Defensive Attribution
Defensive attribution is the tendency to blame victims of severe accidents for their own misfortune to feel less vulnerable to similar events.
When people witness a severe accident, they often attribute the victim's misfortune to personal flaws or risky behavior. This happens because it creates a psychological buffer, making them feel their own actions can prevent similar tragedies. For example, someone might say a car crash victim was 'driving too fast' to reassure themselves that careful driving would keep them safe.
Recognising a definition is not the same skill as spotting it.
Two scenarios from the app, with distractors drawn from the same family of biases — which is what makes them hard.
After hearing about a friend's relationship breakup, Sara says, 'They must have ignored the red flags.' She feels confident in her own relationship because she is very observant.
You hear a neighbor's house was burglarized. You think, 'They must have left a window unlocked or the door open. I always use my deadbolt.'
Biases rarely arrive alone.
Understand more. Assume less.
188 biases, 18,869 scenarios, and a record of how you actually decide.
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