Actors' and observers' attributions for success and failure: A comparative test of predictions from Kelley's cube,self-serving bias,and positivity bias formulations

An experiment was conducted to test implications of Kelley's cube, self-serving bias, and positivity bias formulations for attributions associated with success and failure on a test of “abstract reasoning.” Subjects either experienced or observed outcomes on three tasks. They then made attributions for only the third outcome, which was either a success or a failure. The first task was of the same type and had the same outcome as the third task, thus providing the information that the outcome being attributed was high in consistency. The second task was of a different type than the first and third tasks, and its outcome either did or did not differ from their outcomes, thus varying information about the distinctiveness of the outcome being attributed. Consensus was manipulated by presenting false norms, ostensibly from a previous experiment. In contrast to previous research, the present study included thorough checks on all of these informational manipulations. Regardless of attributor role (actor or observer), subjects attributed success more to internal than to external factors and attributed failure more to external than to internal factors. These findings indicate a general bias toward positive evaluations. Discussion centers on possible alternative interpretations of these findings, restrictions on their generality, and the limitations that they seem to impose on the applicability of the other two formulations.     

The self-attention-induced feedback loop and social facilitation

It has been proposed that self-directed attention leads to the engagement of a cybernetic feedback loop, by which discrepancies between present behavior and a standard of comparison are reduced. This analysis is applied to performance facilitation effects, which are more typically explained in terms of drive theories. Though these two approaches to motivation make similar behavioral predictions in this context, they assume different mediating states. Support is noted for the assumptions that mirror presence and audience presence induce self-focus, and that they lead to comparison with salient behavioral standards. Support for the assumption that these manipulations increase arousal is also reviewed, and is challenged on methodological grounds. The attentional analysis is used to derive predictions regarding changes in physiological state over the course of a typical social facilitation procedure. An experiment is reported which confirmed these predictions. Discussion centers on how to interpret physiological changes in terms that are compatible with control theory, how to account for social impairment phenomena in terms of the present model, and the conceptual relationship between mirror presence and audience presence as experimental manipulations.     

Self-consciousness and reactance

Two studies examined the effects of dispositional self-consciousness on reactance. In Experiment 1, men who were high in private self-consciousness displayed greater reactance responses to a coercive communication attempt (as reflected by attitude reversal) than did men lower in private self-consciousness. In contrast, the effect of public self-consciousness in this context was to inhibit the expression of reactance. In Experiment 2, women high in private self-consciousness exhibited greater reactance responses to a self-imposed threat to their freedom of choice (as reflected by equivocation over two choice alternatives) than did women lower in private self-consciousness. The effect of public self-consciousness in this context was negligible. These findings replicate and extend a previous self-awareness and reactance finding; they provide additional evidence that manipulated self-awareness and dispositional self-consciousness converge on the same psychological entity; and they provide additional evidence that there are important differences between the dimensions of private and public self-consciousness.     

Anticipation of future interaction and the bystander effect

Previous research suggests that people are slower to offer help in an emergency when there are other witnesses than when there are not. This finding has come to be known as the bystander effect. In research that has demonstrated this effect, however, the other witnesses were invariably anonymous others who had no relationship with the subject and with whom the subject probably did not expect to interact again. The present research examined the hypothesis that the expectation of participating in subsequent face-to-face interaction with other bystanders would cause the bystander effect to be minimized. Female college students were led to believe either that they would have no personal contact with the other participants in an ostensible group discussion, or that the participants would be involved in a later face-to-face discussion session. Each subject then participated in what she believed to be an anonymous discussion via intercoms, involving either one person or five persons beside herself. During this period, an ostensible co-subject experienced a choking fit. Help was offered more quickly among subjects who expected future interaction than among those who did not. In the no future interaction condition, latencies to help were longer in six-member than in two-member groups, but the comparable difference, although in the same direction, was not reliable among subjects who expected interaction. Presence of male “co-subjects” in an exploratory condition failed to inhibit helping. Discussion centers on the broader implications of the findings.     

