Demonstrating competence within one’s group or in relation to other groups: A person-oriented approach to studying achievement goals in small groups

Two studies investigated students’ adopted mastery and performance goals for group work, with an interest in exploring whether performance-approach goals functioned differently in small groups depending on whether the social comparison target resides outside the group (i.e., between-group comparison; performance-approach between group goals) or within the group (i.e., within-group comparison; performance-approach within goals). Using a person-oriented approach, six achievement goal profiles for group work were identified for middle school students in science (N_Study1 = 309) and upper elementary school students in mathematics (N_Study2 = 218). Some profiles included varying patterns of goal endorsement (e.g., high mastery goals, low performance-approach goals) while others reflected similar levels (high, medium, low) of goals. Across both studies, the six goal profiles were associated with varying patterns of group processes, cognitive engagement, and achievement. Most notably, students in profiles with high performance-approach within group goals had more detrimental outcomes, even when mastery goals were also strongly endorsed. In contrast, students in profiles with high mastery alone or in combination with high performance-approach between group goals had adaptive group process, cognitive engagement, and achievement outcomes. Implications for the conceptualization of performance-approach goals in small groups and cautions for fostering normative standards and intergroup competition when structuring group activities are discussed.     

Waiting for the Second Treat: Developing Culture‐Specific Modes of Self‐Regulation

The development of self‐regulation has been studied primarily in Western middle‐class contexts and has, therefore, neglected what is known about culturally varying self‐concepts and socialization strategies. The research reported here compared the self‐regulatory competencies of German middle‐class (N = 125) and rural Cameroonian Nso preschoolers (N = 76) using the Marshmallow test (Mischel, 2014). Study 1 revealed that 4‐year‐old Nso children showed better delay‐of‐gratification performance than their German peers. Study 2 revealed that culture‐specific maternal socialization goals and interaction behaviors were related to delay‐of‐gratification performance. Nso mothers’ focus on hierarchical relational socialization goals and responsive control seems to support children's delay‐of‐gratification performance more than German middle‐class mothers’ emphasis on psychological autonomous socialization goals and sensitive, child‐centered parenting.     

Who benefits from mastery-approach and performance-approach goals in college? Students’ social class as a moderator of the link between goals and grade

Although approach forms of achievement goals (mastery and performance goals) have been shown to predict academic achievement in college, recent research underscores that these associations are rather weak and not consistently observed. The present study tests students’ social class (in the present research, generational status) as a moderator of the relationships between both mastery-approach goals and performance-approach goals and final grade. One hundred students (45 first-generation students and 55 continuing-generation students, M _age = 18.9, SD = 1.52) answered an achievement goal scale related to one of their classes at the beginning of the year. Their final grade for this class was obtained three months later. As expected, performance-approach goals positively predicted final grade only for upper-class students, while mastery-approach goals tend to do so for lower-class students, supporting the idea that different kinds of motivation could predict students’ achievement depending on their social class.     

Trajectories of implicit theories and their relations to scholastic aptitude: A mediational role of achievement goals

Implicit theories of intelligence play an important role in students’ academic motivation and achievement. This longitudinal study examined how the trajectories of implicit theories of intelligence from Grade 8 to Grade 10 were related to Grade 12 SAT achievement via Grade 11 achievement goals. We employed parallel process models to examine changing patterns of Korean students’ (N = 6491) entity and incremental theories over three years. Results showed that both entity and incremental theories increased over time. The intercept and the slope of entity theory were negatively related with the intercept and the slope of incremental theory, respectively. In line with Dweck’s theoretical framework, increases in incremental theory were found to predict SAT achievement via mastery-approach goals, whereas increases in entity theory predicted SAT achievement via performance-approach goals. The results indicate that different types of achievement goals play unique roles in mediating the relation between changes in implicit theories and SAT achievement.     

Do teachers' achievement goals and self-efficacy beliefs matter for students’ learning experiences? Evidence from two studies on perceived teaching quality and emotional experiences

Although teacher motivation is posited to matter for students' learning experiences, this remains largely uninvestigated, particularly in higher education. In two studies, we analyzed the role of higher education teachers' achievement goals and self-efficacy for students' learning experiences. In Study 1 (k = 166 teachers, n = 2,106 students), we assessed teachers' motivations at the semester start, and students' course-specific perceptions of teaching quality (overall rating, learning) and emotions (joy, boredom) at the semester end. Latent multilevel modeling indicated favorable associations for teachers' self-efficacy, but not for their goals. In Study 2 (k = 96 teachers, n = 16,009 students), we assessed the same constructs and measured students' learning experiences weekly regarding 828 specific course sessions. Additionally, we included teachers’ session-specific motivations. Results replicated the effects of self-efficacy on the teacher-level and suggested that performance-approach and performance-avoidance goals primarily matter on the level of specific sessions. This affirms the relevance of teacher motivations and illuminates the importance of their specificity.     

