Effects Of Attribution Theory On Human Resource Managementedited 3

Running head: EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 1

EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

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EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 2

Effects of Attribution theory on Human Resource Management

Human resource management is the main department in an organization that foresee the

operations of the company and maximizes the employee performance. Its mandate is to manage

the uses of the resource in the organization and implement policies and practices that drives the

organization to realizing its objectives and goals. This essay will however, will relate the

attribution theory in the field of management and how human resource implements its objectives

and policies to benefit all the players in the organization; stakeholders, managers and employees.

The paper would also discuss how the theory influences the organizational processes such as

communication and change management. Organizational behavior is a field of study that is

entitled to study the effects that groups and individuals have in an organization with an aim of

applying the skills and the knowledge of improving the structure and effectiveness of an

organization.

Strategic human resource management researchers have explained the importance of HR

department in an organization. The human resource is believed to be the main body of an

organization and its practices and policies are associated with its performance. The HR practices

and policies help the managers in the organizations to improve their performance by recruiting

and training the employees. Most researchers including (Bowen & Ostroff 2004) suggested that

the causal chain in an organization might be more complex and thus employee's perceptions of

the human resource management practices may lead the attitudes and the behavior of the

employees. They meant that for HR practices to apply their anticipated policies and practices on

‘the workers attitude’ and their behavior, they have been perceived and interpreted individually

by the employees in different ways that that will stimulate their behavioral reactions (Bowen &

Ostroff 2004).

EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 3

Organizations, however, are not buildings or machinery that is set up in a place. An

organization is indeed, persons who interact or come together with the aim of accomplishing the

objectives and goals. The study of an organizational behavior and its associated subjects can help

in understanding what most people think, feel and do in the setting of an organization.

Stakeholders, managers, and employees need to apply the theory to predict, understand and

control the events of an organization (Robbins, Millett & Marsh 2004).

The managers' implementation constraints are directly translated into both external and

internal implementation attribution. The attribution theory moderates the HR attributions and the

employee attributions because both the employees and the managers are in this relationship of

achieving the goals and objectives of the organization. This theory, however, shows that

managers should observe the behavior of their employees and verify the causes of unsatisfactory

job performance. They should have to see this from a different perspective before concluding

and perform judgments which would benefit the organization (Ajzen 1991)

Attribution theory can be explained as a psychological theory that attempts to explain the

behavior and is important to the management of an organization or business. This paper will try

to explain further what the theory is all about and how it has an impact in the management of an

organization or simply how it affects the operations of human resource of an organization. The

theory is important for the management of an organization because it helps the management in

understanding the behavior of their employees. The theory further, when put into practice by

managers, it helps them in understanding ‘the employee’s thoughts’ about their behaviors within

the organization. The perception of the causes of specific behavior may affect the judgment and

the actions of the managers, stakeholders and the employees. Attribution theory, however, may

help in motivating the employees in the organization.

EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 4

The implementation of the theory in an organization helps the leaders and the owners in

attributing the behaviors of their employees and the outcomes of the workplace. Attributions in

an organization affect individuals' expectations, behaviors, and emotions. The internal and

external attributions are useful tools in the leadership and management practices as they help in

the organization in studying the behavior of the employees. The perception of the causes of

various behaviors affects the judgment and the daily activities of the managers and the

employees. This, however, can be either internal or external which recognizes the internal and

external attributions. (Kelly 1967) argues that consensus, consistency and distinctiveness' are the

types of information that can be used in making attribution decisions. Attribution also

emphasizes on culture and social settings of an organization. However, leaders should motivate

their employees for the organization to increase its productivity and improve their performance.

The theory of attribution as it has been discussed is about observing the behavior,

determining whether it is intentional and deciding whether to attribute the observed behavior. In

organization management attribution of behavior and perception is the order of the events. The

employees try to copy what their bosses are doing. When attributing a sort of behavior, there are

external and internal causes. The internal causes are those that are initiated by the management

and can have control over them. For instance, promoting and employ form one job group to

another due to his hard work and dedication. This change in the management that is internal and

managers can overturn the promotion when needed. The external factors are those attributed

from outside. That is from someone not being observed. An example is the promoting an

employee after receiving a bribe, or the owner of the company may employ an individual

because they are related in a way. This change in an organization is an external attribute.

EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 5

Organizational behavior is influenced by both perception and the attribution factors. Both

perception and attribution are factors that determine the effectiveness of human resource

management in an organization. Perception involves selecting, organizing and interpreting once

sensory impressions to give the meaning to their environment. In this scenario, both employees

and managers can become obese their impressions and judge themselves how they mean to the

organization. Attribution theory, on the other hand, seem to follow the same lane as it is

observing the behavior and attributing it.

The behavior of persons is determined by their perception. The perception controls the

behavior of both employees and managers' hence most behavioral factors are internally caused.

The consistency of the HR in an organization may be affected by the employees’ behavior for

example when they demand pay rise or motivational packages such as medical covers and

insurance covers. The employees may threaten to boycott job, and this will affect the daily

activities of the company where the HR will be liable. The distinctiveness of a company is

determined by the way the HR and the employees work together to make the company successful

and profitable.

Stakeholders of an organization tend to judge their managers and workers basing on their

performances. The relationship between the employees and the stakeholders of an organization

depends on their attributions and perceptions. Most stakeholders tend to reward and motivate

their managers who post good results. The motivations are made by way of promotions and

vacations. Since attribution theory is about observing the behavior of an individual and drawing

conclusions, the managers and stakeholders both observe their behaviors and how they relate to

each other. Stakeholders also tend to build trust and sell their brand to the public, and this will be

attributed by the managers in the organization. Organizational leaders should understand their

EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 6

stakeholders to enable them to run the organization effectively and help them manage their

sense-making during a crisis.

