Abstract
Behaviours are judged by their causes (i.e. the actor's intentions) as well as by their consequences. The present study focuses on the effects of the latter. Subjects judged behaviours that were either socially good, socially bad, competent, or incompetent. The consequences of the behaviours were either (a) personal consequences for the actor, (b) interpersonal consequences for others, or (c) not mentioned. Behaviours with interpersonal consequences were judged more extremely than with personal consequences. When no consequences were mentioned, the behaviours were rated similarly as in the condition with interpersonal consequences. These effects emerged regardless of behaviour valence (positive versus negative) and dimension (social versus competence-related). The results suggest that others' behaviours are judged primarily by their interpersonal implications, and that observers take the perspective of those whose outcomes may be affected by the actor.
