Choosing letter grade evaluations: The interaction of students’ achievement goals and self-efficacy

We examined how achievement (learning and performance) goals and academic self-efficacy predicted three achievement-related outcomes in a college sample. Self-efficacy tended to moderate the effects of (learning and performance) goals on number of courses taken for a letter grade as well as achievement in letter graded and pass/fail courses. Thus, learning goals better predicted choosing letter grades when self-efficacy was high than when it was low. In contrast, performance goals better predicted choosing letter grades when self-efficacy was low than when it was high. Through their prediction of the choice to receive letter grades these interactions predicted achievement in pass/fail courses. In addition, achievement goals and self-efficacy directly predicted achievement in letter graded courses.     

Aversive conditioning of naturally produced reward and nonreward odors in rats

Past experiments have reported that rats encountering reward (R) or nonreward (N) goal events emit odors that can be utilized as discriminative stimuli for instrumental behavior by conspecifics. In the present study, thirsty male rats were aversively conditioned by ingestional toxicosis to R and N odors, and their suppression of water consumption in the presence of these odors was measured. Thirsty trained donors were placed into chambers containing R or N goal events to generate, respectively, the R or N odors. Test animals were given eight differential conditioning trials (four with one odor as CS+; four with the other as CS?), involving placement into an odorcontaining chamber with water available, followed by a LiCl injection on CS+ trials. Animals tested in their CS+ odor consumed significantly less water than did CS? and control subjects. Both R and N odors were conditioned by aversive means and readily discriminable from each other. This represents the first laboratory demonstration of aversive conditioning of such naturally produced odors, and it suggests that aversive conditioning may be useful in the study of odorous emissions generally. Implications for innate meanings of R and N odors are discussed.     

From the field of play to the laboratory: Recreating the demands of competition with augmented reality simulated sport

ABSTRACT

Biomechanical analysis has typically been confined to a laboratory setting. While attempts have been made to take laboratory testing into the field, this study was designed to assess whether augmented reality (AR) could be used to bring the field into the laboratory. This study aimed to measure knee load in volleyball players through a jump task incorporating AR while maintaining the perception-action couplings by replicating the visual features of a volleyball court. Twelve male volleyball athletes completed four tasks: drop landing, hop jump, spike jump, and spike jump while wearing AR smart glasses. Biomechanical variables included patellar tendon force, knee moment and kinematics of the ankle, knee, hip, pelvis and thorax. The drop landing showed differences in patellar tendon force and knee moment when compared to the other conditions. The hop jump did not present differences in kinetics when compared to the spike conditions, instead of displaying the greatest kinematic differences. As a measure of patellar tendon loading the AR condition showed a close approximation to the spike jump, with no differences present when comparing landing forces and mechanics. Thus, AR may be used in a clinical assessment to better replicate information from the competitive environment.     

The Effects of Ability Grouping upon Achievement in Eleventh Grade American History

The basic assumption which nurtures the controversial practice of homogeneous ability grouping is that grouping students by some measure of ability reduces the range of learning differences, when compared with heterogeneous (random) grouping, and this narrowing of range aids the teaching and learning process. To test this assumption two cooperating high schools, one homogenously grouped and the other heterogeneously grouped, provided 120 matched pairs of Ss. The basic assumption was not upheld; heterogeneous students showed significantly greater achievement gain in 11th grade American history (q > .05), at all four levels of ability.     

Wrestling

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there is a significant difference in the co‐efficient of friction (Fc) between old versus new wrestling shoes and mats and to investigate the effect of perspiration. Fc was measured by dragging a weighted shoe over a wrestling mat surface and measuring the vertical and horizontal forces produced. Three different shoe conditions were assessed over two mat types for both wet and dry conditions for a total of 12 conditions. To simulate the wet condition, saline solution was smeared over the surface of the mat. There was a significant effect of shoe, mat, and wet/dry conditions. In addition, significant interactions of shoe by mat, shoe by dry/wet, and mat by dry/wet were observed. Overall, Fc was 36% higher for the new wrestling mat compared to the old wrestling mat. Application of the saline solution reduced Fc by 14% compared to the dry condition. Comparison of the mean Fc for all three shoe types revealed the Fc for the older design shoe was 23% to 28% lower than the brand new shoe and the worn newer design, respectively. A high Fc, such as in the new mat/new shoe combination, has the potential to increase the risk of knee and ankle injuries by fixing the foot more securely to the ground.     

Prolonged Exercise and Changes in Percent Fat Determinations by Hydrostatic Weighing and Scintillation Counting

Abstract

The superiority of motor set reaction time over sensory set reaction time has been accepted since the 1880s. Recently, however, there has been work favoring the sensory set. This study attempted to reconcile the varied findings. Woodworth had suggested that set and stimulus intensity interact. To test that presumed interaction and related ideas, the study proposed to determine not only the effect of motor set and sensory set on reaction time (RT) and muscle electrical activity (MEA), but also, the relationship between motor set and sensory set RT and motor set and sensory set MEA. Twenty-four subjects were tested in sessions that included the placement of electrodes on the motor end point of the extensor digitorum muscle, set instructions, practice, and data collection. Data collection consisted of recording of RT and MEA for 96 trials, 12 recordings at each of four levels of auditory stimulus intensity for each of the two sets. An ANOVA for repeated measures produced a significant interaction between set and intensity for RT; thus the Woodworth prediction was upheld. The results seem best explained in terms of signal detection theory and the attention demands of movement.