Argues that the regularity theory of causation, which underlies traditional conceptions of validity, is inadequate for describing and explaining many causal inferences made in professional practice and everyday life. Advocates an expanded, pluralistic conception of validity that allows for the validity of inferences made in a variety of ways. (FMW)

Examines young children's preferences and understanding regarding external and internal causes of behavior. Considers research in four areas: (1) knowledge of psychological states; (2) understanding that psychological states can cause behavior; (3) preference for internal versus external causes; and (4) discounting. (RJC)

College students (N=220) completed questionnaires on their perceptions of attributions and consequences of poverty and wealth. Results indicated that students emphasized significance of the family and placed little weight on luck when dealing with poverty and wealth. Students emphasized economic consequences of poverty and wealth, and did not rate…

Perceptions of the value and application of interpretation in counseling vary widely among researchers and practitioners. Exploration of interpretation in counseling often presents contradictory opinions and data. Relating counseling theories, propositional and semantic aspects, and attributional theory to interpretation assists in clarifying the…

Reviews literature on teacher attributions and discusses relevance of causal attributions to teacher preferences for service delivery (referral for psychoeducational assessment, consultation, etc.). Reviews literature within context of Weiner's (1979) proposed dimensions of causality. Discusses practical implications for this literature and…

Parents (n=58) rated the acceptability of behavioral treatments recommended to them for their children's behavior problems and completed an attribution measure. Results indicated that a significant, negative correlation exists between physical attribution ratings and acceptability ratings of behavioral treatments, with the magnitude of the…

Undergraduate adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs) (n=57) were compared with children of nonalcoholic parents (n=100) on depression, self-esteem, and attributional style. ACOAs were found to have higher depression scores and lower self-esteem and were more likely to have a depressive attributional style. (SLD)

Examined attributions of 141 young adults about their relationships with their parents and intimate others. Found that attributions that individuals made about positive aspects of their relationships with their mothers and attributions about negative aspects of relationships with their fathers were related to attributions in intimate relationship.…

Responses from 284 of 428 college faculty found a significant relationship between research self-efficacy and productivity and between self-efficacy and causal attributions. Males reported significantly stronger self-efficacy beliefs, greater time spent in research, and greater productivity than did females. (SK)

Occurring in about 12 percent of postpartum women, postpartum depression has been focus of considerable research. Variables that have been correlated with postpartum depression range from biological causes, to lack of social support, to relationship with husband, to attributional styles, to psychodynamic explanations. There is need for more…

Examined whether variability in cognitive and emotional reactions to binges accounts for recurrence of binge eating. Evaluated attributional, cognitive, and affective reactions to 2 successive binges among 50 nonpurging normal-weight female bingers. Analyses suggest that cognitive states evoked by particular events were better predictors of how…

Photographs shown to 98 male and 102 female students illustrated provocative versus nonprovocative clothing on both men and women. Subjects rated provocative clothing more likely to induce sexual harassment. Females who had not experienced harassment rated those wearing nonprovocative clothing unlikely to be harassed. (SK)

Two experiments examined the development of extended identity in children between 5 and 11 years. Findings indicated that only older children judged that they would be evaluated negatively through their association with a wrongdoer and that they would feel embarrassment. Responsibility for a younger child's actions was associated with an earlier…

Examined the effect of perceived problem-solving ability among teacher trainees (N=60) operationalized by the Problem Solving Inventory (PSI) and random feedback (success vs. failure) on participants' attributions. Results indicate a significant PSI x Feedback interaction for ability and effort but not for task difficulty and luck. (RJM)

Graduate students (n=143) reviewed 1 of 4 descriptions of sexual harassment and completed manipulation check and judgment questionnaires. Judges' reactions were less favorable to the complainant when she had tolerated the harassment for a period of time and the harasser had above-average job performance. Females' reactions were more favorable…