Perceived coercion, resistance to persuasion, and the Type A behavior pattern

Three studies are reported, which tested the notion that persons possessing the Type A “coronary-prone” behavior pattern would be more susceptible to the experience of psychological reactance than would Type Bs, i.e., persons without that pattern. In Experiment 1, subjects exposed to a persuasive communication that was either low or high in coerciveness rated the degree of coercive intent behind the communication. Type As perceived greater coerciveness overall than Type Bs, a finding that was most reliable in the low coercion condition. In Experiment 2, subjects' postcommunication opinions were assessed, so that resistance to persuasion could be measured. A gender difference within Pattern A emerged from this study. Male Type As resisted the persuasion attempt to an equivalent degree whether it was low or high in coerciveness; female Type As displayed comparable resistance in the low coercion condition, but tended to be even more resistant in the high coercion condition. In contrast, both male and female Type Bs displayed persuasion in the low coercion condition, and resisted (to a degree comparable to Type As) in the high coercion condition. Experiment 3 further investigated resistance to persuasion among females, using a different issue for the persuasion attempt. Type A women again resisted more in the high coercion than the low coercion condition. Type B women displayed no evidence of resistance in either condition. Discussion centers on the observed gender difference and the possible theoretical importance of the notion that Type As perceive threat at lower objective levels than do Type Bs.     

Modeling: An analysis in terms of category accessibility

It is proposed that many of the releasing or disinhibiting effects caused by models can be accounted for by information-processing mechanisms, without recourse to the concept of reinforcement. More specifically, it is suggested that the process of viewing a model's behavior involves the activation of an interpretive schema. This renders the information the schema incorporates more accessible for subsequent use. If the schema incorporates (or is closely related to) behavior-specifying information, that information becomes more accessible as well, thus making it more likely to influence overt behavior. Two studies are reported that assessed the plausibility of this reasoning. In Experiment 1 subjects who had viewed an aggressive model perceived greater hostility in the behavior of an ambiguous stimulus person that they subsequently encountered than did control subjects. This finding is consistent with the assumption that the model's behavior activated a conceptual schema for use in interpretation. In Experiment 2 subjects in whom an aggressive schema had been activated under a guise displayed greater aggression in their subsequent behavior in a different context than did control subjects. This finding is consistent with the assumption that activating the conceptual schema also activated behavioral information. The discussion centers on the implications of the findings.     

Resolution of complex decisional conflicts as a function of degree of avoidance

The relationship between difficulty of conflict resolution and degree of avoidance was investigated in three experiments using imaginary conflicts consisting of choosing to have more or less of certain personal characteristics. Double forms of conflict were used to control for complexity of choice. In the first experiment, it was found that double approach-approach conflicts were resolved more quickly than double approach-avoidance which in turn were faster than double avoidance-avoidance. The second experiment showed a similar result using scaled judgments of subjective difficulty. In the third experiment, the basic finding was shown to be independent of situational pressure by permitting an undecided choice. The basic finding was also shown to be independent of individual differences in social desirability.     

Perceptual speed and short term retention of visual stimuli in preschool children

Ninety children aged 26 to 69 months were tested individually on two tasks. The first required the identification of tachistoscopically presented visual stimuli. Presentation times were shortened after every fourth stimulus until a child no longer made three correct identifications out of a series of four. The second task required that similar identifications be delayed by intervals of 10, 20, and 40 seconds following presentation. The presentation time required for correct identification of the stimuli declined significantly across the age range examined while the maximum delay interval after which a correct response could be obtained increased. In addition, the two measures were statistically independent of each other although both were related to the age of the child. The results indicate that some of the perceptual processes which have been shown to be instrumental in the acquisition of reading skills exhibit a marked developmental change during the preschool years.     