教育游戏中玩家成就目标对学业情绪的影响研究

在教育游戏环境中,探讨不同玩家的成就目标对学业情绪的影响将有助于教育游戏的情感化设计。请36位玩家对6款电子游戏的教育性进行评价,将他们的评测分数与量表相对照,最终选择"平衡球"、"极速拯救"和"逻辑之门"作为本研究的实验环境。随机测量300名在校大学生的成就目标定向,并从中选择40名被试参与后续实验,测量教育游戏过程中他们的学业情绪。研究结果显示,在三款不同类型的教育游戏中,成就目标与学业情绪均存在不同程度的相关关系:掌握趋近目标与积极高唤醒度情绪存在明显的正相关,与消极情绪成明显的负相关;掌握回避目标与积极低唤醒度情绪存在负相关,与消极高唤醒度情绪成明显的正相关;成绩趋近目标与积极高唤醒度情绪存在明显的正相关关系,与消极情绪成明显的负相关关系;成绩回避目标与消极高唤醒度情绪成明显的正相关关系,与积极高唤醒度情绪成明显的负相关关系。     

Perils of perfectionistic concerns among teachers

The current study examined how teachers’ perfectionism (personal standards [PS] and concern over mistakes [COM]) relates to their achievement goals for teaching, instructional practices (creation of mastery vs. performance classroom goal structures), job satisfaction, and flow experience during teaching. The data were collected from teachers (N = 143; mean age = 43.5; 70% female; 100% European American) practicing in the Midwestern U.S. Path analyses indicated that teachers’ high personal standards predicted endorsement of mastery goals for teaching, creation of mastery goal structure emphasizing personal progress and learning, high job satisfaction, and frequent flow experience during teaching. On the contrary, teachers’ high concern over mistakes predicted endorsement of performance-approach and -avoidance goals, creation of classroom performance goal structure emphasizing competition among students, low job satisfaction, and infrequent flow experience during teaching. A significant interaction between PS and COM was found for fluency (subscale of flow) experience, indicating that PS can buffer the harmful effects of COM. Therefore, the study evidenced the benefits of PS and the drawbacks of COM.     

Achievement goals,academic self-concept,and school grades in mathematics: Longitudinal reciprocal relations in above average ability secondary school students

This study examined the longitudinal reciprocal relations between academic self-concept, achievement goals (i.e., performance-approach, performance-avoidance, and mastery), and achievement (i.e., self-reported grades) in mathematics. The research aim was twofold. First, we examined the confound hypothesis, which states that performance-approach goals do not feature any incremental validity in predicting achievement over and above students' competence perceptions (i.e., academic self-concept). In addition, we expanded research on the confound hypothesis by also investigating performance-avoidance and mastery goals. Second, we investigated the predictive validity of all three achievement goals for changes in academic self-concept. Seven hundred sixty-nine students (50.78% female) attending the highest track of the German three-tier secondary school system participated in three waves of measurement in Grades 5, 6, and 8. Our findings confirmed the confound hypothesis: Performance-approach goals did not explain achievement over and above academic self-concept. The same findings applied to performance-avoidance and mastery goals. Furthermore, performance-approach goals were positively related to academic self-concept changes, whereas performance-avoidance goals showed a negative relation to academic self-concept changes over time. Mastery goals were not associated to changes in academic self-concept. Academic self-concept and achievement showed positive reciprocal relations. To conclude, our results point to complex relations between achievement goals, academic self-concept, and academic achievement over time.     

Longitudinal predictions between temperamental sensitivities and achievement goal orientations in the early school years

Students’ goal strivings are known to be connected with important outcomes, both academically and with regard to individual well-being. In spite of their importance, our knowledge of factors contributing to their early development is rather limited. In this longitudinal study on school beginners (N = 212), we focused on the interrelationships between achievement goal orientations (mastery; performance-approach; performance-avoidance; work-avoidance) and two temperamental sensitivities that appear relevant for the developing sense of mastery and performance in the school setting: interindividual reward sensitivity (reward derived from social approval and attention) and sensitivity to punishment (propensity to perceive cues of potential threat in the environment, and react with withdrawal and avoidance). The data were collected over the first three school years, from grade 1 (7–8 years) to grade 3 (9–10 years), and analysed using PLS-SEM. As expected, both temperamental sensitivities and achievement goal orientations remained relatively stable over time. Interindividual reward sensitivity was related negatively with mastery and positively with performance-approach and performance-avoidance orientations, from the first through to the third year. Punishment sensitivity had a positive effect on performance-avoidance orientation, and indirect, reciprocal, negative effects with performance-approach orientation. The findings provide new knowledge on early relationships between temperament and goal strivings. Interindividual reward sensitivity appears consistently associated with performance concerns and decreased mastery strivings. Such connections may have long-standing negative influence on students’ educational trajectories, and point to the importance of acknowledging individual differences in temperament and their role in motivation and learning.

