Premium
An Attributional Analysis of Reactions to Magic Johnson 1
Author(s) -
Graham Sandra,
Weiner Bernard,
Giuliano Traci,
Williams Estella
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
journal of applied social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1559-1816
pISSN - 0021-9029
DOI - 10.1111/j.1559-1816.1993.tb01018.x
Subject(s) - sympathy , attribution , psychology , anger , magic (telescope) , social psychology , physics , quantum mechanics
Principles from attribution theory were used to analyze public reactions to the health status of Magic Johnson. An experimental study containing two distinct samples (college students and African‐American adults) together with supplemental reports from local and national media confirm the value of this approach. The findings show that inferences about causal responsibility are related to affective reactions of sympathy and anger toward Magic Johnson. Implications for attribution theory, as well as for future attitudes toward Magic Johnson, are discussed.