The different attributional process may cause serious misunderstandings in
communication. Consider the example of a colleague. On his first day when in the
U.S., he and a friend made a trip to Olympic National Park in Washington State.
When they finished their lunch and came out of the restaurant, a young American
woman approached him and asked, “Do you have time?” My friend said that he was
shocked by the question, because from his own perspective the question meant that
the lady wanted to do something sexually with him. In other words, the question was
interpreted by my friend as “Are your free now? If yes, let’s walk together.” When our
colleague answered the lady, clearly the meaning of the question was, “What time is
it now?” To avoid this kind of misunderstanding we must try to make an “isomorphic
attribution” of the situation that requires us to better understand the other’s culture
and put ourselves to another’s shoes in the process of interaction (Harris & Moran,
1989).
The subjective nature of perceptual framework arising from our culture indicates that
our perceptions are often partial and inaccurate. The problem can be explained by
considering stereotyping and prejudice.