Perceptions of Causality In Sport: An Application of the Causal Dimension Scale

One of the more problematic methodological issues in attributional research has been the accurate classification, by researchers, of causal attributions made by respondents along causal dimensions. Closed-ended and open-ended approaches have been logical but limiting solutions to assessing attributions. Russell (1982) has the Causal Dimension Scale, a measure that allows the respondent to record a causal statement and indicate how he or she perceives that causal attribution in terms of causal dimensions. The present study examined the effects of winning and losing at table-tennis upon causal attributions using the Causal Dimension Scale. Reliability of the measure was assessed in a sport setting and the relationship between respondents' perceptions of attributions in terms of causal dimensions and judges' perception of the same were examined. The Causal Dimension Scale was found to be a reliable measure of how individuals perceive attributions in terms of causal dimensions. Winners' attributions were more internal, stable, and controllable than those of losers but attributions were of an internal, unstable, and controllable nature for both winners and losers.