PROFILE

Profile of Lee D. Ross

ocial psychologist Lee Ross has did experiments,” he says. However, Ross never felt content to confine his says, the research was less a test of deep Sresearch to the laboratory. He pre- theoretical principles and more an attempt fers to wade knee-deep through to capture real-world phenomena in the global issues, finding ways to apply his laboratory. “We sometimes joked that expertise to problems ranging from climate we’d see things in the real world and want change and healthcare to education and to study if what was true in practice was the legal system. Ross, a professor of also possible, and ideally understandable, at Stanford University (Stan- in theory,” Ross says. ford, CA) and recently elected member of He held a particular fondness for studies the National Academy of Sciences, has that “told a story in a way that students devoted a long and distinguished career to understood.” One such study (5) was observing how people behave in real-life amodified version of the Prisoner’sDi- situations, including second-track nego- lemma game, a classic demonstration of tiations and conflict resolution in the game theory from the 1950s. In the standard Middle East and Northern Ireland. His game, two robbers are arrested and sepa- findings have offered valuable insights into rately asked to testify against their partner. the factors that influence personal judg- If both betray each other, they get 3 months ment and decision-making processes. Ross’ in jail, whereas if both cooperate, then they concepts have not only become central each get only 1 month in jail. If only one to , but they have had defects, however, he gets released, and the broad impacts on fields ranging from de- cooperator gets a 1-year sentence. Re-

velopmental and to Ross of Lee D. courtesy Image searchers have long studied what governs behavioral economics. choices in such situations, but Ross decided Lee D. Ross to try changing the name of the game. Bias and Behavior Ross asked participants to play a stan- Ross received a PhD in psychology from points out, the fundamental attribution dard version of the Prisoner’s Dilemma Columbia University, where he met error is ingrained in humans—from the game in which the stakes were financial but Richard Nisbett, a fellow graduate student way that we perceive actions to the lan- named it either the Community or Wall in the laboratory of . The guage that we use to describe them. “It’s Street game. His research revealed that pairstayedintouchwellafterRossaccepted natural to attribute the action to the actor two times as many people cooperated a professorship in 1969 at Stanford Uni- doing the acting,” Ross explains. “We say when they thought that they were playing versity, where he began studying attribution ‘he was a brave person’ or ‘it was a brave the Community game rather than the Wall theory to determine how people explain the act,’ but we don’t know how to say ‘it was Street game. Interestingly, the players’ causes of behaviors and events. “At the a situation that made it easy to be brave’ previous reputations as likely cooperators time, attribution theory was important but or a ‘bravery-inducing situation;’ it just or defectors did not predict their behavior kind of dull,” he says. “I became interested sounds strange to say that.” It is not that at all. “It’s one of my favorite studies,” not in how we go about making attributions we cannot do it, Ross says. We know how Ross says. “At the most general level, it but when and why we do it wrong. That to use that language for emotions and task said that the way in which we respond to made attribution theory come alive!” performance. For example, we might de- a situation depends on how we subjectively Together with Nisbett, Ross coauthored scribe a stimulus as frightening or certain perceive it,” even when it is the sort of nearly100 journal articles andbook chapters tasks as hard or easy. “But we don’t nor- situation that economists normally think of as well as two widely cited books (1, 2). mally use that kind of language for things in terms of objective self interests, he says. The books, which explore human judgment like generosity, bravery, or cowardice,” In another prominent study, Ross looked and the relationship between social sit- he says. at perceived media bias during the US uations and personality, constitute some of Ross took particular interest in studying Presidential debates. When the media does Ross’ most important contributions, de- the various biases that people have (for not see the world that the way we do, scribing the core ideas of social psychology example, how people are overconfident in we accuse the media of bias, Ross says, inawaythatcouldbeappreciatedby their judgments or slow to change their a phenomenon that he describes as the scientists in many other fields. beliefs even in the face of evidence). “hostile media effect.”“If I think my can- In 1977, a few years before authoring his People also tend to think that their own didate won the debate, and you think your first book with Nisbett, Ross published behaviors are more appropriate and candidate won the debate, when someone a key paper detailing his most important common than alternative behaviors— describes it objectively, we’re both frus- early findings. This influential paper by a concept Ross named the “false con- trated that the other person didn’t see Ross (3) introduced the term “the in- sensus effect” (4). “These are all phe- things the way we think they really were,” tuitive psychologist” and explored the nomena that we see in the world, and we he says. “Both sides think that their side various cognitive and motivational biases began to see if we could demonstrate won the debate, and so, the media wasn’t that people are susceptible to when them in an experimental setting, explore fair, because it didn’t give their side credit interpreting data. He also coined the why they happened, and what factors for the victory.” term “fundamental attribution error” produced them,” Ross says. He followed this study with a study of to describe the tendency to attribute media coverage (6) surrounding a massacre someone’s behavior to their individual Experimental Approach in a Lebanese refugee camp to answer characteristics and attitudes, while un- In exploring errors and biases, Ross favored a controversial question: what degree, if derestimating the influence that the ac- an experimental approach. “If you were any, did people think that Israel was re- tual situation might have had. As Ross a social psychologist in my generation, you sponsible for the massacre? “We showed

