Attribution Bias

When I am late, it is the traffic. When you are late, it is your character. This, in one sentence, is the bias.

The reason is structural. I know my own situation from the inside — the rain, the sick child, the alarm that failed. I know you only from the outside, as a figure who failed to appear. So I explain myself by circumstances and explain you by personality. Each of us is a story; everyone else is a verdict.

Now reverse the camera and notice how generous you become. The rude clerk may have slept three hours. The silent friend may be carrying something. You do not have to excuse anyone; you only have to admit the evidence is incomplete.

The practical rule costs nothing and pays daily: before judging a person, lend them one circumstance. It will often be wrong. It will still make you more accurate, and noticeably more decent.