Outcome expectancy,locus of attribution for expectancy,and self-directed attention as determinants of evaluations and performance

Are internal versus external attributions of responsibility for prior outcomes important determinants of subsequent performances? or is their effect limited to influencing the affective and evaluative experiences that are associated with the task outcomes? Recent theoretical statements appear to differ on this issue. The present study examined the question, while at the same time testing the influence of self-directed attention on the process under investigation. Subjects attempted a series of mazes in collaboration with an ostensible cosubject (actually a confederate). The pair experienced either three consecutive sucesses or three consecutive failures. Subjects were led to perceive the responsibility for these outcomes as residing primarily with themselves or primarily with their partner. Self-focus was manipulated (by a mirror) prior to attempting a fourth maze and completing a set of rating scales. Success-condition subjects performed better on the fourth maze in the mirror's presence than in its absence, whereas failure-condition subjects tended to perform more poorly in the mirror's presence than in its absence. The manipulation of internal versus external attributions did not influence behavior, but did influence subjects' affective and evaluative reactions to themselves and their partner. Discussion centers on the relationship between these findings and other recent findings in the areas of attribution and achievement-related behavior.     

Individual differences in preschool object play: The influences of anxiety proneness and peer affiliation

Individual differences in anxiety and peer affiliation were investigated as factors influencing variability of object play among preschoolers. Eighteen three-year-olds were divided into high- and low-anxious groups on the bases of separation anxiety and general anxiety scales. Their mature and immature object play, their peer affiliation, and their peer-watching behaviors were observed in preschools. Low-anxious children played more, showed more mature play, and watched peers less when they were alone; high-anxious children showed no play increases but watched peers more when alone. Separation anxiety scores predicted preschool differences more sensitively than general anxiety scores. It was theorized that separation anxiety related mechanisms hinder children's ability to fully profit from preschool experiences.     

Applied developmental psychology

Applied developmental psychology is emerging as a new subspecialty in psychology. The perspective provided in this paper is grounded in the premise that it is primarily a research discipline of scholars and researchers who will carry out their activities in a university setting. The students of the described program have found academic or research institute positions. Most of these have been in an academic department of psychology. Some have been in medical schools or research institutes with university affiliations. I believe there is a further market, for example in hospital or school settings, where a research and evaluation program or center is maintained. However, applied developmentalists, as such, should not be expected to be in the business of primary care delivery.This paper is based on the experience of establishing an applied developmental program that is described briefly below. In addition, the content is influenced by a consulting role in establishing a program at another university and from the small conference on Training in Applied Developmental Psychology held at the Mailman Center in 1980.     

Sex differences in symbol-digit substitution and speeded matching

Sex differences in digit-symbol substitution and speeded matching tests have not been adequately explained. Recent attempts have suggested the importance of the comparison processes, associative memory, and a possible difference in processing verbal and spatial information. Four experiments, two on speeded matching and two on symbol-digit substitution, supported the hypothesis that both tests involve comparison processes and that the sex difference in these processes depends upon the type of information. A female advantage is clearest with verbal material on both matching and symbol-digit substitution tasks. A male advantage was found on a symbol-digit substitution test only after training on the symbol-digit associations and when symbol discrimination involved spatial orientation. These results question previous interpretations of the clerical speed and symbol-digit substitution tests in terms of perceptual encoding speed, attentional shifts or sex differences in motor skills.     

Effects on retroactive of the learned strength of interpolated material

Twelve moderately retarded children were trained on 2-choice visual discrimination problems with interpolation of another item between training and retention tests. The retroactively interfering property of the interpolated items was reduced as it became well-learned. The effect was interpreted to mean that well-learned items are rehearsed less. The results were found to be consistent with predictions from theory.     

Why does self-reference promote incidental encoding?

Answering a question regarding a stimulus word can cause incidental encoding of the word itself. The thoroughness of the encoding depends in part upon what question is answered. For example, saying whether a word describes oneself causes a particularly high degree of incidental encoding. The study reported here investigated several variables that have been proposed as mediators of that effect. As in previous research, subjects completed an incidental-encoding and recall procedure. They then rated (a) the quality and degree of affect that they would experience if each stimulus word were to be applied to them, (b) the importance to them of the behavioral/psychological dimension implied by the stimulus word, and (c) the degree to which they saw themselves as distinctive on that dimension. As in previous studies, deciding whether a word described the self increased the likelihood of subsequent recall. There also was a highly significant interaction such that words judged to be applicable to self were recalled better than those judged not to be applicable. There was no evidence, however, of a mediational role for any other variable studied. Discussion centers on theoretical implications of the data.     