www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1205295109 PNAS Early Edition | 1of2 Downloaded by guest on September 26, 2021 that people who were pro-Israeli thought way they really are, so if they could just get ings of your church on issues of morality the television coverage was anti-Israeli, and together with the other side and explain like gay rights, abortion, and that kind people who were anti-Israeli thought the how things really are, they could make of thing, and if you’re a conservative same coverage was pro-Israeli,” Ross says. progress. But, of course, when they get to- Christian, you’re going to be somewhat at “From a psychologist’s perspective, this was gether, they’re really frustrated and disap- odds with the teachings of the gospels particularly interesting, because we mostly pointed, because they tell the other side on issues of fellowship and helping your see the world the way we want to see it.” how things really are and the other side fellow man when it comes to how you feel However, when it came to media coverage, doesn’tagree,” he says. During such con- about income redistribution and illegal people thought it was biased against them. flicts, Ross and his SCICN colleagues immigrants,” he says. Ross found that This phenomenon involves a concept encourage people to view the sources of both liberal and conservative Christians known as naïve realism that Ross considers their deadlock and even view the conflict attribute views to Jesus that are similar to be central to social psychology. “We itself in terms of ordinary psychological to their own views. “They collectively ra- think the world is the way we perceive it processes rather than focusing on the as- tionalize their own views by projecting to be, and we expect other people to see it pects of their conflict that are unique. “You them onto Christ.” the same way,” he says. “So, when they see make some progress when people who are it differently and disagree with us, we tend frustrated with each other come to see Social Psychologist’s Perspective to attribute it to their stupidity, their the problem in terms of characteristics that Ross has studied divisive issues such as lack of attention, their lack of information, make us all human rather than the unique capitalpunishment andclimatechange,and their biases, or something else that is pre- negative characteristics of people on the he has provided a psychologists’ perspec- venting them from seeing it accurately.” other side of the conflict,” he says. tive to Stanford’s climate researchers. His work with real-world conflicts has “Climatologists might think the problem is Conflict Resolution had lasting impacts, Ross says. “You come that people are ignorant, and we have to Although Ross’s early work explored how to recognize the importance of things that convince them, change their hearts and an individual behaves when confronted haven’t received enough attention in minds, while the social psychologist would with information, he eventually began to the laboratory,” he says. In particular, he focus on situational factors,” he says. This consider what happens when people with learned how personal relationships serve as focus means that, to make a change, we different biases and worldviews interact key sources of frustration and interfere need to make it easier for people to engage with each other. This consideration with dispute resolution. “Many theorists in the kind of behavior in which we want spawned a natural interest in conflict and diplomats think the way to improve them to engage. He points to recycling resolution. “Each person has to believe relations is by drafting a good agreement; campaigns as an example. “A long time that their view of reality is how it really is, but often the thing that’smakingitimpos- ago, when we tried to get people to recycle, but that creates problems when we have sible to get an agreement is the relationship we wanted them to pack their garbage in to deal with each other,” he says. “And between the parties, the lack of trust,” their car and separate