Investigating the Influence of Attribution Styles on the Development of Mathematical Talent

Abstract

In this article, the authors examine the influence of attribution styles on the development of mathematical talent. The study employs a Self-Confidence Attitude Attribute Scale questionnaire, which measures ability and effort attributions. Participants are three groups of highly, moderately, or mildly mathematically gifted Finnish adolescents and adults (N = 203). The results of Bayesian classification modeling show that items attributing success to effort and failure to lack of effort are the best predictors for the level of mild mathematical giftedness and gender (females). The results of multivariate analysis of variance show that highly and moderately mathematically gifted students reported that ability was more important for success than effort, but mildly mathematically gifted tended to see effort as leading to success. Moderately and mildly mathematically gifted students attribute failure to lack of effort, whereas highly mathematically gifted students attribute failure to lack of ability.Putting the Research to Use: It is essential that educators and parents understand the influence of different attribution styles on the development of mathematical talent. This study provides understanding of how highly, moderately, and mildly mathematically gifted adolescents and adults differ in their specific reasons for success and failure. Differences in attribution styles between the three groups of mathematically gifted, as measured with the Self-Confidence Attitude Attribute Scales questionnaire, indicate that it is important to know if the attributions for success or failure are stable or unstable, external or internal.Knowledge of how learners or trainees use attributions to account for success and failure can help educators and parents gain a deeper awareness of the mathematically gifted and, thus, predict their expectancies and plan intervention strategies when needed. The information is also applicable to courses concerning the needs of the gifted. Furthermore, the information can be presented directly to mathematically gifted students to help them develop more insight into their own behavior.

Effect of teaching of self-regulated learning strategies on attribution styles in students

“…They show that training in self-regulated learning quite evidently lowered negative (pessimistic) attribution style in the experimental group compared to the control group. This reduction of pessimistic styles is in agreement with Zimmerman's view (2000) that the learner embarked on interpreting and reforming negative attributions while in the self-judgment stage of learning selfregulation (Nokelainen, et al, 2007). As per the results of Preston's research (1990), lower scores, not looking for help, vague goals, weak usage of learning strategies and lower expec-tations from actions are all related to negative attribution styles.…”

Intellectual giftedness: Economic, political, cultural, and psychological considerations

“…Similarly, the role of cognitive and non-cognitive indicators has been stressed in sustaining and developing IG across the life span in a number of studies around the world: Australia (Gross, 2006); Canada (Grayson, 1999); Finland (Nokelainen, Tirri, Campbell & Walberg, 2007;Nokelainen, Tirri & Merenti-Välimäki, 2007); Iceland (Freeman & Josepsson, 2002); Israel (Zeidner & Schleyer, 1999); Germany (Rahn, 1986;Trost & Sieglen, 1992), and the USA (Feist, 2006). Of interest here is the observation that there are some cultural differences in patterns of the strengths of these predictors , such that indicators that are predictive of success in one culture might not be that informative in another.…”

The academic experiences of Grade 12 top achievers in maintaining excellence in first-year university programmes

“…Attribution theory is also known as explanation theory, as it actually refers to what we attribute our success and failure to. In defining attributions, Nokelainen, Tirri andValimaki (2007, 66) quote Heider (1958), who was the first to refer to the different reasons that people give for particular results, such as success or failure in a task, as 'attributions'. Furthermore, Schunk and Meece (2008) simplify this by explaining that attribution or causal explanation is what a person believes is the cause of an outcome, even though it may not be the real cause.…”