The Purposeful-Action Sequence and the "Illusion of Control"

Abstract

This study examined how features of both the situation and the target's behavior may lead observers to infer that a target has exerted control over a random event-in this case a roll of the dice in a game of backgammon. Observers read stories about a game of backgammon in which the male target either strongly wished for one particular outcome of the roll of the dice or was indifferent and in which either the target rolled the dice himself or a third party rolled the dice for him. Results showed that when the target desired a particular consequence of the dice roll in advance and rolled the dice himself, observers were more likely to see him as having exerted influence over the dice roll, were willing to wager more that he could roll the same number again, and rated luck as less influential in producing the dice roll outcome. These results are discussed from the perspective of illusory perceptions of control that might explain why observers inferred an actor's intentions from the actor's production of an event generally regarded as random.