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Effect of memory perspective on retrospective causal attributions
1Department of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853-7601.
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
|September 1, 1989
Summary
Recalling past events from an observer perspective, like watching a movie of yourself, leads to more dispositional attributions. This contrasts with field memories, which maintain the original viewpoint.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Social Psychology
- Cognitive Psychology
Background:
- Causal attributions explain the causes of behavior and events.
- Temporal shifts in attributions can lead to contradictory findings in research.
- Visual perspective during recall may influence retrospective judgments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if visual perspective during memory recall mediates retrospective causal attributions.
- To explore the impact of observer versus field memory perspectives on dispositional attributions.
Main Methods:
- Two studies were conducted involving participants recalling past social interactions.
- Participants rated their performance and indicated their memory perspective (observer or field).
- Study 1 relied on naturally recalled perspectives; Study 2 manipulated perspectives via instructions.
Main Results:
- Recalling events from an observer's perspective consistently led to more dispositional attributions.
- This effect was observed regardless of whether the perspective was naturally recalled or experimentally manipulated.
- Findings suggest memory perspective functions similarly to actor-observer perspectives in immediate experience.
Conclusions:
- Visual perspective during memory recall significantly influences retrospective causal attributions.
- Observer memories are associated with attributing events to internal, dispositional factors.
- Results help reconcile inconsistencies in the literature on temporal changes in attributional biases.