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An Examination of the Actor‐Observer Effect in Young Drivers' Attributions for Their Own and Their Friends' Risky Driving
Author(s) -
Harre Niki,
Brandt Theo,
Houkamau Carla
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
journal of applied social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1559-1816
pISSN - 0021-9029
DOI - 10.1111/j.1559-1816.2004.tb02572.x
Subject(s) - situational ethics , attribution , psychology , social psychology , observer (physics) , context (archaeology) , psychological intervention , paleontology , physics , quantum mechanics , psychiatry , biology
The attributions of 70 young drivers for their own and their friends' risky driving were examined using open‐ended questions to determine if there were self‐other differences consistent with the actor‐observer effect. Six response categories were created, 4 of which were rated as more dispositional than situational by a subsample of the participants and 2 of which were rated as more situational than dispositional. While the largely dispositional category “Showing off, acting cool” was used significantly more for friends than for self, and the largely situational “In a hurry, late” was used significantly more for self than for friends, there was only limited support for the actor‐observer effect overall. The participants also rated their friends as taking more risks than themselves. The actor‐observer differences are suggested to be influenced primarily by motivational factors and the context in which young people observe their friends' driving. New approaches to traffic safety interventions are suggested.