What type of attribution focuses on qualities of the individual?

The appropriate answer is internal attribution, which emphasizes the individual’s personal qualities, characteristics, or traits when explaining their behavior. This type of attribution suggests that a person's actions are the result of their internal dispositions, such as personality, motivation, or effort. For example, if someone performs well on a test and you attribute that success to their intelligence, you are engaging in internal attribution.

In contrast to internal attribution, situational attribution focuses on external factors that influence behavior, such as environmental circumstances or social pressures. Social attribution is a broader term often used to describe how we perceive and integrate social cues in understanding behavior but does not specifically cater to qualities of individuals. External attribution, like situational attribution, considers outside influences and factors unrelated to the individual. In this context, internal attribution uniquely identifies and underscores the attributes inherent to the person in question.