Beyond Achievement Motivation: The Generality of Attribution Theory

Abstract

Achievement strivings have been the focus of convenience of the attributional approach advanced in this book. The conception illustrated in Figure 6–4 grew as an alternative to Atkinson’s theory of achievement motivation, and achievement- related contexts provided the research sites for many of the supporting empirical investigations. But a theory must have range or generality if it is to have lasting significance and influence. In this chapter I explore the breadth of the conception, examining a variety of phenomena that the theory is able to address.

In which the author discusses the range or generality of the theory, extending the analysis to helping behavior and a variety of other phenomena. It appears that a general theory of motivation and emotion is under development.