     

Achievement after failure: The role of achievement goals and negative self-related thoughts

Theory on achievement goals favours a trichotomous model encompassing learning goals, performance-approach, and performance-avoidance goals. Performance-avoidance goals are associated with lower achievement compared to performance-approach and learning goals. The present study investigated the predictions of this model as regards achievement after failure. Low achievement of participants with performance-avoidance goals was expected to be mediated by a high degree of negative self-related thoughts. Before manipulating achievement goals, achievement on verbal analogies was assessed. After manipulating achievement goals for an anagram task, all participants (N = 87) were exposed to failure. Subsequently, achievement on a parallel version of the verbal analogies task was assessed. Participants in the performance-avoidance goals condition showed low achievement after failure, mediated by a high degree of negative self-related thoughts.     

Writing in doctoral programs: examining supervisors’ perspectives

In the current context of doctoral education students are required to develop a range of complex academic literacy skills to accomplish optimal performance in their academic communities of practice. This has led to increase the interest in research on doctoral writing. However, research on how supervisors contribute to doctoral writing has not been extensive. The purpose of this study is to analyze the supervisors’ perspectives on doctoral writing by addressing three questions: a) What role do supervisors attribute to writing in doctoral training? b) What type of writing support do supervisors intend to provide to their students? and c) What are the relations between the role supervisors attribute to writing and the type of writing support supervisors offer to their students? Participants were 61 supervisors in the social sciences and humanities with diverse levels of expertise. Using a cross-sectional interpretative design, we collected qualitative data using an open-ended survey. Categories based on content analysis were established (Miles and Huberman 1994). The results demonstrated that supervisors attributed different roles to doctoral writing, ranging from process- to product-oriented and focusing on 1) producing appropriate academic texts, 2) generating epistemic activity, and 3) promoting communication and socialization. A significant number of supervisors did not attribute any role to writing but acknowledged writing as an important and neglected activity. Three categories of writing support were identified based on the type of activities supervisors reported and their involvement: 1) telling the students what to do, 2) reviewing and editing students’ texts, and 3) collaboratively discussing students’ texts. The results suggest that there are complex relations between the role that supervisors’ attribute to writing and the type of writing support supervisors are able to offer. The relations appear to be mediated by supervisors’ awareness and resources concerning doctoral writing.     

Parental involvement and Chinese elementary students’ achievement goals: the moderating role of parenting style

Past research has revealed direct effects of parental involvement and parenting style on children’s achievement goals separately, however, it is necessary to investigate the interactive mechanism in an integrated way. This study examined the relations between children’s perception of different dimensions of parental involvement (i.e. home-based involvement, school-based involvement and academic socialisation) and their achievement goals, and the moderating role of parenting style (i.e. parental autonomy support vs. psychological control). Participants were 614 Chinese fourth and fifth grades students. Results showed that home-based involvement was positively associated with performance-approach goals, school-based involvement was positively associated with mastery goals, and academic socialisation was positively associated with both mastery and performance-approach goals. Parental psychological control moderated the relationships between performance-approach goals and two types of parental involvement: Academic socialisation and home-based involvement. These findings underscored the need of taking a multidimensional approach in conceptualising parental involvement, and that parental involvement should be expressed in an appropriate context of parenting style.     

The Interactive Effects of Personal Achievement Goals and Performance Feedback in an Undergraduate Science Class

The authors explored whether manipulating feedback influenced cognition, motivation, and achievement in an undergraduate chemistry course. They measured students’ (N = 250) achievement goals, test anxiety, self-efficacy, and metacognitive strategy use at the beginning and end of the semester. After completing the first set of questionnaires, students were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions: (a) control, (b) mastery feedback, (c) performance-approach feedback, and (d) combined mastery/performance-approach feedback. In each condition, students received a raw performance score for each weekly quiz they completed online and, for the treatment conditions, additional feedback reflective of that specific feedback condition. Results provide evidence for the multiple goals perspective (specialized pattern) wherein performance-oriented feedback was beneficial for some outcomes, whereas mastery feedback was beneficial for other outcomes.     

University Supervisors’ Creative Ability and Their Appraisal of Student Teachers’ Classroom Performance: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

Through a content analysis of university supervisors’ written reports of observations of student teachers’ classroom performance, twenty-three categories of statements made by university supervisors about student teachers and their teaching performance were identified. Scores on the Remote Associates Test and the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking were correlated with relative frequency of use of the content categories. Correlations supported the hypotheses that more creative supervisors will be aware of a greater number of factors in a student teacher’s performance, will tend to use broad general factors in assessing a student teacher’s performance rather than specific, detailed ones, and will be more sensitive to factors involving teacher-pupil relationships than will their less creative colleagues.     

