Achievement incentives determine the effects of achievement-motive incongruence on flow experience

Previous research has shown that incongruence between implicit and explicit achievement motives impairs flow experience. We examined this relationship in a more differentiated manner by arguing that achievement-motive incongruence only exerts negative effects when individuals act in situations in which achievement incentives are present and arouse conflict between the two motives. In non-achievement situations, no negative effects of achievement-motive incongruence on flow experience are expected. Study 1 and Study 2 showed that participants with incongruent implicit and explicit achievement motives reported less flow in achievement- as compared to non-achievement-oriented sport situations. In Study 3, we experimentally manipulated achievement and non-achievement situations. Again, motive incongruence impaired the experience of flow in achievement but not in non-achievement situations.     

Sociocultural antecedents of academic motivation and achievement: Role of values and achievement motives in achievement goals and academic performance

With a view to understand the influence of culture on achievement motivation, the study aimed to test the hypothesized mediating role of individual‐oriented and social‐oriented achievement motives in linking value orientations (e.g. achievement, security, conformity, hedonism) to achievement goals (i.e. mastery‐approach, mastery‐avoidance, performance‐approach, and performance‐avoidance goals) as predictors of English and mathematics achievements. These hypothesized relationships were tested in the one‐path analytic model with a sample of Indonesian high‐school students (n = 356; 46% girls, M age = 16.20 years). The findings showed that security and conformity values positively predicted social‐oriented achievement motive; self‐direction values positively predicted individual‐oriented achievement motive; and hedonism values negatively predicted both achievement motive orientations. Both individual‐oriented and social‐oriented achievement motives positively predicted mastery‐approach and performance‐approach goals. Interestingly, social‐oriented achievement motive also positively predicted mastery‐avoidance and performance‐avoidance goals, which in turn, negatively predicted English and mathematic achievement. There was also some evidence for the direct effects of values on performance‐approach goals and achievement. Taken together, the findings evinced the relevance of achievement goal constructs to Indonesian students and the psychometric properties of the Indonesian version of the Achievement Goals Questionnaire for further use in Indonesia. The study concludes that the meanings of academic motivation and achievement should be seen from a sociocultural perspective relevant to the context in which they are being studied.     

Discrepancies Between Implicit and Explicit Motivation and Unhealthy Eating Behavior

ABSTRACT Many people change their eating behavior as a consequence of stress. One source of stress is intrapersonal psychological conflict as caused by discrepancies between implicit and explicit motives. In the present research, we examined whether eating behavior is related to this form of stress. Study 1 (N=53), a quasi‐experimental study in the lab, showed that the interaction between the implicit achievement motive disposition and explicit commitment toward an achievement task significantly predicts the number of snacks consumed in a consecutive taste test. In cross‐sectional Study 2 (N=100), with a sample of middle‐aged women, overall motive discrepancy was significantly related to diverse indices of unsettled eating. Regression analyses revealed interaction effects specifically for power and achievement motivation and not for affiliation. Emotional distress further partially mediated the relationship between the overall motive discrepancy and eating behavior.     

Study strategies and beliefs about learning as a function of academic achievement and achievement goals

Prior research by Hartwig and Dunlosky [(2012). Study strategies of college students: Are self-testing and scheduling related to achievement? Psychonomic Bulletin &; Review, 19(1), 126–134] has demonstrated that beliefs about learning and study strategies endorsed by students are related to academic achievement: higher performing students tend to choose more effective study strategies and are more aware of the benefits of self-testing. We examined whether students’ achievement goals, independent of academic achievement, predicted beliefs about learning and endorsement of study strategies. We administered Hartwig and Dunlosky’s survey, along with the Achievement Goals Questionnaire [Elliot, A. J., &; McGregor, H. A. (2001). A 2 × 2 achievement goal framework. Journal of Personality &; Social Psychology, 80, 501–519] to a large undergraduate biology course. Similar to results by Hartwig and Dunlosky, we found that high-performing students (relative to low-performing students) were more likely to endorse self-testing, less likely to cram, and more likely to plan a study schedule ahead of time. Independent of achievement, however, achievement goals were stronger predictors of certain study behaviours. In particular, avoidance goals (e.g., fear of failure) coincided with increased use of cramming and the tendency to be driven by impending deadlines. Results suggest that individual differences in student achievement, as well as the underlying reasons for achievement, are important predictors of students’ approaches to studying.     

