OUR DISPOSITION + THE SITUATION USUALLY INFLUENCE OUR CHOICES --- Episode 3

A. Interior sources of Dispositionalism ---continued

2. Motives for reasons, closure, and simplicity

   People like their world to make sense. All of us have a strong desire to understand how and why things happen -- call us "curious." And it is not just that we desire reasons ; it is that we seek particular kinds of reasons --- ones that bring closure and minimize any threat to ourselves, our groups, and our systems. 
   Those motivations are so strong that we are often willing to make rather surprising concessions to reach a definitive answer or conclusion. Indeed, social psychologists have demonstrated that, in many circumstances, the urge to reach a solution and to resolve uncertainty results in individuals avoiding, misconstruing, or discrediting information that would undermine their initial hypothesis. Simple explanations prove to be most appealing, and we are motivated to defend straightforward theories against more complex ones. Dispositionism, by offering simple and automatic answers to complex problems, often satisfies our urge for expedient resolution. 

3. Motive for self-affirmation
   Another reason that we are inclined toward dispositionist attributions lies in our desire to see ourselves in self-affirming ways.  We like to believe that we are independent, intelligent consumers of life's many options --- the attitude-driven, reasoning choice makers of commercials and Westerns. Rather than victims of situation, we see ourselves as in control of our destinies --- "Marlboro Men" and "Virginia Slims." 
   Our desire to maintain that satisfying conception causes us to react strongly whenever we sense that our freedom is being unfairly limited. Indeed, we often react to perceived constraints on our choices (DO NOT READ THE REST OF THIS SENTENCE !) by taking (or suddenly wanting to take) the prohibited option. Psychologists call this desire to maintain (the perception of) control REACTANCE --- a tendency that marketers have been exploiting for as long as there have been marketers. Attempts to restrict an individual's emotions, attitudes, or behavior often produce a similar "boomerang effect" --- that is, an increase in the restricted feelings or behavior . Although we often enjoy no more than an illusion of control over our situations, we are strongly motivated to see ourselves in the driver's seat. Dispositionism, WITH ITS FOCUS ON INDIVIDUAL CHOICE, puts the wheel in our hand and the brake and accelerator beneath our feet.  
   Our craving for control is evident not only in our response to apparent restraints but also with respect to how we deal with the news of negative outcomes. When something bad happens, we want someone to blame ; when something really bad happens we really want someone to blame. The worse the outcome, the greater is our desire to find an evildoer behind the act --- particularly,an evildoer who does not implicate us. Again, the motive is generated by our need to feel safe and in control. When it is situation and not disposition that caused a problem, all of us who share that situation feel threatened. We defensively seek protection through our attributions. If, for instance, we can find a way to blame the victim f a bad event, by focusing on his or her bad disposition or flawed choice, we can assure ourselves that the world is just and maintain our firm grip on the reins of destiny. We can continue to be the strong individualists who, unfazed by the winds of situation, avoid negative results by making good choices and relying on our stalwart dispositions. We can blaze our own trails, march to our own drummers, pull our own strings, create our own luck, and, in the autumn of our lives, look back without regrets knowing we did it "our way."