Challenging the Universality of Achievement Goal Models: A Comparison of Two Culturally Distinct Countries

ABSTRACT

Achievement goal theory is one of the most widespread motivation models within education research. Strong empirical support exists for the trichotomous model, comprising mastery-approach, performance-approach, and performance-avoidance goals. However, research also indicates problems with model transferability between contexts. In this study, based on questionnaire data from 4201 students, we use confirmatory factor analysis to compare the factor structures of students’ achievement goals in two culturally distinct countries. Factor structures for Grades 5–11 within the two countries were also compared. Results show that the separation between performance-approach and performance-avoidance goals differs between the two countries, and that this difference is consistent over the grades. Hence, results indicate that the model is not freely transferable between countries. The results are discussed in relation to differences in national culture and other proposed explanations such as age, perceived competence, and questionnaire characteristics.     

Achievement goals affect memory encoding

The present study examined how achievement goals affect memory encoding (i.e., relational and item-specific processes). To achieve this, we conducted five experiments using valid behavioral measures including adjusted ratio of clustering (ARC) scores and recognition performance and manipulating the instructions for achievement goals. In each experiment, participants were provided with mastery-approach goals (to develop their own mental ability) or performance-approach goals (to demonstrate their strong memory abilities in relation to others). Participants in the control condition were not given any goals. Our results showed that the ARC scores in the performance-approach goal condition were lower than those in the control condition, whereas there was no significant difference in ARC scores between the mastery-approach goal and the control conditions. In contrast, recognition performance in the control condition did not significantly differ from those in either goal condition. These findings suggest that achievement goals affect the relational processes rather than the item-specific processes and that performance-approach goals discourage the relational processes.     

Academic goals,goal process cognition,and exam performance among college students

We investigated the nature of and linkages between student-generated academic goals, individual differences in self-regulatory thinking (goal process cognition), and exam performance among college students. In Study 1 (N = 365) and in Study 2 (N = 325), we elicited students' self-ascribed most important academic goals for introductory psychology and their goal process cognition toward their most important goal. In addition, in Study 2, we collected data on students' exam scores in introductory psychology and their most important academic goal and goal process cognition for another course. Three types of academic goals were identified: performance (39–55%), mastery (22–39%), and study strategies (20–23%). Students with mastery academic goals had the highest positive arousal whereas students with performance academic goals had the highest negative arousal. Compared to students with performance academic goals, students with mastery academic goals had lower exam scores in introductory psychology and this difference was mediated, in part, by goal process cognition.     

Classroom environment,achievement goals and maths performance: gender differences

This study investigated how gender shapes the relationships between classroom environment, achievement goals and maths performance. Seventh-grade students (N?=?498) from five urban secondary schools filled in achievement goal orientations and classroom environment scales at the beginning of the second semester. Maths performance was assessed as an average grade four months later. The results indicated gender differences in the perception of teacher and peers support, achievement goals and maths performance. The effects of goal orientations, teacher and peers support on achievement were moderated by gender. Furthermore, the interaction between classroom environment and performance goals on maths grades varied with gender. In the boys’ sample, performance-avoidance goals interacted with teacher support, while in the girls’ sample, performance-approach goals interacted with peers support in predicting maths grades. The educational implications of these gender differences are discussed.     

Effects of achievement goals on self-control

Recent research has shown that achievement goals differ in their effects on working memory capacity and the metacognitive judgment of learning as part of the self-regulatory process. To extend this line of inquiry, we examined the effects of achievement goals on self-control, arguably the most critical subset of self-regulation. In three experiments, adolescent and early-adult learners were randomly assigned to mastery goal, performance-approach goal, and performance-avoidance goal conditions and performed self-control tasks in ego-depleting contexts. Students in the mastery goal condition demonstrated significantly better performance than students in the performance-approach goal condition on a task that required attentional control (Experiment 1) and inhibitory control after negative feedback (Experiments 2 and 3). The performance of students in the performance-avoidance goal condition did not differ significantly from that of students in the mastery goal or the performance-approach goal conditions. Planned-comparison ANCOVAs nonetheless revealed that, across all three experiments, the self-control performance of the students in the mastery goal condition was significantly better than that of the students in the two performance goal conditions combined. Mediation analysis further suggested that performance-approach and performance-avoidance goals evoked more task-irrelevant thoughts than mastery goals did, which subsequently interrupted students’ self-control performance (Experiment 3). We discuss the implications of the mechanisms underlying motivational influences on self-control for adolescents, who experience frequent self-regulation failures in learning contexts.