What is Re-attribution?
Re-attribution is a cognitive technique that helps a person change the perceived cause of a behavior, outcome, or feeling. By shifting causal attribution, the technique changes the emotional and motivational implications of the event.
How it works
Attribution theory (Weiner) identifies three dimensions of causal explanation: internal vs. external (was it me or the situation?), stable vs. unstable (will this always happen?), and controllable vs. uncontrollable (can I change it?). Re-attribution shifts explanations toward more adaptive patterns. A person who attributes failure to a stable, internal cause (‘I am stupid’) is re-directed to attribute it to an unstable, controllable cause (‘I did not study enough this time’).
Applied example
A student who fails an exam and concludes ‘I am just bad at math’ is helped to re-attribute: ‘I did not use effective study strategies for this exam.’ The re-attribution changes the emotional response from hopelessness to problem-solving motivation.
Why it matters
Re-attribution changes how events are experienced emotionally and motivationally, demonstrating that the same event can produce helplessness or determination depending on how its cause is interpreted.
