Purpose – The purpose of this article is to develop a conceptual model predicting the influence of biased causal explanations for subordinate behaviors and outcomes on a leader's functionality and the quality of leader‐member relationships. Design/methodology/approach – Attribution theory...

Building on a recent study of Weiner's (1985a) attribution–emotion–behavior model, we examine the extent to which negative affective states mediate the relationship between attributions for undesirable outcomes and the ability to justify ethically questionable behaviors. Results of a...