#Aversive conditioning actor observer bias mcat movie#

Now think about your body’s response to a suspenseful movie or inching up a roller coaster. Your heart is racing, your palms get sweaty, and you might feel anxious. Think about your body’s response when you’re in love or about to go on an exciting first date.

It could refer to the arousal of our fight-or-flight response or awaken someone from sleep. “To arouse” simply means to awaken or to set off a certain feeling. “Arousal” doesn’t always mean sexual arousal. The misattribution of arousal is particularly interesting because it involves completely arbitrary activities, like running or watching a scary movie, to how attractive someone else may seem to us.

Social psychologists have studied a handful of different misattributions that distort the way that we see the world or remember things. “Misattribute” simply means to make a mistake. In fact, there are a ton of different ways that our brains misattribute information. The rollercoaster actually caused his heart to race, but he attributes the sensation to his date. A theme park date may excite a young man. Misattribution of Arousal is a psychological phenomenon in which someone attributes their arousal to one stimulus, even though different stimuli may have caused it. Other Attribution Theories and Terms in Psychology What Is Misattribution of Arousal?