This article describes a classroom exercise that is
designed to demonstrate the applicability of attribu
tion theories to performance diagnosis. Specifically, it
shows how three information cues (consistency, con
sensus, and distinctiveness) may be used by a super
visor in determining the cause of a performance prob
lem. These three cues provide comparisons across
time, people, and tasks and are presented graphically
in the exercise. Courses for which the exercise may
apply include organizational behavior, personnel,
managerial decision-making, and operations
management.
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