In
psychology, the word 'attribution' refers to the inference made about the causes
behind an event or behavior. If a car drives by you at the same time you hear a
loud backfire, you are likely to infer that the sound came from the car; the
sound's attribution is the car. Likewise, if a child performs better at a
sporting event when his or her parents are in attendance, the improved
performance is attributable to the parent's presence.
Success or Failure
Two people are in a race, and one of
them wins. Did that individual win because he or she was a faster runner or
because the other person was having an off day? The answer depends on which
runner you ask. The winner will attribute the victory to his or her ability and
feel confident about the next race. The loser will blame the loss on
circumstances beyond his or her control (feeling sick, poor night's sleep,
painful shoes) and be less likely to race again unless those factors change.
A person's motivation to attempt a
task is directly related to his or her confidence in a positive outcome. If
people believe they will be unsuccessful, they are less likely to try and if
they do, it is doubtful they will give 100% effort. The basic principle of attribution
theory states that a person's attributions for success or failure
determine the amount of effort the individual will expend on the task.
- Weiner's Attribution Theory of Motivation
Weiner's attribution theory states
that an individual's causal attributions of achievement affect subsequent
behaviors and motivation. One of the primary assumptions of attribution theory
is that people will interpret their environment in such a way as to maintain a
positive self-image.
No one wants to be the bad guy, and
assigning attribution is one of the ways that people seek to see themselves in
a more positive light. By blaming other people and avoiding personal
recrimination, individuals strive to keep a positive self-image. If people
believe they are responsible for bad outcomes, they are less motivated to repeat
their behavior.
According to
the 'attribution theory' it is normal for people to look for explanations or
causes - that can be attributed to their own success or failure.
An assumption of the attribution theory is that people will interpret their environment in such a way as to maintain a positive self-image.
There are three main categories of attributes for explaining success or failure:
An assumption of the attribution theory is that people will interpret their environment in such a way as to maintain a positive self-image.
There are three main categories of attributes for explaining success or failure:
Ø Internal / external
Ø Stable / unstable
Ø Controllable / uncontrollable
Ø First
The
cause of success or failure may be internal
or external . That is , we may succeed or fail because of
factors that believe have their origin within us or because of factors that
originate in our environment.
© second
The
cause of the success may be either stable or unstable if we believe
cause is stable and then the outcomes is likely to be the same if we perform
the same behavior on another occasion. If
it is unstable , the outcome is likely to be different on another
occasion.
© Third
The
cause of the success or failure may be either controllable
or uncontrollable . A controllable factor is one which we believe
ourselves can alter if we wish to do so. An uncontrollable factor is one that
we do not believe we can easily alter.
Comments
Post a Comment
any suggestion on my side