What effect describes the tendency to attribute our behavior to external factors but others' behavior to internal factors?

The tendency to attribute our own behaviors to external factors while attributing others' behaviors to internal characteristics is known as the actor-observer effect. This phenomenon occurs because individuals often have more access to their own situational influences and contexts—such as stress or environmental factors—when considering their actions. In contrast, when evaluating others, people typically focus on visible actions without considering the full range of situational influences affecting those actions.

This bias can impact social interactions and judgments, often leading to misunderstandings and inaccurate assessments of motives and intentions. For instance, if someone fails an exam, they might attribute their performance to poor teaching (an external factor), while observing someone else's failure might lead them to assume the other person didn't study hard enough (an internal factor).

In contrast, other concepts mentioned, such as self-serving bias, involve the tendency to attribute one's successes to internal factors and failings to external factors, while the fundamental attribution error refers to the overemphasis on personal characteristics in judging others. Cognitive dissonance is about the discomfort felt when holding conflicting beliefs or behaviors. Hence, the actor-observer effect correctly identifies this specific attributional bias.