Leadership is one of the skills portrayed by the human resource management in an

organization. Good leadership leads an organization to achieve its goals and objectives. The

attribution theory of leadership, however, believes that people interpret events happening around

them and relates to their thinking and behaviors. This perspective also can be manifested in the

events happening within the organization involving all the employees and their leaders such as

the managers and the stakeholders. Attribution theory believes that individuals try to understand

what, why and how people do. Applying this perspective to leadership, it’s clear that employees

interpret the behaviors of their leaders and vice versa in the work environment.

The important thing with this theory is that the manager can identify by monitoring the

employee who is hard working and develop an opinion of the person from the point. The impact

of attribution theory on the leadership of an organization is evident because leaders in all

organizations form their opinions of employees basing on their performance likewise to the

employees also do the same to their leaders. However, the aspect of leadership can have both

negative and positive impact on an organization. Good leadership skills in companies such as

Apple, Samsung Electronics, Amazon and others have made them to be leading companies

selling and making huge profits in the recent years. The good management and recruiting of

qualified and skilled workers have enabled them to achieve their goals.

The psychologists describe the fundamental attribution error (attribution effect) as the

tendency to overestimate the effect of personality and underestimating the effect of the situation

in observing the social behavior. This means that whatever someone is doing physically does not

EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 7

relate to his or her personality, rather it relates to the situation he is at that moment. An example

of attribution effect is when an employee doesn't return the call of his manager. The manager

might think that the employee doesn't want to report to work. The reality might be different as

the employee might not be feeling well or his phone might have been stolen.

Communication is one of the fundamental factors in any organization. For any

organization to be successful, effective communication should prevail. The management and

stakeholders should engage the employees in the decision making of the organizations. This can

be done by involving the employees in meetings and sharing the message about the organization

together. Managers require technical skills in communication because communication is the

main channel of any leader in the globe. Attribution theory has impacts on communication

processes within an organization as it is about the behavior of how one communicates.

Employees will adapt to the communication channel that is used by their bosses whether

it is effective or not. Organizational communication creates information networks and provides

feedback to the employees and the stakeholders of the company. The owners and leaders can

only trust a manager by having the certainty of events. This attribution is also echoed by the

employees as they will gain the managers trust when they are certain of events. For instance, a

company such as the Starbucks which is the leading in the chain of coffee globally have

maintained smooth and proper communications with its customers and employees. The company

has also attributed to the behaviors of their customers who need quality products, and this has

made the company to be more successful (Walters & Norton 2008).

The organizations should offer job opportunities equally without basing on their gender,

race, or ethnic stereotypes. The stereotypes have negative impacts on human resource decisions

EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 8

which may alter its operations and leadership. The interviews during job interviews should be

able to motivate the candidates and make comparisons to a stereotype of an ideal that is accurate

and relevant. Ability, benevolence, and integrity are the distinct perceptions of trust and

leadership in an organization.

The stakeholders should carry out evaluations and audit of the organization after a period.

This will enable them to be strict and work hard to achieve the goals of the organization. It is

evident that when there is no evaluation of success or failure, managers, and the employees tend

to attribute their behavior to external factors and behavior. Attribution theory, however,

accounts for more variance in important employee outcomes in an organization and also can

predict the future outcomes. Employee motivation by the management leads to high performance

and more output in an organizational as explained by the theory. The perceptions play important

roles in shaping the attitude towards the change of responses regarding their reactions. Leaders

should manage both the processes of change and the reactions of its employees and clients.

EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 9

References

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Bowen, D.E., & Ostroff, C. (2004). Understanding HRM-firm performance linkages: The role of

the “strength” of the HRM system. Academy of Management Review, 29(2), 203-221.

Coombs, W. T. (2007). Attribution theory as a guide for post-crisis communication research.

Public Relations Review, 33(2), 135-139.

Feldman, J. M. (1981). Beyond attribution theory: Cognitive processes in performance

appraisal. Journal of Applied psychology, 66(2), 127.

Heider, F. (1958). The psychology of interpersonal relations: Psychology press.

Kelley, H. H. (1967). Attribution theory in social psychology. In Nebraska symposium on

motivation. University of Nebraska Press.

Krosgaard, M. A., Brodt, S. E., & Whitener, E. M. (2002). Trust in the face of conflict: The role

of managerial trustworthy behavior and organizational context. Journal of Applied

Psychology, 87(2), 312.

Laczniak, R. N., DeCarlo, T. E., & Ramaswami, S. N. (2001). Consumers’ responses to negative

word-of-mouth communication: An attribution theory perspective. Journal of consumer

Psychology, 11(1), 57-73.

Paauwe, J., & Boselie, P. (2005). HRM and performance: what next? Human Resource

Management Journal, 15(4), 68-83.

Pfeffer, J. (1977). The ambiguity of leadership. Academy of management review, 2(1), 104-112.

Timothy Coombs, W., & Holladay, S. J. (2007). The negative communication dynamic:

Exploring the impact of stakeholder effect on behavioral intentions. Journal of

Communication management, 11(4), 300-312.

Walters, D., & Norton, D. (2008). Leadership communication--The AstraZeneca way. Strategic

Communication Management, 12(1), 16.

EFFECTS OF ATTRIBUTION THEORY ON HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 10

Weiner, B. (1972). Attribution theory, achievement motivation, and the educational process.

Review of educational research, 42(2), 203-215.

Winkler, I. (2010). Attribution theory in leadership research. In Contemporary Leadership

Theories (pp. 9-22). Physica-Verlag HD.

Zuckerman, M. (1979). Attribution of success and failure revisited, or: The motivational bias is

alive and well in attribution theory. Journal of personality, vol. 47, no. 2, pp. 245-287.

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