Self-serving bias is the tendency for people to attribute their successes to their own abilities and efforts, while attributing their failures to external factors. This means that people often take credit for their successes and try to deflect blame for their failures. For example, if someone does well on a test, they may attribute their success to their own intelligence and hard work, but if they do poorly on the same test, they may attribute their failure to the difficulty of the test.
Self-serving bias can have a number of negative effects, including a distorted view of one’s own abilities and performance, and a lack of accountability for one’s own actions. It can also lead to conflicts with others, as people may be less likely to accept responsibility for their mistakes and may instead blame others for their failures. To avoid self-serving bias, it is important to be aware of this bias and to try to be objective and honest when evaluating our own successes and failures.