Goal complexes: Integrating achievement goals as standards and self-attributed motives as reasons underlying goal pursuit

Goal complexes, which are formed by pairing standards of competence strivings with their underlying reasons, are essential to an understanding of achievement goal regulation. This paper examines goal complexes that cross other-approach and other-avoidance goals with the approach-avoidance dimensions of Big Three motives as underlying reasons. 220 undergraduates participated in Study 1 which developed and validated the Self-Attributed Motive Scale to measure hope of success, fear of failure, hope of affiliation, fear of rejection, hope of power, and fear of loss of power. Additionally, 235 undergraduates participated in Study 2 where goal complexes were created by crossing the motive items developed in Study 1 with other-approach and other-avoidance goals. The predictive utility of the resultant goal complexes was examined in relation to positive well-being (positive learning-related emotions and engagement), negative well-being (negative learning-related emotions and burnout), and academic buoyancy. The contributions of the studies to the self-attributed motive and goal complex literatures are discussed.

     

Do Some People Need Autonomy More Than Others? Implicit Dispositions Toward Autonomy Moderate the Effects of Felt Autonomy on Well‐Being

The present studies examined whether implicit or explicit autonomy dispositions moderate the relationship between felt autonomy and well‐being. Study 1 (N = 187 undergraduate students) presents an initial test of the moderator hypothesis by predicting flow experience from the interaction of autonomy need satisfaction and autonomy dispositions. Study 2 (N = 127 physically inactive persons) used vignettes involving an autonomy (un)supportive coach to test a moderated mediation model in which perceived coach autonomy support leads to well‐being through basic need satisfaction. Again, the effects of need satisfaction on well‐being were hypothesized to be moderated by an implicit autonomy disposition. Study 1 showed that individuals with a strong implicit autonomy (but not power or achievement) motive disposition derived more flow experience from felt autonomy than individuals with a weak implicit autonomy disposition. Study 2 revealed that perceived autonomy support from sports coaches, which we experimentally induced with a vignette method, leads to autonomy satisfaction, leading in turn to positive effects on well‐being. This indirect effect held at high and average but not low implicit autonomy disposition. The results indicate that the degree to which people benefit from autonomy need satisfaction depends on their implicit disposition toward autonomy.     

Impression management and achievement motivation: Investigating substantive links

In this research, we investigate impression management (IM) as a substantive personality variable by linking it to differentiated achievement motivation constructs, namely achievement motives (workmastery, competitiveness, fear of failure) and achievement goals (mastery‐approach, mastery‐avoidance, performance‐approach, performance‐avoidance). Study 1 revealed that IM was a positive predictor of workmastery and a negative predictor of competitiveness (with and without self‐deceptive enhancement (SDE) controlled). Studies 2a and 2b revealed that IM was a positive predictor of mastery‐approach goals and mastery‐avoidance goals (without and, in Study 2b, with SDE controlled). These findings highlight the value of conceptualising and utilising IM as a personality variable in its own right and shed light on the nature of the achievement motive and achievement goal constructs.     

Personal values and academic achievement

Using data from two studies, we investigate the role of basic values in predicting academic achievement. We focus on self-direction and conformity, two-value domains that have been neglected or understudied in earlier research on academic success. In line with the refined value theory, we split self-direction into independence of thought and of action, and conformity into compliance with rules and formal obligations (Rules), and avoidance of upsetting others (Interpersonal). We obtained grades as measures of academic achievement in two samples of Italian high-school students. In Study 1 (n = 234), we measured values with the PVQ-40 and academic motivation. In Study 2 (n = 215), we measured values with the PVQ-RR and both attendance rates and classroom conduct. Results: Both self-direction–thought and conformity–rules correlated with higher grades. These two values related to grades through a different path. Self-direction thought promoted grades through autonomous forms of academic motivation. Conformity rules promoted grades through better teachers’ evaluations of students’ classroom behaviour. Self-direction–action and conformity–interpersonal were unrelated to grades. Regarding the other values, hedonism and stimulation related negatively to grades. Theoretical and practical implications of results are discussed.     

Striving for unwanted goals: stress-dependent discrepancies between explicit and implicit achievement motives reduce subjective well-being and increase psychosomatic symptoms

Three studies investigated the relevance of affect regulation, stressful life events, and congruence between explicit achievement orientation and implicit achievement motive for subjective well-being and symptom formation. According to personality systems interactions (PSI) theory, stressful life events were expected to reduce motive congruence when the ability to self-regulate affect was impaired (i.e., state orientation). Consistent with expectations, the State Orientation x Stress interaction predicted incongruence in healthy participants (Studies 1 and 3) and in patients (Study 2). Furthermore, incongruence partially mediated the direct State Orientation x Stress effect on subjective well-being (Studies 1 and 3) and the course of psychosomatic complaints over 3 months (Study 2). In Study 3, the experimental induction of threat reduced motive congruence in state-oriented participants compared with an acceptance condition. Findings underscore the importance of assessing motive congruence as a "hidden stressor" and validate a new operant multi-motive test.     

