Self-perception and rumination in social anxiety

The present study examined the relationship between perceptions of performance and post-event processing (PEP) following task feedback in individuals with social phobia and matched control participants. Groups of high and low socially anxious participants engaged in a structured 5-min conversation in groups of four people. Following the conversation, false feedback (given in the form of either high scores or moderate scores) was given and self-appraisals of performance, levels of positive and negative mood, and levels of PEP were assessed. Results showed that participants' perceptions of their own performance and levels of positive affect significantly predicted the degree to which they engaged in negative rumination about the task. The moderate score condition was found to be detrimental for socially anxious individuals' self-appraisals and PEP, whereas controls showed no significant difference in self-appraisal and PEP, regardless of feedback. The results are discussed in relation to current cognitive models of social phobia and both treatment implications and directions for future research are explored.     

Intentional vs arousal effects of goal-setting

The effects of goal-setting on performance can be interpreted as operating through intentions or, as a rival hypothesis, due to increased arousal. The distinction is important, since (1) intentional effects on performance would bear a functional relationship to level of task difficulty or complexity different from that of arousal effects and (2) arousal effects on performance would depend on level of individual trait anxiety. This paper reports results of two laboratory experiments attempting to isolate and compare the magnitude of intentional vs arousal effects of goal-settings. One study used a proofreading task in an “incidental learning” paradigm and the other used an anagram task with three levels of difficulty of items; both studies compared dependent behaviors of high- and low-anxiety individuals. Results from both studies offer relatively strong support for the intentions hypothesis and little evidence in favor of an arousal interpretation.     

Self-perception of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.

Self-perception theory predicts that intrinsic and extrinsic motivation do not combine additively but rather interact. To test this predicted interaction, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation were both manipulated as independent variables. The results revealed a significant interaction for task satisfaction and a trend for the interaction on a behavioral measure. These results are discussed in terms of a general approach to the self-perception of motivation.     

Hypermasculinity and academic goal-setting: an exploratory study

The relation between gender-role percepts and academic goal-setting was explored. An inventory examining the aspects of masculinity that would facilitate or inhibit academic goal-setting was developed based on a literature review of how masculinity relates to academic behaviors. A diverse sample of students (120 male, 147 female, 14 not indicating sex) was measured on three aspects of sex and academic goal-setting behavior. Factor analysis confirmed the content validity of masculine factors having facilitative (Mastery Competitiveness) and inhibitory (Antisocial Competitiveness) academic properties. Regression analyses indicated that sex-role orientations (Competitiveness and Hypermasculinity) significantly predicted academic goal-setting behaviors (R2 = .136). Finally, men scored higher than women on the subscales measuring Hypermasculinity and Antisocial or Competitiveness, while there were no sex differences on the Mastery Competitiveness subscale. The implications of these findings and suggestions for research are discussed.     

Understanding emerging adulthood from a goal-setting perspective

The chapter first introduces the concept of emerging adulthood as a period of life that is characterized by instabilities and fluctuations. Then, the role of goal setting and aspirations in individual development during this stage of life is discussed. Following this, seven chapters of the present special issue are introduced, and the ways in which goal processes affect individual trajectories and outcomes are discussed. The chapter concludes with a discussion of future perspectives in the field, such as the need to investigate the relationships between goals and goal adjustment, the need to carry out cross-cultural comparisons, as well as the need to develop intervention based on goal and aspiration framework.     

The role of goal specificity in the goal-setting process

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between goal specificity and task performance, with specificity operationalized as a continuous quantitative variable reflecting the range of performance levels individuals chose as their personal goals. It was hypothesized that, controlling for goal difficulty, specific personal goals would be associated with higher levels of task performance. It was also hypothesized that task strategy would mediate the relationship between goal specificity and performance and that specific goals would be associated with smaller goal-performance discrepancies. The results from a sample of 162 college students working on an eye-hand coordination task supported the hypothesis concerning goal-performance discrepancies. They hypotheses regarding task strategy and the relationship between goal specificity and performance were supported only on the second of two trials.     

