1. Attribution
sports-psychology/

2. Attribution
Attributions are the perceived causes of a particular outcome. 
In sport these are often the reasons we give for the results we achieve eg. Bad weather conditions, high effort levels.
Attributions are important because of the way in which they affect your motivation, and in turn affects future performances, future effort or even whether you continue with sport or not. 
A young person who is told that they failed because they do not have the ability to success is unlikely to try again. If the same individual is given reasons to work on, the may continue and put in the effort. 
Linked to motivation:
If a coach tells you that you lost because you were hopeless, this may lower your motivation – it may however fire you up and motivate you to respond, work harder to achieve more. 

3. Weiner's model of attribution
Weiner's attribution theory of motivation describes the way in which we strive to maintain our positive self-image.
Weiner's attribution theory looks at the reasons given by coaches and players to account for success or failure.
Weiners study shows that there are strong links between attribution and achievement motivation.

4. Weiner's model of attribution
Weiner's attribution theory of motivation describes the way in which we strive to maintain our positive self-image.
Weiner's attribution theory looks at the reasons given by coaches and players to account for success or failure.
Weiners study shows that there are strong links between attribution and achievement motivation.
Weiner 1979 identified four main reasons for examination results:
Ability, effort, task difficulty & luck. 

5. Weiner's model of attribution
Weiner's attribution theory of motivation describes the way in which we strive to maintain our positive self-image.
Weiner's attribution theory looks at the reasons given by coaches and players to account for success or failure.
Weiners study shows that there are strong links between attribution and achievement motivation.
There are two dimensions in the structure:
1 – Locus of causality – refers to whether the attributions come from within the person (internal) or from the environment (external) and effects a person's feelings or pride, confidence or shame.
2 – Stability – refers to whether the attribution is changeable

6. Weiner's model of attribution
1 – Locus of causality
This dimension indicates whether the attribution relates to factors that are either or external to the performer.
Effort and ability represent internal factors while task difficulty and luck are external and are known as environmental factors. 
2 - Stability
Indicates whether attributions are stable or unstable. 
Stability refers to the permeance associated with an attribution factor. 
A stable factor is considered permanent and unchangeable (ability).
An unstable factor is temporary and can be changed (luck).

7. Weiner's model of attribution

8. Weiner's model of attribution

9. Weiner's model of attribution

10. Notes on Weiners model

11. Controllability
Weiner added a third dimension to his attribution model – the dimension of controllability, which he thought reflected the view that we have greater or lesser personal control over event outcomes. 
This takes into consideration, whether a cause for a sports outcome is controllable or uncontrollable. 
Coaches or teachers tend to praise effort and controllable success, and punish lack of effort and controllable failure. Concentrating on uncontrollable external and stable factors is not of much use if you want to turn failure into success.

12. How does each attribute cause links to controllability?

13. How does each attribute cause links to controllability?
Ability – internal, stable, uncontrollable
Luck – external, unstable, uncontrollable
Effort – internal, unstable, controllable
Difficulty – external, stable, controllable/uncontrollable

14. Learned helplessness
Refers to a belief that failure is inevitable and a feeling of hopelessness when faced with a particular situations (specific learned helplessness) or group of situations (global learned helplessness)
SLH - 'I am a hopeless football player.'
GLH – 'I am hopeless at all sport.'
Low achievers often attribute their failure to uncontrollable factors, which can lead to learned helplessness. High achievers are athletes who are oriented towards mastery and see failure as learning experience, and who will attribute failure to controllable unstable factors. The 'need to achieve' (Nach) performers are not afraid of failing and will persist with a task until they succeed. 

15. Mastery orientation
Mastery orientation is the view that an individual will be motivated by becoming an expert/mater in skill development or sports performance. 
An athlete who is mastery orientated will often attribute failure to internal, controllable and unstable factors, such as effort, and will continue to strive to become better at the activity. 
They seek to develop their competence by acquiring new skills and mastering new situations. 
They are not concerned about their performance relative to others, but rather with furthering their understanding of their sport, fitness and sport performance. 
Mastery orientation is at the opposite end of the scale to learned helplessness, which is the belief that failure is inevitable and that the individual has no control over the factors that cause failure. 

16. Attribution retraining
Attribution retraining can optimise sports performance – seeking often change learned helplessness into mastery orientation. 
Many attributions that are given are subjective and are therefore not desirable for future progression. E.g.. A hockey player used to play for a team that constantly blamed the officials for their poor results. Although this helped to draw the team together, the team had a bad reputation with most officials and they were not attributing their poor results to changeable or realistic factors. 
Attributions often need to be assessed in order to success in the future. A person who fails in task should be encouraged to attribute to controllable, unstable factors. E.g.. A team of 17 year old girls who have just narrowly lost a hockey match should be encouraged to give attributions such as 'must try harder next week' (these are internal, unstable and controllable). 
Using attribution in this way is more likely to result in mastery orientation.