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Attribution theory holds that the affective reaction and mood that people develop in response to a situation is to a great degree dependent on what they perceive has caused the situation. Self-blame is a specific result of certain attributions and often leads to depression. The main purpose of this study is to determine if a relationship exists between a specific, character-related linguistic bias and an increased risk for, and an elevated level of, depression. This is accomplished by comparing subjects' test results in a measure of linguistic bias with the Beck Depression Inventory score and with a measurement of attributional style. Further, by drawing on the philosophical basis of cognitive therapeutic practices, it is argued that self-blame is only related to depression if it is characterological in nature and that such characterological self-blame is implicit in the linguistic style of the individual. Elevated usage of the verb "to be" in evaluating a negative life event was found to correlate with an above-average level of the somatic symptoms of depression. Subjects who preferred "to be" sentences also made more attributions of stability in regard to the hypothetical negative scenarios. Very little correlation was obtained between depression levels and depressogenic attributions. It is argued that while the usage of specific words and the application of depressogenic attributions are confounded, the use of two separate questionnaires both related to a common vignette permits some separation. While linguistic bias does not explain the development of depression, it is at least as good a correlate as attributional style. Depressogenic biases in word usage may be the conscious expression of attributional style. / Thesis / Master of Science (MS)

The present study was designed to examine attributional patterns as predictors of task-associated anxiety. The attribution model suggests that confirmation or disconfirmation of expectancy determines attributional patterns. Consistency between expectancy and performance results in stable attributions for performance, while inconsistency results in unstable attributions. Expected failure attributed to stable factors was proposed to result in greater task-associated anxiety than unexpected failure attributed to unstable cause. In the present study, one hundred and thirty-three undergraduates were assigned to one of four groups (in one of two task areas—mathematics and English) following assessment of attributional patterns, performance, and task-associated anxiety. Group 1 Expect Failure Failure Performance Group 2 Expect Failure Success Performance Group 3 Expect Success Success Performance Group 4 Expect Success Failure Performance Expectancy for failure was determined by an expected grade less than the subject-defined success grade. Expectancy for success was determined by an expected grade greater than or equal to the subject-defined success grade. Success/failure performance was determined by the acceptability or unacceptability of the actual grade. No substantial support was found for the attribution model. In conclusion, results were discussed in terms of methodological and measurement limitations. Implications for the failure to find the predicted results were discussed in terms of these limitations and the expanded attributional model. / Ph. D. / incomplete_metadata

The current study examines psychological correlates of childhood maltreatment, including adult attachment, attributional style, perceived family environment, and current social support and demonstrates their main effects and interactions for predicting long-term psychological distress. Further, this study expands upon past research by broadly defining childhood maltreatment to include sexual, physical, and psychological aspects of maltreatment. This perspective enables the examination of abuse main effects as well as the interactional effect of the various types of abuse. Three hundred and twenty college women completed the Family Experiences Survey, Conflict Tactics Scale, Childhood Maltreatment Interview - Revised, Social Support Questionnaire, Insecure Attachment Inventory, Bell Object Relations Reality Testing Inventory, Mental Health Inventory, and Brief Symptom Inventory. One hundred and twenty eight women reported a history of maltreatment. / Ph. D.

The present research examined whether the attributions a supervisor makes in response to subordinate absenteeism are influenced by a subordinate's prior absence history, the nature of the subordinate's excuse, and the outcomes of the absence episode. In addition, this study investigated the effects these absence variables have on supervisors' selection of both appropriate absence labels (excused vs. unexcused), and the type of disciplinary action taken. 160 psychology students and 85 MBA candidates from a large Southeastern university were given a scenario describing a hypothetical absence episode, and completed a questionnaire pertaining to the dependent measures above. Results of multivariate analyses of variance conducted on measures of attributions, absence labels, and disciplinary actions supported the hypotheses that (a) prior absence histories based on a high frequency of absences and subordinate excuses for absences due to visiting friends will result in more internal attributions, unexcused absence labels, and more severe forms of disciplinary action taken by the supervisor; while (b) prior absence histories based on a low frequency of absences and subordinate excuses due to a child's accident will result in external attributions, excused absence labels, and less severe forms of disciplinary action. The consequences of absenteeism did not have an effect on subjects' attributions, and only marginally influenced subjects' absence labels and sanction decisions. Results of regression analyses also supported the hypotheses that the type of attribution a supervisor makes will directly influence the chosen absence label, and the absence label will, in turn, influence the type of disciplinary action taken. Implications of the study's findings for future absence research are discussed. / M.S.