PSY 400 Week 2 DQS

Running Head : Attribution Theory

An Overview of Bernard Weiner 's Attribution Theory

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Abstract

Although it was Fritz Heider who proposed an attribution theory Bernard Weiner is recognized as the one who formulated the Attribution Theory . This psychological model focuses on the way people view things and its relation with what they may think and how they behave

There are two kinds of attributions according to Bernard Weiner , namely situational and dispositional . In situational or external attribution cause behavior is attributed to outside or

external factors while dispositional or internal attribution , the reason behind a person 's behavior is attributed to internal factors such as skills , abilities and others

This shall delve on the attribution theory . Likewise , it will answer the question of whether or not attitude can predict behavior of an individual

The Attribution Theory

An Overview of the Attribution Theory

The Attribution Theory deals with individual interpretation of events and its connection with their thoughts and behavior . Fritz Heider was the one who made a proposal to develop an attribution theory but it was through the efforts of Bernard Weiner that a theory was formulated and became a paradigm in social psychology (Kearsley , n .d

Bernard Weiner

Born in 1935 , Bernard Weiner teaches psychology at the famous University of California , in Los Angeles . Weiner obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Chicago and in 1963 graduated with a Ph .D , from the University of Michigan . He initially taught at Minnesota before moving over to UCLA in 1965 where he is presently teaching psychology and serves as vice char of the Psychology Department . Aside from being the recipient of the Donald Campbell Research Award , Bernard Weiner likewise earned honorary degrees from the University of Bielefeld in Germany , and Turku University in Finland (Kearsley , n .d

Among his famous works include An Attribution Theory of Motivation and Emotion , Judgments of Responsibility , and Human Motivation : Metaphors Theories , and Research (Kearsley , n .d

Fritz Heider

Born in Vienna , Austria on February 8 , 1986 , Fritz Heider loved to read and was a diligent student . He studied at Austria 's University of Graz After obtaining his Ph .D in 1920 , Heider spent the next few years travelling around Europe , where he enrolled at the Psychological Institute of Berlin (Milite , 2001

Ten years after earning his PH .D . Degree , Heider agreed to conduct a research at the Clarke School for the Deaf in Northampton , Massachusetts where he served as an assistant professor at Smith College (Milite 2001

Smith College was the venue of his research that paved the way for the development of his theories on interpersonal relations . In 1947 , he transferred to Lawrence , Kansas where he took a job as a professor at the University of Kansas . Heider conducted his research carefully and methodically . Eventually he crafted his ideas and indicated them in The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations (Milite , 2001

On January 2 , 1988 , Fritz Heider died in Lawrence , Kansas (Milite 2001

The Attribution Theory

The attribution theory provides...