Attribution Theory essays

Attribution Theory essays The purpose of this review was to discuss the development of attribution theory. Since there is no unifying theory of attribution, this review attempts to explain central ideas comprising the basic tenet that attribution theory describes how people make causal explanations about reality, as well as the behavioral and emotional consequences of those explanations. Attribution theory was developed over time from several social psychologists, including Fritz Heider, Edward Jones, Keith Davis, and Harold Kelley. Heider played a central role in defining attribution theory in 1958, in his book The Psychology of Interpersonal Relationships. In 1965, Jones and Davis expanded attribution theory through their systematic hypothesis about the perception of intention in their essay From Acts to Dispositions. Harold Kelley tied together the theoretical foundation of attribution theory in his landmark paper Attribution Theory in Social Psychology in 1967. This paper will identify three key co ncepts comprising attribution theory. Attribution theory describes the processes of explaining events and behavior, and the behavioral and emotional consequences of those explanations. The theory developed within social psychology as a means of dealing with questions of social perception. One of the most influential persons involved in attribution theory, Harold Kelley, reported that attribution theory was significant because When the attributions are appropriate, the person undoubtedly fares better in his decisions and actions than he would in the absence of the causal analysis (Kelley, 1973). This theory has made an astounding impact on modern psychology; "Attribution theory came to rival cognitive dissonance as one of the most imperialistic theories in social psychology. Attribution theory was seen as relevant to the study of person perception, event perception, attitude change, the acquisition of self-knowledge, thera...