Racial and ethnic differences in motivation for educational achievement in the United States

Data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study [National Educational Longitudinal Study, (1994). National Educational Longitudinal Study: second follow-up (Report No.94-374). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education] show that on standardised scores in mathematics, reading and science, the highest mean scores are obtained by Asians and whites and lower scores are obtained by Hispanics and blacks. The same differences are present for the number of hours per week devoted to homework. It is suggested that motivational differences expressed in the amount of homework undertaken contribute to the group differences in educational achievement. Statistically significant correlations between the amount of homework and educational achievement support this hypothesis. There are also group differences in intelligence parallel to those in educational achievement, suggesting both intelligence and motivation are involved in racial and ethnic differences in educational achievement.     

Achievement motive and sport participation

Three studies investigated the relationship between the achievement motive and sport participation. It was expected that both the implicit and the explicit achievement motives are positively associated with how frequently people engage in sport activities. The implicit achievement motive was assessed with indirect motive measures; the explicit achievement motive was either inferred from participants’ personal goals or measured with self-reports. Two hundred five athletes participated including college students enrolled in leisure sport programs offered at their university (Study 1), amateur athletes registered in sports clubs (Study 2), and elite tennis athletes (Study 3). The implicit achievement motive consistently predicted sport participation in all three studies. In contrast, the explicit achievement motive was uncorrelated with sport participation. The interaction between the two motives did not yield an effect on sport participation. The results indicate that the implicit, unconscious need to achieve facilitates regular engagement in sport activities, but the explicit, conscious orientation toward achievement does not. The enrichment of sports environments with incentives for the implicit achievement motive may thus attract more people to participate in sport activities.     

How achievement motive enactment shapes daily flow experience and work engagement: The interplay of personality systems

Motivation and Emotion - In the present study, we examined how different forms of achievement motive interact to predict daily flow experience and work engagement. In particular, we conducted two...     

School achievement strongly predicts midlife IQ

The relationship between measures of IQ and standardized school achievement tests is well established at around r ≈ 0.5 when the two are measured in close proximity. The current paper examined the stability of this correlation when comparing elementary school achievement (grades 3–8) and midlife IQ. Iowa Adoption Study participants who had standardized school achievement measures (ITBS) on file were given the WAIS-III. Mean age at IQ testing was 44.01 years (SD 6.65 years). The correlation between school achievement and WAIS-III FSIQ was r = 0.64, suggesting substantial life span stability in this relationship. Furthermore, elementary school achievement was substantially correlated with occupational status and household income at midlife. These findings suggest that standardized school achievement data is a useful measure of premorbid IQ.     

Motives and Values to Achieve: Different Constructs With Different Effects

ABSTRACT Motives to achieve and values associated with achievement were conceptualized as distinct and independent personality constructs, one nonconscious, the other conscious, each predictive of a different type of achievement-related behavior It was hypothesized that (a) motive and value measures would be uncorrelated, (b) motives would predict “operant” or spontaneous behaviors while values would predict “respondent” or stimulus-driven behaviors, and (c) motives and values would interact such that subjects with high values relating to achievement would perform better than those with low values, but only when their motives were also high Hypotheses (a) and (b) were strongly supported m two studies, and Hypothesis (c) was supported in Study 2 In that study, the motive for achievement was a particularly strong predictor of operant math performance among those subjects who valued achievement as opposed to affiliation The findings suggest that nonconscious (motive) and conscious (value) measures are both useful in different cases–the former for predicting “real” (doing) activity, the latter for predicting self-report (thinking) responses Questions concerning how motives and values might combine to predict different kinds of behavior are addressed     

An adjusted measure of achievement motivation for males and females and effects of future orientation on level of performance

An adjusted measure of achievement motivation was devised with the combined use of the Mehrabian Achievement Scale (Educational and Psychological Measurement, 1968, 28, 493–502) and the Mandler and Sarason (Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 1952, 47, 166–173) Test Anxiety Questionnaire. Contingent instructions, in which Ss were told success on a test was necessary to qualify for opportunities to succeed on subsequent tests, were contrasted to performance in equivalent noncontingent situations and relative to adjusted achievement motivation for both male and female subjects. In noncontingent situations Ss were told performance on any one test did not affect their opportunity to take subsequent tests. Support was obtained for the use of the above mentioned scales as a predictor of performance for both sexes but not for the Mehrabian by itself. Both male and female Ss high in achievement motivation consistently scored significantly higher than Ss low in achievement motivation in all conditions. The expected interactions between treatments and motive groups were not found but t tests between extreme motive groups within conditions revealed significant differences in the expected directions. These results do not provide statistically reliable support to the elaborated theory of achievement motivation.     

Effects of achievement goals on self-regulation of eating attitudes among elite female athletes: An experimental study

Introduction

The influence of achievement goals on eating attitudes has mainly been examined through correlational studies (e.g., [De Bruin et?al., 2009] and [Duda and Kim, 1997]), and none of the studies to date has focused on the self-regulation of eating attitudes in athletes. The present study experimentally tested the effects of achievement goals on both self-reported (Study 1) and behavioral indices (Study 2) of the self-regulation of eating attitudes in female figure skaters.

