Differential impact of preschool models on development and early learning of inner-city children: a three-cohort study

Three different preschool models operating in an urban school district were identified through cluster analysis of teacher responses to the Pre-K Survey of Beliefs and Practices. The language, self-help, social, motor, and adaptive development, along with mastery of basic skills, of 721 4-year-olds randomly selected from these models were compared. Children in the child-initiated model demonstrated greater mastery of basic skills than did children in programs in which academics were emphasized and skills were taught. Children in the combination model did significantly poorer on all measures except self-help and development of social coping skills compared with children in either the child-initiated or academically directed models. Girls outperformed boys in all areas except gross motor development and play and leisure skills. Implications for educational policymakers are discussed.     

5岁半幼儿掌控动机、气质及入学准备能力的关系探析

通过对51名5.5岁幼儿掌控动机的问卷评估、入学准备能力的情境测验以及气质的教师评定,考察了幼儿多领域掌控动机与入学准备各领域能力之间的关系及气质在两者关系中的调节作用。结果发现,对于专注倾向(高专注性-低活动性和情绪性)幼儿,物体掌控动机正向预测了精细动作技能和学习方式,大动作掌控动机正向预测了感觉运动技能;对于反应倾向(高反应性-低抑制性)幼儿,同伴社会掌控动机正向预测了精细动作技能;而对于抑制倾向(低反应性-高抑制性)幼儿,同伴社会掌控动机则负向预测了精细动作技能、感觉运动技能和学习方式。     

The trichotomous achievement goal model and intrinsic motivation: a sequential mediational analysis

This experiment was designed to extend the research by Elliot and Harackiewicz (1996) on the trichotomous achievement goal model in several important ways and to more thoroughly document the processes through which the goals in the trichotomous model influence intrinsic motivation. Results indicated that performance-avoidance goals undermined intrinsic motivation relative to performance-approach and mastery goals; the latter goals evidenced the same intrinsic motivation. These results were obtained using highly evaluative performance goal manipulations, with early adolescent participants, and for a motor task relevant to physical ability. Sequential mediational analyses revealed that competence valuation, state anxiety, and task absorption processes accounted for the observed effects. Perceived competence served neither mediating nor moderating roles.     

The influence of mastery‐avoidance goals on performance improvement

Two experiments focused on examining the influence of mastery‐avoidance goals on performance improvement, and more specifically, on mastery‐avoidance goals grounded in an intrapersonal standard. That is, herein, mastery‐avoidance goals entail striving to avoid doing worse than one has done before. Both experiments demonstrated that in a multiple‐trial context, mastery‐avoidance goals are deleterious for performance improvement relative to mastery‐approach, performance‐approach, and performance‐avoidance goals, and a no goal baseline. The findings were shown to be independent of participants' perceptions of goal difficulty, and were consistent not only across methodology but also across type of participant (undergraduates versus individuals in the workforce), and type and length of achievement task (a verbal skills task versus an ecologically valid managerial competencies exercise). Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

In the driving seat: psychosocial benefits from private motor vehicle transport compared to public transport

The aim of current transport policy in the UK and many other developed countries is to reduce reliance on private motor vehicle transport in order to promote public health and reduce environmental degradation. Despite the emphasis in these policies on the unhealthiness of private motor car use, epidemiological studies have consistently shown that car access is associated with longevity and better health. We examine this paradox using a postal survey of adults in the West of Scotland (n=2043, m=896, f=1147) to investigate the psychosocial benefits associated with private and public motor vehicle transport. Those with access to a car appear to gain more psychosocial benefits (mastery, self esteem, and feelings of autonomy, protection, and prestige) than public transport users from their habitual mode of transport. Being a car driver conferred more benefits than being a passenger, except for self esteem which was only associated with driving among men. Self-esteem was also associated with type of car among men but not women. This study suggests that if people are to be encouraged to reduce private motor vehicle use, policies need to take into account some of the psychosocial benefits people might derive from such use.     

The Impact of Need for Achievement Components on Goal Commitment and Performance

A laboratory study examined the effects of components of need for achievement on goal commitment and performance. It was predicted that need for mastery and need for work are related to goal commitment. It was also predicted that need for mastery and need for work are more highly related to goal commitment than competitiveness, given the characteristics of the task environment. Finally, goal commitment was expected to mediate the effects of need for mastery and need for work on performance. Fifty-four undergraduate students performed nine trials of a complex task and completed a need for achievement scale composed of four subscales. Support was obtained for the first two predictions, and evidence of a sequential model partially supported the third prediction.     

