Question 1

An attribution is a causal explanation for an event or behavior.

Accepted Answer

Attribution refers to the process of explaining the causes of events or behaviors, often by assigning responsibility or identifying reasons for why something happened.

Question 2

Instrumental aggression describes behaviors targeted at obtaining a goal that the employing organization is not providing.

Accepted Answer

Instrumental aggression is a type of aggression that is used to achieve a goal. In this case, the goal is to obtain something that the employing organization is not providing.

Question 3

Attributions are always an accurate reflection of reality.

Accepted Answer

Attributions can be biased or incomplete, as they are often based on subjective interpretations or limited information.

Question 4

Organizational rules and norms can cause learned helplessness among employees.

Accepted Answer

Organizational rules and norms can create environments where employees feel powerless to change their circumstances, leading to learned helplessness.

Question 5

People who are non-resilient are likely to err in their attributions and are prone to blame others or themselves for their failures.

Accepted Answer

Non-resilient individuals often struggle with coping mechanisms and may misattribute the causes of their failures, leading to blaming others or themselves.

Question 6

If failures are caused by unstable internal forces, such as insufficient effort, it is important for employees to make that attribution even if it is not the most desirable short-term conclusion.

Accepted Answer

Attributing failures to unstable internal forces like effort can lead to personal growth and improvement, as it suggests that change is possible through increased effort or different strategies.

Question 7

Because __________________ among employees is generally good for overall organizational effectiveness, it is helpful to understand the cognitive processes that help foster this state of heightened motivation.

A) Equity
B) Learned helplessness
C) Empowerment
D) Aggression

Accepted Answer

Empowerment among employees leads to increased motivation and effectiveness, as it involves giving employees the authority, resources, and confidence to make decisions and take actions that benefit the organization.

Question 8

Which attribution refers to a state of heightened motivation that is focused on an undesirable behavior or goal?&#10;A) Learned helplessness&#10;B) Aggression&#10;C) Empowerment&#10;D) Resilience

Accepted Answer

Aggression is often linked to heightened motivation focused on undesirable behaviors or goals, as it involves intense emotions and actions directed towards achieving a specific outcome, often in a negative context.

Question 9

If an employee repeatedly fails at a task because they do not have the skills or knowledge to complete the task effectively, they will likely develop:&#10;A) Optimistic attribution style&#10;B) Learned Helplessness&#10;C) Hostile attribution style&#10;D) Resilience

Accepted Answer

Learned helplessness occurs when an individual repeatedly fails at a task and begins to believe that they are incapable of succeeding, leading to a lack of motivation and effort in future attempts.

Question 10

Dr. Davis made a medication error on a patient. Dr. Davis responds by telling himself, &#34;I'm so stupid, I'll never get it right!&#34; Which most accurately describes his attribution?&#10;A) Internal, stable&#10;B) Internal, unstable&#10;C) External, stable&#10;D) External, unstable

Accepted Answer

Dr. Davis is attributing the error to an internal factor (his own perceived stupidity) and considers it stable (a consistent trait, as he believes he'll never get it right).

Deck 8: Attribution Theory and Motivation