Method

Elite female figure skaters (Study 1: n = 44; Study 2: n = 54) were randomly assigned to one of four conditions designed to induce specific goal involvement (performance-approach, mastery-approach, performance-avoidance, and mastery-avoidance) or a control condition (no goal induction). The participants in Study 1 completed the Self-Regulation of Eating Attitudes in Sport Scale (SREASS, Scoffier, Corrion, Paquet, & Arripe-Longueville, 2010) and those in Study 2 completed a virtual behavioral measure of self-regulation of eating attitudes (VSSR; Scoffier, 2009).

Results

Variance analyses indicated that induced mastery-approach goals and performance-avoidance goals resulted in higher scores for self-regulation of eating attitudes than induced performance-approach goals and mastery-avoidance goals. The relationships were the same at both self-reported and behavioral levels.

Discussion

This experimental study confirms the findings of previous correlational works and shows that achievement goals contribute to the causal processes of self-regulation of eating attitudes. These findings might help to prevent eating disorders in female athletes by providing guidance for the development of adapted motivational strategies.     

Assessing achievement, affiliation, and power motives all at once: the Multi-Motive Grid (MMG)

In this article, we introduce the Multi-Motive Grid (MMG), a new diagnostic tool to measure motives with respect to their hope and fear components. The MMG combines features of the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) with features of self-report questionnaires. Similar to the TAT, a set of 14 pictures representing a balanced set of achievement-arousing, affiliation-arousing, and power-arousing situations is presented together with a set of statements representing important motivational states. Six motive scores can be calculated: hope of success (HS) and fear of failure (FF) for the achievement motive, hope of affiliation (HA) and fear of rejection (FR) for the affiliation motive, and hope of power (HP) and fear of power (FP) for the power motive. Results of factor analyses suggest a 3-factor solution, with a general fear factor (FF, FR, FP), a factor combining the hope components of achievement and power (HS and HP), and a third factor representing HA, but the 6 a priori factors also reflect a sound structural model. Reliability data show that the internal consistency and retest reliability of the MMG scales satisfy traditional standards. External validity of the MMG has been established in all 3 motive domains. Three separate studies document that (a) individuals high in resultant achievement motivation perform better and report more flow experience, (b) individuals high in resultant power motivation profit more from a leadership training program, and (c) individuals high in resultant affiliation motivation recollect more highly memorable affiliative themes.     

The two roads from passion to sport performance and psychological well-being: The mediating role of need satisfaction,deliberate practice,and achievement goals

ObjectivesResearch on passion has demonstrated the existence of two roads toward sports performance through the effects of deliberate practice (Vallerand et al., 2007, 2008). The first emanates from harmonious passion (HP) and contributes to both performance and psychological well-being. The second stems from obsessive passion (OP), and performance comes at the cost of well-being. The present research proposes that need satisfaction (Deci & Ryan, 2000) mediates the relation of HP, but not OP, with both outcomes. In Study 2, achievement goals were added to the model. Mastery goals were expected to mediate the positive relation between HP and outcomes, whereas performance-avoidance goals would be associated with OP and, thus be detrimental to athletes.DesignTwo studies using correlational (Study 1) and longitudinal (Study 2) designs.MethodStudy 1 (N = 172) was conducted with soccer players. Study 2 was conducted with hockey players (N = 598). Athletes completed measures of passion, need satisfaction, life satisfaction, deliberate practice, and achievement goals (Study 2 only). Coaches assessed performance in Study 1. Study 2 used games played in competitive leagues over 15 years to measure performance.ResultsAnalyses using SEM provided support for the mediating role of need satisfaction (Study 1 and 2) and achievement goals (Study 2) in the relation of HP with outcomes. In contrast, deliberate practice (Study 1 and 2) meditated the relation between OP and performance.ConclusionsThis research supported the mediating role of need satisfaction in the ‘two roads to performance” (Vallerand et al., 2007, 2008).     

Motivated but not engaged: The implicit achievement motive requires difficult or unclear task difficulty conditions to exert an impact on effort

Integrating the achievement motive literature and motivational intensity theory, we expected the implicit achievement motive (nAch) to directly determine effort mobilization when task difficulty is unclear. However, nAch should interact with task difficulty in determining effort mobilization when task difficulty is clear. Participants worked on an easy versus difficult memory task (Study 1) or a clear versus unclear arithmetic task (Study 2). We used the Picture-Story-Exercise to assess nAch and pre-ejection period (PEP) to operationalize effort. As predicted, PEP reactivity was strong in the difficult-high-nAch condition and in the unclear-high-nAch condition but low in the other three conditions. Supporting motivational intensity theory, our results showed that nAch requires difficult or unclear task conditions to exert a noticeable impact on effort.