The effects of early socialization experiences on content mastery and outcomes: A mediational approach

This field study examined how early socialization experiences affect new employee mastery of socialization content and socialization outcomes. New employees reported the realism of their preentry knowledge and the helpfulness of socialization agents. A follow-up survey assessed mastery of socialization content along with role clarity, job satisfaction, and affective organizational commitment. The results, based on 194 new employees of a large educational institution and using structural equation modeling, were highly supportive of the hypotheses. Realism of preentry knowledge and agent helpfulness, the two indicators of early socialization experiences, were associated with greater role clarity, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment. In addition, the mastery of specific socialization content dimensions, the often-assumed intervening processes, was explicitly shown to mediate those relationships. The specific patterns of mediation observed further advance our understanding of the relationships between new employee mastery of socialization content and the determinants and consequences of that mastery.     

Explaining the gender difference in depressive symptoms

It was hypothesized that women are more vulnerable to depressive symptoms than men because they are more likely to experience chronic negative circumstances (or strain), to have a low sense of mastery, and to engage in ruminative coping. The hypotheses were tested in a 2-wave study of approximately 1,100 community-based adults who were 25 to 75 years old. Chronic strain, low mastery, and rumination were each more common in women than in men and mediated the gender difference in depressive symptoms. Rumination amplified the effects of mastery and, to some extent, chronic strain on depressive symptoms. In addition, chronic strain and rumination had reciprocal effects on each other over time, and low mastery also contributed to more rumination. Finally, depressive symptoms contributed to more rumination and less mastery over time.     

Achievement goals and improvement following failure: moderating roles of self-compassion and contingency of self-worth

We examined whether mastery goals promote greater score improvement on a cognitive test than performance goals and whether self-compassion and contingency of self-worth moderated the effect. Participants received either mastery or performance goals manipulation, failed on a difficult test, and took the test again after receiving the correct answers. Those with mastery goals showed a greater score improvement than those with performance goals, although post-failure state self-esteem did not differ between the two conditions. Moreover, the goals had a greater effect among (a) those with low rather than high self-compassion and (b) those with high rather than low competition contingency of self-worth. The findings suggest that by framing the task as a challenge rather than a threat, mastery goals encourage people to learn from failure more so than performance goals, especially when under high ego-threat.     

A component analysis of behavioral skills training with volunteers teaching motor skills to individuals with developmental disabilities

This study included a component analysis of behavioral skills training (BST) for teaching volunteers how to use this training method to support individuals with developmental disabilities in a physical education program. In an alternating treatment design embedded within a multiple baseline design across five participants, the number of BST steps that volunteers completed correctly while teaching four motor skills was measured. In the initial training phase, each motor skill was taught to volunteers using a specific component of BST (i.e., instructions, modeling, rehearsal, or feedback). In subsequent training phases, BST components were combined to teach the volunteers the motor skills for which they did not reach a predetermined mastery criterion (a score of four correct responses across two consecutive trials). Maintenance was assessed. Results indicated that individual components of BST alone were sufficient for volunteers to meet the mastery criterion; however, the full BST framework was necessary for skill maintenance. Strengths, limitations, and recommendations for future research are discussed.     

Achievement goals, task performance, and interest: why perceived goal difficulty matters

In field studies, mastery goals, which focus on developing skill, often predict task interest but not actual performance. Performance-approach goals, which focus on outperforming others, instead often predict strong performance but not interest. Two experiments tested the hypothesis that these distinct goal effects trace to goal difficulty perceptions. In each study, participants assigned to a performance-approach goal perceived their goal to be harder, and therefore felt more performance pressure, than those assigned to a mastery goal. Among participants low in dispositional achievement orientation, this experience translated into lower task interest when pursuing the performance-approach goal. However, participants in both studies also performed the activity better when pursuing this goal instead of a standard mastery goal, although this was not mediated by self-reported goal difficulty perceptions. Finally, further demonstrating the role of goal difficulty, a mastery goal manipulated to appear more difficult than a standard mastery goal produced effects matching the performance-approach goal.     

The stability of mastery motivation and its relationship with home environment in infants and toddlers

Mastery motivation (intrinsic drives to explore and master one's environment) is a key developmental element. The aims of this study were to investigate (1) the stability of mastery motivation between 2 and 3 years of age for two genders; and (2) the associations between early home environment and toddlers’ mastery motivation in children with typical development.

Methods

Data of 102 children developing typically from a birth cohort study at Northern Taiwan were analyzed in two parts: (1) stability part: mastery motivation of children were measured at 2 and 3 years of age; (2) environment part: child-parent dyads were assessed from birth, 4 months, 6 months, and 2-3 years of age. Outcomes variables were measured at ages 2 and 3 years by the Dimension of Mastery Questionnaire-17th version. Main predictive variables were measured by Home Observation for Measuring Environment Inventory (HOME) to collect data of the qualities of home environment at 6 months and 2 years; by the Revised Infant Temperament Questionnaire to obtain 4-month activity levels; and by the Comprehensive Developmental Inventory for Infants and Toddlers to obtain 2-year developmental quotient (DQ).

