Task performance and attributional communication as determinants of interpersonal attraction

Using attribution theory and interpersonal attraction literature as a framework, two hypotheses were examined in the present study. The first hypothesis predicted that persons who succeed at a task would tend to perceive their success as internally caused, while failure at a task would tend to be seen as externally caused. Hypothesis two predicted that persons receiving information consistent with their attributional tendency would be more attracted to the information source than would persons receiving attributional information inconsistent with their own attributional tendency. The attribution and attraction data obtained in the experiment supported the two hypotheses.