At a Bar, Marge Approaches Jim Because She Recognized Him

question 82

Essay

At a bar, Marge approaches Jim because she recognized him from previously dating her roommate. Jim buys Marge a few drinks and they talk for hours. As the bar closes, Jim asks Marge to come back to his place for a few more drinks. Marge goes along and when they get back to the apartment, Jim takes Marge into the bedroom. There, Jim begins taking off Marge's clothes when she tells him to stop. Marge testifies that she told Jim she had a boyfriend hoping that would be incentive for Jim to stop. Jim continued to remove her clothing, then his own, and proceeded to have intercourse with Marge. When asked why she did not resist, she testified that she was afraid that he would hurt her. Her roommate had been beaten by Jim in the past, and she was fearful that he would beat her as well. When the intercourse was complete, Marge ran out of the apartment and went to the police. Analyze and discuss the case under the extrinsic force test.

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Definitions:

Dispositional Cause

Cause of behavior attributed to internal factors such as personality or character.

Situational Cause

Cause of behavior attributed to external factors, such as delays, the action of others, or some other aspect of the situation.

Fundamental Attribution Error

The tendency to attribute others' actions to their character or personality, while attributing our own behaviors to external situational factors.

Internal Attributions

The process of inferring that personal factors, rather than external factors, are the cause of an event or behavior, suggesting that a person’s actions are due to their individual characteristics such as personality or effort.