their cans and bot- conflicts arise when people have dif- he says. “Sometimes you have to work on tles and paper and drive to the recycling ferent views.” the relationship first,” Ross says. center,” he says. However, a more suc- Most recently, Ross has performed Ross is currently exploring the roles of cessful strategy was to just collect re- research on conflict and peace proceed- emotions and sentiments in this process. cyclable materials in cans that people can ings to determine how social psychology His recent work also explores the phe- put at the curb every week. “People don’t can reveal the factors that prevent op- nomenon of collective rationalization. think much about it, they don’tthink posing parties from reaching an agree- Individuals do not just justify their own they’re being proecology or concerned ment. Together with an interdisciplinary behaviors; they also do it for others by about global warming—it’s just the way group of researchers, Ross helped found making excuses for each other or buying they and their neighbors put out the the Stanford Center on International each other’s excuses, Ross says. “Great garbage,” Ross says. “Sometimes, if people Conflict and Negotiation (SCICN). “We evils, such as slavery, apartheid, the Ho- change their behavior, that changes their were invited to participate in peace- locaust, were made possible, because hearts and minds. Their attitudes and making efforts in Ireland and the Middle people rationalized for each other,” beliefs follow their behavior instead of East,” he says. “In the aftermath of the he notes. preceding it,” he says. Gulf War, when Palestinians and Israelis The notion of rationalization as a col- As Ross delves deeper into the com- wanted to start negotiating again, we lective process came out in a recent study plexities of social behavior, he continues were asked to hold a conference, basi- (7), wherein the work by Ross et al. (7) to learn more about the ways that people cally to provide cover for them to meet.” explored the interplay between Chris- make decisions and assumptions. By Since that experience, Ross has taken tianity and politics in the United States. uncovering the ingrained biases governing a special interest in observing and In particular, Ross was intrigued by human behavior, Ross has helped remove advising people engaged in peace- how people reconciled their liberal or some of the barriers to solutions, while making efforts. conservative political views with their re- simultaneously providing insights into The laboratory has yielded several les- ligious values. “There was this paradox; social psychology. sons relevant to conflict resolution. “Parties to be liberal and Christian means that in conflict believe that they see things the you’re somewhat at odds with the teach- Sandeep Ravindran, Science Writer

1. Nisbett RE, Ross L (1980) Human Inference: Strategies 4. Ross L, Greene D, House P (1977) The false consensus media bias in coverage of the Beirut massacre. J Pers and Shortcomings of Social Judgment (Prentice Hall, effect: An egocentric bias in social perception and at- Soc Psychol 49:577–585. Englewood Cliffs, NJ). tribution processes. J Exp Soc Psychol 13:279–301. 7. Ross LD, Lelkes Y, Russell AG (2012) How Christians 2. Ross L, Nisbett RE (1991) The Person and the Situation: 5. Liberman V, Samuels SM, Ross L (2004) The name of the reconcile their personal political views and the teach- Perspectives of Social Psychology (McGraw-Hill, New game: Predictive power of reputations versus situa- ings of their faith: Projection as a means of dissonance York). tional labels in determining prisoner’s dilemma game reduction. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 109:3616–3622. 3. Ross L (1977) The intuitive psychologist and his short- moves. Pers Soc Psychol Bull 30:1175–1185. comings: Distortions in the attribution process. Adv Exp 6. Vallone RP, Ross L, Lepper MR (1985) The hostile media Soc Psychol 10:173–220. phenomenon: Biased perception and perceptions of

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