Attribution (psychology)
Attribution is a term used in psychology which deals with how individuals perceive the causes of everyday experience, as being either external or internal. Models to explain this process are called Attribution theory. Psychological research into attribution began with the work of Fritz Heider in the early 20th century, and the theory was further advanced by Harold Kelley and Bernard Weiner. Heider first introduced the concept of perceived 'locus of causality' to define the perception of one's environment. For instance, an experience may be perceived as being caused by factors outside the person's control or it may be perceived as the person's own doing. These initial perceptions are called attributions. Psychologists use these attributions to better understand an individual's motivation and competence. The theory is of particular interest to employers who use it to increase worker motivation, goal orientation, and productivity.
Psychologists have identified various biases in the way people attribute causation, especially when dealing with others. The fundamental attribution error describes the tendency to attribute dispositional or personality-based explanations for behavior, rather than considering external factors. In other words, a person tends to assume that other people are each responsible for their own misfortunes, while blaming external factors for the person's own misfortunes. Culture bias is when someone makes an assumption about the behavior of a person based on their own cultural practices and beliefs.
Attribution theory has been criticised as being mechanistic and reductionist for assuming that people are rational, logical, and systematic thinkers. It also fails to address the social, cultural, and historical factors that shape attributions of cause.
Background
originated Attribution theory during a time when psychologists were furthering research on personality, social psychology, and human motivation. Heider worked alone in his research, but stated that he wished for Attribution theory not to be attributed to him because many different ideas and people were involved in the process. Weiner argued that Heider was too modest, and the openness of the theory keeps its presence functional today. Attribution theory is the original parent theory with Harold Kelley's covariation model and Bernard Weiner's three-dimensional model branching from Attribution theory. Attribution theory also influenced several other theories as well such as Heider's Perceived Locus of Causality which eventually led to Deci and Ryan's Theory of Self-determination.Key theorists
Fritz Heider
is often described as the early-20th-century "father of Attribution theory". In his 1920 dissertation, Heider addressed the problem of phenomenology: why do perceivers attribute the properties such as color to perceived objects, when those properties are mental constructs? Heider's answer that perceivers attribute that which they "directly" sense – vibrations in the air for instance – to an object they construe as causing those to sense data. "Perceivers faced with sensory data thus see the perceptual object as 'out there', because they attribute the sensory data to their underlying causes in the world." Heider extended this idea to attributions about people: "motives, intentions, sentiments ... the core processes which manifest themselves in overt behavior". Fritz Heider's most famous contribution to psychology started in the 1940s when he began studying and accumulating knowledge on interpersonal behavior and social perception. He compiled these findings into his 1958 book "The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations," and Heider's work became widely recognized as the best source of knowledge on Attribution theory. In this book, Heider outlines two key goals that he planned to achieve in his studies. His first goal was to develop a scientific theory that was based on a "conceptual network suitable to some of the problems in this field." Theorists that attempt to follow in Heider's footsteps widely misinterpret this goal, as many falsely assume that the core of human behavior is person-dichotomy rather than what Heider actually suggested in his book. Heider's second goal was to redefine the understanding of "common-sense psychology" in order to develop his own scientific theory that explains social perception in humans. This second goal more clearly defined Heider's theory on attribution. Through Heider's research of Attribution Theory, he concerned himself with the reasons a person achieved success or failed. To organize the research, Heider broke the reasonings down into three different subjects, the first being ability, second being effort, and third being task difficulty. Heider saw both ability and effort being internal factors and task difficulty being an external factor.Bernard Weiner
was not the theory's originator; however, he expanded on Attribution theory in several ways to help keep it relevant to today's society. The most influential aspect of Weiner's work consists of the motivational aspect of Attribution theory, which he introduced around the year 1968. This means that how one perceives past events and actions determines what actions a person will take in their future because the past experiences motivated them to do so. Weiner built his contribution of Attribution theory off of other well-known theories such as Atkinsons' Theory of Motivation, Drive theory, and Thorndike's Law of Effect which describes how rewarded behaviors will more than likely be repeated. Weiner argued that Attribution theory is subjective meaning a person's thoughts and feelings drive this theory. This means that researchers do not have to remain objective in their research and can explore the emotions, biases, motivations, and behaviors of their participants.Harold Kelley
, a social psychologist, expanded upon Heider's Attribution theory. Kelley's main research goal was to emphasize the central ideas Heider discovered in Attribution theory. The first focus of Kelley's research was a look at external and internal attributions. His second focus was determining whether the procedure to arrive at external and internal attributes was related to experimental methodology. Kelley later turned this idea into his covariation model/principle. Kelley describes this principle as "the effect that is attributed to that condition which is present when the effect is present and which is absent when the effect is absent". Kelley looked at causal inferences and attempted to elaborate on Heider's model by explaining the effects of certain factors.Types
External
External attribution, also called situational attribution, refers to interpreting someone's behavior as being caused by the individual's environment. For example, if one's car tire is punctured, it may be attributed to a hole in the road; by making attributions to the poor condition of the highway, one can make sense of the event without any discomfort that it may in reality have been the result of their own bad driving. Individuals are more likely to associate unfortunate events with external factors than with internal factors.For example, consider someone who uses external attributions as a way not to use hearing aids. Examples of this are: A patient does not have the money to afford hearing aids, so they do not purchase them. A person believes using hearing aids would make them a burden to people they are around, so they do not wear them. A person does not trust the doctor that is prescribing them hearing aids. Lastly, a person believes that other health conditions, either about themselves or someone else in their life, take priority over their need for hearing aids.
Fangfang Wen examined how people react when viewing situations from an external perspective, focusing on how an attribution of blame affects emotions and behavior. The study tested whether individuals who assign blame to people rather than external factors are more likely to experience anger, which can then lead to aggressive behavior or social avoidance. To investigate this, the researchers analyzed reactions to two real-life events: a private data leak involving Wuhan returnees and the refusal of workers returning from Hubei. In the third part of the study, they explained whether changing how people would recognize the blame would influence their emotions and upcoming actions. The findings show that when individuals attribute blame to others, they are more likely to feel anger and disrespect, resulting in either aggression or avoidance. The study shows how internal attributions can intensify negative emotional responses and shape social behaviors.
Internal
Internal attribution, or dispositional attribution, refers to the process of assigning the cause of behavior to some internal characteristic, likeability and motivation, rather than to outside forces. This concept has overlap with the locus of control, in which individuals feel they are personally responsible for everything that happens to them.Consider the example of a person who uses internal attributions to justify not wearing their prescribed hearing aids. Examples of this are: A patient believes the hearing aids not to be necessary, so they choose not to wear them. A patient fears being stigmatized for having a disability and requiring hearing aids to hear correctly, so they decide not to wear them. A patient is struggling with adding hearing aids into their everyday life and believes it to be easier not to wear them. Lastly, a patient does not fully understand the benefits that hearing aids will give them, so they choose not to wear them despite the benefits hearing aids would grant them.
Fangfang Wen explained how third-party observers reacted to discrimination against returning workers from Hubei, focusing on how their ability to assign blame influenced their emotions and behaviors. The study found that when observers are blamed, they feel angrier, leading to either avoidance or aggressive behavior. Other emotions, such as sadness and tension, remained the same. This finding supports the cognition-emotion-action model, which shows how individuals interpretations of a situation influence their emotional responses and following actions. In contrast to external attribution, where the environmental factors are to blame, internal attribution leads to stronger negative emotions and more intense reactions.