Results

There was moderate stability of mastery motivation from 2 to 3 years, and girls’ stability was higher than boys’. 6-Month HOME rather than 2-year HOME measures were positively and significantly correlated with instrumental mastery motivation even when controlling for gender, activity level, and DQ.

Conclusion

Mastery motivation had moderate stability during the toddler period. The quality of home environment in infancy appeared to have a significant impact on toddler's mastery motivation. To promote mastery motivation, caregivers should provide better quality of home environment for infants/toddlers during the very early years.     

Application of Sequential Interval Estimation to Adaptive Mastery Testing

In this paper, we apply sequential one-sided confidence interval estimation procedures with β-protection to adaptive mastery testing. The procedures of fixed-width and fixed proportional accuracy confidence interval estimation can be viewed as extensions of one-sided confidence interval procedures. It can be shown that the adaptive mastery testing procedure based on a one-sided confidence interval with β-protection is more efficient in terms of test length than a testing procedure based on a two-sided/fixed-width confidence interval. Some simulation studies applying the one-sided confidence interval procedure and its extensions mentioned above to adaptive mastery testing are conducted. For the purpose of comparison, we also have a numerical study of adaptive mastery testing based on Wald's sequential probability ratio test. The comparison of their performances is based on the correct classification probability, averages of test length, as well as the width of the “indifference regions.” From these empirical results, we found that applying the one-sided confidence interval procedure to adaptive mastery testing is very promising.     

掌握程度和社会性线索对元认知监控的影响

元认知监控中信心判断和再认答案的调整不仅受到个体学习后掌握程度的影响,还会受到社会性线索的影响。本研究通过两个实验,考察了掌握程度和社会性线索对元认知监测和控制的影响。研究发现：第一,掌握程度和社会性线索独立影响元认知监测。第二,掌握程度和社会性线索显著影响元认知控制,并且掌握程度还起到了调节作用。具体来说,掌握程度高时,个体倾向于坚持自己的最初选择,较少受到社会性线索的影响;掌握程度越低,社会性线索的影响越大,个体倾向于使自己的选择与社会性信息保持一致。最后,研究总结了学习任务中掌握程度和社会性线索对元认知监控的影响机制,并提出了未来的研究思路。     

Money Doesn't Talk, It Swears: How Economic Stress and Resistance Resources Impact Inner-City Women's Depressive Mood

We examined the differential impact of chronic versus acute economic stress on depressive mood among a sample of 1241 low-income, single, European and African American women. Based on Hobfoll's (1988, 1989) conservation of resources (COR) theory, we predicted that acute resource loss would be more distressing than chronic economic lack. That is, although chronically impoverished conditions are stressful, the attendant resource losses created will be more distressing. We further predicted that mastery and social support would be more beneficial in offsetting the negative consequences of acute resource loss than the negative consequences of chronic economic lack, because acute loss creates identifiable demands that resources may address. Hence, we hypothesized that mastery and social support would show stress buffering effects only for material loss, not chronic lack. The findings generally supported the hypotheses, but mastery buffered only European American women's resource loss and social support buffered only African American women's resource loss. The findings are discussed in light of implications for prevention within theoretical and cultural contexts.     

儿童早期自尊的行为观察研究

以自尊情感模型为理论起点,采用行为事件取样法,对58名1.5-4岁婴幼儿的掌控感和归属感事件进行系统观察。结果表明：早期掌控感源于以动作为基础的掌控行为,包括掌控自我、掌控外物和掌控他人。而归属感一方面源于儿童以不同的行为方式寻求归属,即主动归属感;另一方面源于不同情境下成人的行为使儿童获得了归属,即被动归属感。掌控感和归属感事件均随年龄增长而逐渐减少,反映了个体自尊的早期形态。     

How Competent are Adolescent Bullying Perpetrators and Victims in Mastering Normative Developmental Tasks in Early Adulthood?

