Students' beliefs about why they may or may not be successful in various pursuits can influence the extent to which they are likely to invest effort in these pursuits and which in turn affects the level of achievement likely to be experienced. Attributional beliefs assign causes for success and failure to a range of factors, including ability,…

The present research examined the effects of intrinsic and extrinsic goal attainment on older adults' ego-integrity, psychological well-being, and death attitudes. Hypotheses were derived from Self-Determination Theory (SDT; Deci & Ryan, 2000; Vansteenkiste, Ryan, & Deci, in press). Study 1 (N = 202, Mean age = 68.2 years) indicated that, after…

Extends the locus of control theory by distinguishing situation effects across three types of internal locus of control: more internal for success than failure, more internal for failure than success, equally internal for success and failure. (Author/RL)

An investigation of the causal attributions of success and failure performances on various levels of task difficulty by 36 learning disabled and 36 nondisabled adolescents revealed that Ss' perceptions of the task difficulty levels were significant determinants of the two groups' differing causal attributions. (Author/CL)

Studies the effects of childhood achievement experiences as they might determine generalized internal-external control orientations (I-E). Analysis of I-E items revealed that those who performed poorly were most likely to attribute achievement experiences to luck. (Author)

Self-concept and attributions made about academic successes and failures were compared in 46 students with learning disabilities and 47 normally achieving students (mean age 12 years). Attributions regarding internal versus external causes for successes and failures and stable (ability) versus unstable (effort) causes for failures did not…

Twenty-nine third and fourth grade learning disabled children's attributions for success and failure were examined. Results indicated that Ss did not always interpret successes as reflecting something positive about themselves. Nor did they view failure as something that could be overcome with effort. (Author/CL)

Test results from a motor skill competition indicated that both girls and boys have a tendency to accept the stereotype of males' superiority in sport ability. (JD)

This study, involving 49 teachers and 1,164 students, found that teachers tend to feel responsible for the academic successes of their students and to attribute their failures to external factors. Teachers with a high or medium rating on sense of responsibility exhibited more significantly positive attitudes toward their students. (Author/JDD)

Sixty-four 10- to 12-year-olds (N=64), identified as gifted, average, or educable mentally retarded (EMR), were administered tasks in which failure/success were manipulated. Assessment indicated that gifted students credited success to low task difficulty, had initially high expectations which lowered following failure, and persisted more with…

Studied the determinants of attributional modesty in women. Women tend to make modest attributions for success when concerned about how others would evaluate them and when concerned about their self-image. Self-derogatory attributions for failure occur when the subjects thought their attributions would be public. (Author/JAC)

Describes a competence/risk theory that hypothesizes that people can use personal competence to influence the probabilities of success or failure in an adventure, providing their perceptions are correct. In a series of linked pathways and feedback loops, a model illustrates the impact of a risk-taking activity on the participant's emotional and…

Studies of learning disabled students' self concept and attributions suggest that the passive learning style may reflect their beliefs that they are not in control of their destinies. The paper reviews strategies to help LD children acquire more adaptive notions about the causes of their successes and failures. (Author/CL)

Five matched groups of 15 children (ages 8-13) were compared to determine whether behavioral subgroups of children with learning disabilities (LD) form different beliefs regarding causes of their achievement-related successes and failures. The achievement attributions of subjects were heterogeneous and related to presence and type of behavior…

Three hypotheses were tested regarding the attribution of causation for successful behavior by kindergarten children: (1) self concept--children with high self esteem make internal attributions and those with low self esteem make external attributions; (2) locus of control (LOC)--children with internal LOC make internal attributions and those with…