in which they may have to use force to control the situation. There are different levels of force and the situation dictates the level use most of the time. The police have very strict rules about police use force and the manner in which they use it. In this paper I will try to explain the many different reason the police cross the line, and the many different people that this type of behavior effects. There are thousands of reports each year of assaults and ill treatment against officers who use excessive force and violate the human rights of their victims. In some cases the police have injured and even killed people through the use of excessive force and brutal treatment. The use of excessive force is a criminal act and I will try and explore the many different factors involved in these situations.
Was the intrusion based on a lawful objective, such as a valid arrest, detention, search, frisk, community warden guardian of mentally ill, defense of an officer or a citizen, or to prevent escape? If these answer yes then an officer may have legal ability to use the levels of force listed below to apprehend the suspect. Another list of things to consider when determining if it was a lawful use of force is; was the use of force relative to the person’s confrontation? Was there a crucial need to terminate the condition? Even though there is no duty to retreat, could the officer have used lesser force and still safely accomplish the lawful objective? These are the questions that the jury need to answer to determine if they should side with or against the officer in any court case brought to them that deals with such a controversial topic as this.
Most law enforcement agencies have policies that determine the use of force needed. The policies describe the escalating series of actions an officer can take to resolve a situation, first level is officer presence which means no force is used, and just the mere presence can reduce
After that I saw Inmate Harris moving quickly and aggressively from my right towards inmate Gaman. I immediately stepped in between both inmates and told them to “knock it off”. As I stood in between both inmates, I tried to keep them separated by putting my arms out and using the palms of my hands as a barrier. As I attempted to deescalate the situation, I gave both of them several verbal commands to stop and lock down. Neither inmate would back down or follow my orders to stop and lockdown.
One famous psychology scientist that goes by the name of, Julian Rotter, studied influential behavior and he proposed that individuals differ a great deal in terms of where they place the responsibility that happens to them (Hock 190). Rotter’s findings concluded that people either have an external or internal locus of control for placing responsibility that occurs to them. External locus of control is indicated when when people interpret consequences of their behavior to be controlled by luck, fate, or powerful others (190). One person from the movie young at heart that demonstrates a high external locus of control is Joe. In the hospital, Joe told Bob Cilman, “The lord knows how long your going to be here” (Walker & George, 2007). This is external because outside forces such as the lord, or god, play a
An attribution refers to an individual’s perceived cause or causes of their own and others behaviour. We interpret other people’s actions and we predict what they will do under certain circumstances. Though these ideas are usually not formulated, they often function adequately (Heider, 1944). Attributions are common to everyday life, and individual and unique life experiences means that not everyone’s attributions are synonymous. Basic models of attribution were theorised as early as the 1940s (Heider, 1944; Heider and Simmel, 1944), with more recognised theories being introduced in the 1950s and 1960s (Heider, 1958; Jones and Davis, 1965; Kelley, 1967). Weiner (1974, 1985) extended these ideas, summarising his own theory of attribution and introducing a conception known as achievement motivation (Weiner, 1979).
The Fundamental Attribution Error (FAE) is a concept within social psychology that assumes when someone is aggressive, it is due to a flaw in their personality as opposed to a reaction to their personal circumstances (Aronson, Wilson & Akert, 2015). However, there is typically a situational reason for the other person’s behavior that is not taken into account through the FAE (Aronson, Wilson & Akert, 2015). I have been guilty of making the FAE myself; for example, I can think of two situations where my frustration led me to believe that there were flaws in my antagonists’ characters. Recently, my mother wanted me to assist my brother in scheduling classes for the semester. Since I was annoyed that my mother was insisting that I assist him when
How the Attribution Theory in an attempt to assign meaning/understanding to events on the basis of eith...
Attribution theory suggests that when we observe an individual's behavior, we attempt to determine whether it was internally or externally caused. That determination depends largely on three factors: distinctiveness, consensus, and consistency. Our perceptions of people differ from our perceptions of inanimate objects.
Attributions are referred to as the causes of behaviour, and these can be viewed as dispositional or situational. Constructing attributions allows an understanding of others. This allows us to make judgments, which in turn allow us to form an impression of an individual, which will either promote or inhibit our interaction with that individual. Attribution is an important aspect of human behaviour, as it allows predications to be made with respect to forthcoming actions. Attribution explains human causal reasoning i.e. the idea that observed behaviour can be explained as being the result of a specific cause; there is an explanation or a reason behind all observed behaviour. Attribution theorists not only focus on the actual causes of behaviour, but also upon the perceived causes too.
Buitelaar, J.K., Van Engeland, H., Van Goozen, S.H.M., Mathys, W. & Snoek, H. (2004). Strss responsivity in children with externalizing behavior disorders. Development and psychopathology. 16, 389-406. doi: 10.10170S0954579404044578