The problem of AIDS is investigated with the support on the theory of divergent perspectives (Jones & Nisbett, 1972) and the belief in a just world (Lerner, 1975). It is intended to demonstrate that the interpretation of this victimizing event may vary when considering the infected person (the actor, who adopts outside causes) or the doctor (the observer, who uses internal causes to the actor); that actors and observers differ as to the belief in a just world; and that the coping responses to the disease depend on the attribution made by the patients. 191 HIV/AIDS patients and 200 doctors participated in the research, answering the questionnaire on causal attribution and the belief in a just world scale. The results put in evidence differences in the attribution of actors and observers in the expected directions and the important mediating role of the attributive activity in facing the affliction. The usefulness of these findings to a better understanding of the patients' reactions to the disease and to the treatment itself is discussed.
AIDS; causal attribution; belief in a just world; coping responses; personal responsibility
