What is Self Perception Theory?
Self-perception theory describes how people infer their own attitudes by observing their behavior. This is especially true in situations where they feel uncertain, such as being unsure how to act, what to think, or how they truly feel. In these moments of ambiguity, individuals rely on their actions as a source of insight into their internal states, much like an outside observer would.
The Basic Idea
Consider Dave, a carpenter who works 50 hours a week. Dave has never really stopped to think about how he feels toward standardized work weeks and labor regulations, or work ethic in general. One evening, at the bar, a friend mentions something intriguing: in France, they have a 35-hour work week. She even recounts an article she read about increased productivity gains at companies that introduced four-day work weeks. Dave has never heard such talk and doesn’t have any preexisting attitudes toward the concept. When someone asks what he thinks, he supposes that even 40 hours isn’t that much. After all, he tends to work 50.
In that moment, Dave forms an attitude by reflecting on his own behavior. Because he regularly works longer hours, he infers that he must value long work weeks or view them as reasonable. His belief doesn’t precede his behavior—it’s actually shaped by it. This is the essence of self-perception theory: when our feelings or opinions are ambiguous, we look to our actions for clues about what we believe.
Conventional wisdom suggests that the relationship between attitudes and behaviors is a one-way, linear process. That is, our attitudes shape our behaviors. For instance, if someone believes that healthy eating is important, that attitude might lead them to cook nutritious meals at home. So the idea that behavior could shape attitude, rather than the other way around, can feel counterintuitive. It seems backwards to suggest that consistently preparing healthy meals might lead someone to adopt a belief in healthy eating, rather than that belief motivating the behavior in the first place. Yet if we think about how we perceive others, it makes sense. If we see someone cooking healthy meals, we infer that they must value health and nutrition.
Self-perception theory is an account of attitude formation that argues for a causal link between our behaviors and attitudes. When an individual lacks initial attitudes or their sentiments are unclear, they may start to observe their own behavior to determine their beliefs. It’s similar to how we would infer another individual’s inner state by observing their behavior.
Association with human beings lures one into self-observation.
— Lionel Robbins describing economic science in terms of scarcity in Essay on the Nature and Significance of Economic Science (1932).
