“When people face repercussions or unintended consequences after making a mistake, their fear may cause them to defend themselves by shifting the blame away from themselves and onto a scapegoat,” says Sabrina Romanoff, PsyD, a clinical psychologist and professor at Yeshiva University.

To avoid responsibility people find themselves in this dynamic if they try to detach or distance themselves from culpability when something goes wrong and their position is threatened. They try to avoid responsibility by shifting the blame onto someone else.

To protect their reputation, people tend to play the blame game when they fear that owning their mistakes or taking responsibility for an error could negatively impact the way they are perceived.

Sometimes it can be quite evident that someone is trying to shirk responsibility. Other times, it can be more subtle. Here are some indications that someone is playing the blame game:

Finger-pointing- People may point fingers at others. For instance, they may say, “He/She was supposed to send me the data for the graphs. I couldn’t make the graphs without that information.”

Denial- People may deny their responsibility. For instance, they may say, “No one told me we needed to include graphs in the presentation, how was I supposed to know?”

Exclusion- People may consistently exclude or marginalize a member of the group, and then make them the scapegoat when things go wrong. Immigrants are reason we are having problems in our society.

Blaming is a natural human behavior. When something bad happens, our first instinct is to figure out who is responsible. The problem is that when we are the ones to blame, our instincts may be to look for a way to avoid the potential consequences. Even Scriptures mention these behaviors.

In Genesis 3:12, Adam blames Eve for disobeying God. “Adam replied, ‘The woman You put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate.” Adam, not Eve, received the original prohibition (Genesis 2:16-17).

• Exodus 32:22-24 – Aaron blames the people for the golden calf.

• 1 Samuel 15:20-24 – Saul blames “the people” for sparing Amalekite spoil.

• Luke 10:29 – A lawyer, “wanting to justify himself,” questions Jesus.