Goal commitment and the goal-setting process: conceptual clarification and empirical synthesis

Goals are central to current treatments of work motivation, and goal commitment is a critical construct in understanding the relationship between goals and task performance. Despite this importance, there is confusion about the role of goal commitment and only recently has this key construct received the empirical attention it warrants. This meta-analysis, based on 83 independent samples, updates the goal commitment literature by summarizing the accumulated evidence on the antecedents and consequences of goal commitment. Using this aggregate empirical evidence, the role of goal commitment in the goal-setting process is clarified and key areas for future research are identified.     

幼儿人际领域能力自我知觉特点的研究

运用结构性会谈,了解幼儿对自己的人际关系及增进人际关系的能力和手段的知觉,并采用提名法了解幼儿的实际人际地位作为与其主观知觉相对照的客观指标。结果显示：1)幼儿对自己的人际能方表现出非常积极的知觉倾向;2)幼儿对人际喜恶原因的认识与其采用什么手段增进他人喜欢的反应相对一致,且体现了个体的内在需要和成人的教育影响。     

Self-perception and the career aspirations of mathematically talented female adolescents

The role of self-perceptions of career-relevant abilities in understanding the career aspirations of mathematically talented adolescent females is studied. Female high school sophomores rated themselves on the 12 self-estimates of ability in Holland's Self-Directed Search. Based on her ideal career aspiration, each student was assigned to one of six career-aspiration groups. The results of the multiple discriminant function analysis indicated that nontraditional math career aspirants could be discriminated from the remaining five career-aspiration groups on the basis of seven self-estimates of ability. Further discriminations were less distinct although classification accuracy for all six career groups surpassed that expected by chance alone.     

Self-perception of health and fitness among French and Tunisian men and women

This work examines the effects of sex and culture on physical self-perceptions. The aim was to compare the perception of physical fitness of French and Tunisian men and women. 400 individuals ages 20 to 35 years assessed their own fitness, endurance, strength, flexibility, body composition, and health according to specific category scales by completing a questionnaire. In general, the Tunisian group rated themselves higher than the French group. It appears that perceived physical fitness was related mainly to perceived endurance for both groups. Some disparities were observed between the two nationalities. Analysis showed an interaction between sex and culture (French vs Tunisian). For French men and women and Tunisian men, perceived physical fitness was more associated with perceived endurance, whereas for Tunisian women, perceived physical fitness was more strongly associated with flexibility. These data show that self-perception of physical fitness is a dimension which varies between individuals from different cultures.     

儿童能力自我知觉的影响因素概述

该文在综合大量实证研究成果的基础上,全面概括并细致分析了影响儿童能力自我知觉发展与表现的三方面主要因素,即1)主体因素,包括能力概念、认知发展水平、需要动机及相关经验等;2)教育环境;3)任务性质。     

The influence of performance feedback on goal-setting and mental effort regulation

Goal-setting and mental effort investment may be influenced by the perception of success or failure. The aim of the current study was to investigate the dynamics of motivational intensity model using false performance feedback. Forty participants performed a demanding cognitive task over five successive (5 min) blocks. Participants received performance feedback of either progressive success or progressive failure. A number of psychophysiological variables were used to index mental effort investment and emotion, including: HRV components, blood pressure, skin conductance level, EEG, and facial EMG. Subjective estimates of mood, workload and motivation were also collected alongside performance measures. The success group experienced positive affect and a less pronounced decline in subjective motivation in response to a perception of successful achievement. In contrast, feedback of failure led to adverse changes in mood/motivation, but did not lead to the absolute withdrawal of effort, although trends in the psychophysiological data suggest that participants in the failure group were on the verge of abandoning the task. The implications of these findings are discussed within the context of goal-setting and effort regulation models.