Most evidence seems to suggest that the actor is correct> We are actually accurate when we explain our own behavior in terms of the situation. We are less apt to be correct when we explain someone else's behavior in terms of traits. People are not as stable as we assume when we make trait attributions. They are adaptive , complex , changing and inconsistent. People are indeed hard to pigeonhole, and we should resist the tendency to ignore constraints and to infer traits. Greater accuracy and possibly greater appreciation of other will result from being sensitive to the obstacles and constraint in other people's environment and the complexity and richness of their inner lives. Before you make an attribution or judgement about someone else , consider how comfortable you would feel having it applied to you, and ask how fair and accurate it is, given the facts. Thr golden rule can very usefully be applied in person perception.