A substantive body of literature suggests that those involved in bullying as perpetrators but particularly victims are at greater risk for psychological maladjustment. In comparison, relatively little is known about associations between bullying-victimization and perpetration and mastery of early adult tasks in domains including romantic relationships, education, work, financial competence, and conduct. These links were tested using data from two Dutch cohorts (RADAR-young, n = 497, 43% girls; TRAILS, n = 2230, 51% girls) who reported on victimization and perpetration at age 11 (TRAILS) and 13 (RADAR-young) and mastery of developmental tasks in early adulthood. Unadjusted regression analyses suggested for both cohorts that perpetrators were less likely to abide the law and more likely to smoke. Victims in TRAILS were less competent in the domains of education, work, and finances, and more likely to smoke in RADAR-young. Adjusting for childhood demographics and child intelligence and including psychopathology in the prediction models substantially reduced the strength of associations between bullying involvement and later outcomes in both cohorts; although association were retained between victimization and welfare dependence and perpetration and crime involvement in TRAILS. Parental support did not buffer associations in either sample and neither were gender differences detected. Overall, findings underline that negative outcomes of bullying are not only a concern for victims but also for their perpetrators although involvement in bullying is not a stable predictor of mastery of developmental tasks when childhood demographics, child intelligence, and psychopathology are taken into account.     

Estimates of lay views about reversal multiple intelligences for self and others: Sex and cross‐cultural comparisons

This study focuses on lay conceptions of intelligence. It examined sex and cross‐cultural similarities and differences in estimated intelligences and beliefs about intelligence in two countries, Angola and East Timor, within the reversal theory framework. A total of 209 Angolan (109 women and 100 men) and 183 Timorese (89 women and 94 men) students were participated in this study. Participants completed a questionnaire in order to estimate their parents', partners' and own overall intelligence and the 8 reversal multiple intelligences (telic, paratelic, conformist, negativistic, autic mastery, autic sympathy, alloic mastery and alloic sympathy intelligence). Respondents also rated 6 questions about intelligence. Men rated their overall, conformist and autic mastery higher than women. Angolans rated their overall, telic, paratelic, conformist, negativistic, autic mastery, autic sympathy, alloic mastery and alloic sympathy intelligence higher than Timorese. In both countries, fathers have been perceived as more intelligent than mothers, and telic intelligence emerged as a significant predictor of overall intelligence. Principal component analysis of the 8 reversal multiple intelligences yielded one factor. Angolan participants revealed more IQ test experience than Timorese participants. Most of respondents in both countries did not believe in sex differences in intelligence. These findings are discussed by means of cross‐cultural literature.     

Does syntax play a role in Theory of Mind development before the age of 3 years?

Language plays an important role in Theory of Mind development. Specifically, longitudinal and training studies indicate that the acquisition of complement syntax has an effect on three- to five-year-old children’s mastery of the concept of false belief. There is evidence for both a beginning explicit understanding of the mind and mastery of complement syntax in children before their third birthday. In the present study, we investigated longitudinally whether an early sensitivity to complement syntax is related to early development of Theory of Mind abilities in a sample of N = 159 German-speaking 27- to 36-month-old children. Children’s sensitivity to formal properties of complement syntax at 33 months was associated with their perspective-taking skills and their metacognition of own ignorance three months later. This relation remained significant when controlling for the effects of general language abilities. Furthermore, children’s sensitivity to complement syntax was concurrently related to their early false belief understanding. These findings support the view that complement syntax shares representational demands with an understanding of epistemic states and that language begins to support the acquisition of epistemic concepts earlier than was previously thought.     

Individual differences in the effect of smoking on frontal-central distribution of the CNV: Some observations on smokers' control of attentional behaviour

A previous investigation of individual differences in cortical activation during smoking reported differential development of vertex CNV ‘O’ and ‘E’ wave components in introverted and extraverted smokers. In the present paper the frontal CNV recorded from 12 extraverted and 12 introverted smokers was analysed under simple and choice foreperiod conditions during sham and real smoking. Smokers were matched for age, sex and neuroticism. Analysis of variance revealed significant group by smoking session effects for the later ‘E’ wave component but not for the early ‘O’ wave component. ‘O’ wave negativity though more prominent in frontal regions particularly in extraverts tended to be more affected by foreperiod conditions than smoking sessions. In general smoking produced an increase in central negativity in extraverts, and a decrease in parietal positivity in introverts. These results challenge the stimulus-related/response-related separation of smoking effects made previously to account for early and late CNV component differences. It is suggested that a distinction of CNV components in terms of input (sensory) and output (motor) aspects may anyway be inappropriate.An attempt is made to relate CNV negativity/positivity topography differences to a motor model of attentional strategies differentially deployed during smoking. Extraverted smoker strategies may aim to relieve boredom, enhance readiness to act and so increase central negativity. Introverts may smoke to inhibit distraction, maintain a complex attentional set, and so these affect parietal positivity.It is further suggested that the pharmacological effects of nicotine are those of a generalized mild stressor which supplement the motor aspects of smoking in inducing more motivated performance. Some further predictions concerning the effect of smoking on cortical activity are discussed.