Which attributional bias describes the tendency to take credit for our successes and to deny responsibility for our failures?

• A. Self-serving bias
• B. False consensus effect
• C. Actor-observer bias
• D. Fundamental attribution error

Answer: (A)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the concept of attributional biases, which are systematic errors people make when trying to explain the causes of their own and others' behavior.
2. Identify the specific bias that involves taking credit for successes while denying responsibility for failures. This bias helps protect self-esteem by attributing positive outcomes to internal factors and negative outcomes to external factors.
3. Review the options given: Self-serving bias, False consensus effect, Actor-observer bias, and Fundamental attribution error, and recall their definitions.
4. Match the description of taking credit for successes and denying failures to the correct bias, which is known as the self-serving bias.
5. Confirm that the self-serving bias is the attributional bias that best fits the tendency described in the problem.