Question

While studying one day at the LiBrary with a friend, Ahmed is suddenly drawn to an older man with glasses who trips over a student's laptop charger. While the man scrambles to collect his fallen books, Ahmed's friend turns to him and says "Wow, that LiBrarian is so clumsy". In what ways is Ahmed's friend forming impressions about the older man?

1) Availability heuristic, Fundamental Attribution Error
2) Representativeness heuristic, Fundamental Attribution Error
3) Availability heuristic, Self-Serving Bias
4) Representativeness heuristic, Self-Serving Bias

Answer 1

Ahmed's friend is forming impressions about the older man based on the availability heuristic and potentially the fundamental attribution error.

Step-by-step explanation:

The ways in which Ahmed's friend is forming impressions about the older man are:

1. Availability heuristic: Ahmed's friend is using the availability heuristic by basing their judgment of the older man's clumsiness on the easily recalled example of him tripping over the laptop charger. This heuristic causes people to rely on their most recent or noticeable experiences when making judgments.
2. Fundamental Attribution Error: Although not explicitly mentioned in the question, the fundamental attribution error could also come into play here. This error refers to the tendency to overemphasize personal characteristics and underestimate situational influences when explaining someone else's behavior. Ahmed's friend may be attributing the older man's clumsiness to his personal traits rather than considering possible situational factors.