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Related Experiment Videos

Law school performance predicted by explanatory style

J M Satterfield1, J Monahan, M E Seligman

  • 1Division of General Internal Medicine, University of California at San Francisco 94143, USA.

Behavioral Sciences & the Law
|January 1, 1997
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

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Pessimistic explanatory styles in law students predicted better academic performance, contrary to findings in other fields. This suggests a cautious perspective may benefit success in demanding professions.

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Legal Education

Background:

  • Explanatory style, or attributional style, influences how individuals interpret events.
  • Previous research, primarily with undergraduates, linked optimistic explanatory styles to better outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between explanatory styles and academic success in law students.
  • To determine if findings in undergraduate populations generalize to the legal profession.

Main Methods:

  • Assessed explanatory styles of 387 law students using the Attributional Style Questionnaire (ASQ) before matriculation.
  • Collected longitudinal academic performance data (GPA, law journal success) throughout law school.

Main Results:

  • Students with pessimistic explanatory styles (stable, global, internal attributions for negative events; opposite for positive) outperformed optimistic students.

Related Experiment Videos

  • This finding contrasts with previous research on undergraduates.

    • Conclusions:

    • A prudent, cautious perspective, characteristic of pessimists, may be advantageous for success in law school and potentially other skill-based professions.
    • Current attributional research methodologies may have limitations in capturing nuances relevant to specific professional contexts.