Locus of control and persistence in structured and unstructured preschool classrooms

The effect of locus of control and classroom structure on persistence and attention in preschool children was examined. Teachers' ratings of persistence were obtained for 16 children from a relatively structured classroom and for 18 children from a relatively unstructured classroom. Locus of control was measured by administering the Preschool and Primary Nowicki-Strickland Internal-External Scale (Nowicki & Duke, 1974). As predicted, teachers from the structured classrooms rated externally controlled children as more persistent (r=.55, p<.05), while teachers from the unstructured classroom rated internally controlled children as more persistent (r= -.35, p<.10). Practical implications of this line of research for making classroom placement decisions are discussed.     

On multiple determinants of racial differences in intelligence: A reply to Jensen

A belief in the multidimensional nature of intelligence prompted Borkowski and Krause (1983) to reexamine the race-IQ controversy from a new theoretical perspective. Jensen has subsequently forced us to look more carefully at data presented in the earlier paper. After we corrected all measures in the perceptual efficiency and executive systems for unreliability and rethought the earlier data, our original conclusions remain tenable: Control processes and metacognitive states are important factors in understanding the sources of race-related differences in intelligence. In accord with the earlier conclusion, we do not deny the association of “speediness” (perceptual efficiency) with race-IQ differences but rather argue for the necessity, and utility, of a broader, multidimensional conceptualization of the nature and growth of intelligence.     

Individual differences among children in spelling and reading styles

Previous studies have found differences among children in their relative reliance on spelling-sound rules and word-specific associations in reading words. Children at one end of the continuum ("Phoenicians") rely heavily on spelling-sound rules; children at the other end ("Chinese") are more likely to use specific associations. This study found evidence for a Phoenician-Chinese continuum in spelling as well as in reading. Ability to spell nonsense word (e.g., "prunt") correlated more highly with ability to spell regular words (e.g., "grunt") than with ability to spell exception words (e.g., "front"). Children who were skilled at rules tended to overgeneralize them to exception words. In addition, a measure of rule use in spelling correlated with measures of rule use in reading.     

An Examination of the Association between Social relationships and depression in early adolescence

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between social relationships and depression in early adolescence. Subjects were 216 sixth and seventh graders. Depression was measured by the Children's Depression Inventory; social relationships were measured by three sociometric techniques (positive nominations, negative nominations, peer ratings) and estimates by the subject of the number of nominations and the rating (s)he received. The results indicated that depression was associated with pear and self-estimate negative nominations and ratings more than with peer and self-estimate positive nominations. A stepwise multiple regression predicting depression scores included two of the six predictors and accounted for 14% of the variance. The implications of the results for the assessment and treatment of depression are discussed.     

Power and speed components of individual differences in letter matching

Several previous studies have reported a correlation (typically around −.30) between standardized verbal ability test scores and name identity minus physical identity reaction times (NI-PI) in a letter-matching task. This correlation has usually been thought to reflect the mutual dependence of both measures on long-term memory access time. The present research was designed to assess Carroll's (1981) suggestions that: (a) NI — PI may not be the optimal formula for predicting standardized test scores from letter matching data, and (b) NI — PI may actually be related to the speed rather than the power component of standardized tests. Fifty-one subjects previously tested with a standardized reading test participated in letter-matching and word-reading tasks. The latter tasks required subjects to read words and specially constructed pseudowords. Power and speed measures were derived from the word-reading tasks and the standardized test on theoretical grounds (and supported by a principal components analysis). The results supported both of Carroll's contentions. NI — PI reaction time was related more to speed than power and the NI — PI statistic (as usually used) was not the optimum formula for predicting standardized test scores.