Evidence converges from a wide range of contexts to suggest that the causal beliefs held by an individual, or predominant in a group of individuals, are of considerable practical significance and theoretical interest. A good system for analysing naturally occurring expressions of causal belief would provide the possibility of testing and exploring this supposition without having to rely on possibly artificial questionnaire responses. A rationale for such a system is described and a study of the reliability of the coding procedure is reported. It has proved possible to formulate definitions of the five major dimensions identified in the attribution literature so that, while they are not all orthogonal, each provides unique information. The coding system is shown to have adequate reliability, and to generate substantial quantities of data. The findings from these data are generally in accordance with those obtained using more traditional methodologies, and provide substantive information about the subject population. The method is proposed as an effective technique for empirical investigations of the forms, stability and significance of naturally expressed causal beliefs.
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Stratton et al. (1986) studied this question.