Reports on two treatment studies of special education students markedly helpless with regard to arithmetic: one comparing attribution retraining treatment to control treatment matched to it in schedule of successes and failures; the other comparing effects of three success-failure schedules on attributions and persistence. (Author/NRB)

Explored the relationship between attribution of success and sex role orientation of women (N=114) in graduate school. Results indicated that, among achievement oriented college women, attributional style was related to sex role orientation. Women who were more traditional saw their reinforcers coming from family and social forces. (JAC)

Discusses the role of extrinsic reinforcement in intrinsic motivation in cognitive attribution theory. Concludes that cognitive attribution theory lacks parsimony, in that extant reinforcement analysis can account for undermining with equal facility. Suggests undermining is of little significance due to its elusive and transient impact on operant…

Examined are changes in personality impressions formed by status-oriented individuals who differ in Need for Social Approval (NA) or Locus of Control of Reinforcement (I-E). Subjects recorded their initial and final personality impressions of speakers ascribed either high or low social status. High NA observers (or Externals) showed most positive…

Subjects were four groups of 12 college women, high or low in motive to avoid success (MAS) and locus of control (LC), were reinforced for response A on a fixed partial reinforcement schedule on three concept learning tasks, one task consisting of combined reward and punishment, another of reward only, and one of punishment only. Response B was…

Research has found that differential attributional styles exist between depressed and nondepressed populations. Depressed (N=32) and nondepressed (N=32) undergraduate female students were selected on the basis of scores on the Beck Depression Inventory and Multiple Affect Adjective Checklist. Participants performed a key press task where the…

The author argues that despite the conventional wisdom that schools cannot overcome the effects of socioeconomic status and race on academic achievement, there is a growing body of literature indicating that school climate and students' sense of control of their environment are strongly correlated with achievement. Five school-specific strategies…