Psychology ETDs

Publication Date

5-1979

Abstract

Seventeen teachers from each of the fourth, sixth, and ninth grades completed questionnaires which presented information about children from the teachers’ grade level whose academic performances varied along three within-subjects factors: sex of the child, sex-typing of the task, and outcome. Teachers also classified possible explanations (attributes) for the children’s performances along internal/external and stable/unstable dimensions. The attributes were defined consistently with their theoretical definitions, with the exception that the unstable attributes were rated as more internal than the stable attributes. On objective ratings of the attributes, girls’ successes were attributed to effort and the specific task, negatively implying that the successes might not generalize. Boy’s failures were attributed to luck and the type of task, positively implying that the failures would not generalize. Subjective answers and objective answers concerning stability of performance and future performance were found to differ as a function of grade. Fourth and sixth grade teachers favored, common in previous attribution studied, appear to be dependent on the age of the subject. Results were discussed in terms of their possible impact on the children’s performances.

Degree Name

Psychology

Level of Degree

Masters

Department Name

Psychology

First Committee Member (Chair)

Therese Goetz

Second Committee Member

Ralph David Norman

Third Committee Member

Richard Jerome Harris

Language

English

Document Type

Thesis

Download

Included in

Psychology Commons

Share

COinS