Managerial Attribution and Response: An Empirical Test of an Attributional Leadership Model in India

• Published in: The Journal of social psychology Vol. 138; no. 5; pp. 591 - 597
• Main Authors: Srivastava, B. N., Sett, P. K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC Taylor & Francis Group 01-10-1998; Heldref; Clark University Press; Taylor & Francis Inc
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Correlation; Cultural Differences; Employees; Factories; Feedback (Response); Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Halo effect; India; Individual Differences; Influences; Leaders; Leadership; Leadership Styles; Management styles; Managers; Manufacturing industries; Personnel Evaluation; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Questionnaires; Rating Scales; Social attribution, perception and cognition; Social psychology; Statistical Analysis; Subordinates; Task performance; Variance analysis; Asia; India; Social environment; Human; Leadership; Attitude; Cultural environment; Models; Manager; Attribution
• ISSN: 0022-4545; 1940-1183
• DOI: 10.1080/00224549809600414

This study was designed to test (a) the central predictions of the attributional leadership model (S. G. Green & T. R. Mitchell, 1979) and (b) the effects of manager's leadership style and subordinate's nontask achievement on leader attribution and response. The participants were managers in India. Ratings of episodes of a subordinate's poor performance were analyzed via a 4 (leadership styles) × 2 (presence/absence of non-task achievement) factorial analysis of variance. The results supported the model's predictions: (a) there was a positive correlation between attribution and response, (b) there was a general bias toward internal attribution, and (c) leaders had a propensity to make internal responses. Significant differences in leaders' attributions and responses due to leadership style were indicated. Subordinates' nontask achievement also showed some halo effect on leaders' attributions and responses. The findings highlight the role of moderator variables and cultural differences.