Psychological threat and extrinsic goal striving

Although people generally endorse intrinsic goals for growth, intimacy, and community more than extrinsic goals for money, appearance, and popularity, people sometimes over-emphasize extrinsic goals, to the potential detriment of their well-being. When and why does this occur? Results from three experimental studies show that psychological threat increases the priority that people give to extrinsic compared to intrinsic goals. This was found in the case of existential threat (Study 1), economic threat (Studies 2), and interpersonal threat (Study 3). Discussion focuses on the possible reasons why threat breeds extrinsic orientations.     

超越传统：动态进化心理学研究进展

立足于基本适应目标与决策原则的功能分析,致力于心理过程多维度的动态考察,动态进化心理学在坚持适应主义原则基础上,将基因与经验、环境同时纳入心理发展解释框架,更为彻底地贯彻了有机体与环境交互作用观,在一定程度上克服了传统进化心理学的局限。但由于忽略社会实践的作用,它所展示的更多的是生物学意义上的人的发展图景,对心理过程的动态分析亦难以挣脱形而上学的桎梏。     

Longitudinal relations of self-efficacy to outcome expectations, interests, and major choice goals in engineering students

We examined the nature of the temporal relations among the core person variables in the social cognitive model of academic and career choice [Lent, R. W., Brown, S. D., & Hackett, G. (1994). Toward a unifying social cognitive theory of career and academic interest, choice, and performance [Monograph]. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 45, 79-122.]. Participants were 209 students taking beginning level engineering courses at either a predominantly White or a historically Black university. They completed measures of self-efficacy, outcome expectations, interests, and goals near the end of two consecutive semesters. Path analyses indicated support for a model in which self-efficacy served as a temporal precursor of outcome expectations, interests, and goals. There was less support for a model in which the latter variables produced reciprocal paths to self-efficacy. Implications for future longitudinal research on SCCT’s (social cognitive career theory’s) choice hypotheses are discussed.     

Children's,adolescents', and adults' reference to goals to explain interpersonal actions

This study investigated children's, adolescents', and adults' references to an actor's goals when explaining interpersonal actions. Participants were presented with eight brief stories containing a variety of social events and were asked to explain why the actor in each story performed the central action. Children, adolescents, and adults mentioned goals for most of the stories. Adults and adolescents mentioned psychological goals much more often than did children. Older children, adolescents, and adults mentioned complex psychological goals more often than did younger children. Younger children often mentioned instrumental or social goals. When making goal attributions, children, adolescents, and adults considered both the nature of the action and the social context in which it occurred. Participants mentioned psychological goals more often when explaining an antisocial action and social goals when explaining a prosocial action. Participants were also more likely to mention psychological goals when interpersonal events immediately preceding the central action were described. Thus, goals were offered as explanations for interpersonal actions by all age groups, but the type of goals mentioned varied by the age of the participant, the social context, and the valence of the action. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Values,achievement goals,and individual‐oriented and social‐oriented achievement motivations among Chinese and Indonesian secondary school students

This study examined how values related to achievement goals and individual‐oriented and social‐oriented achievement motivations among secondary school students in China (N = 355) and Indonesia (N = 356). Statistical comparisons showed the Chinese students endorsed more strongly than the Indonesian students on self‐direction and hedonism values, individual‐oriented achievement motivation, and mastery‐approach goals. Conversely, the Indonesian students endorsed more strongly than their Chinese counterparts on security, conformity, tradition, universalism and achievement values, social‐oriented achievement motivation, and performance‐approach and mastery‐avoidance goals. Values explained a significant amount of the variance in almost all of the dimensions of motivation. Etic and emic relationships between values and achievement motivations were found.     

Learning from Our Mistakes: Error Management Training for Mature Learners

This research explored the effects of training goal (learning goal vs. performance goal) and training type (error management vs. error avoidance) on word processing skill acquisition with older workers. Sixty-seven participants were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions and attended two interactive tutorial training sessions. Results indicated that error management training lead to significantly higher performance test scores, learning quiz scores, and requests for assistance compared to error avoidant training. Additionally, learning goals generated significantly higher performance test scores and intrinsic motivation levels relative to performance goals. Other applications of error management training are discussed.     

学业成就中等生和优良生的成就目标、自我监控与学业成绩关系的比较研究

采用量表法对学业成就中等生的研究发现：与学业优良生相比,学业成就中等生的自我监控水平显著低下;成就目标与学业成绩并无直接关系,但学习目标会通过自我监控间接影响学业成绩;在学业成就中等生中,高学习目标、低成绩目标者表现出更高的自我监控水平。     

Regrets and Subjective Well-Being: A Life Course Approach

The aim of the study was to examine age and gender differences in the contents of regrets, and the association between regrets and subjective well-being. The sample consisted of 176 participants ranging in age from 19 to 82 years. The results showed that young adults (19–29 years) named regrets related to relationships and leisure more often than middle-aged (30–54 years) and older adults (55–82 years), whereas regrets related to work and family were more salient among middle-aged and older adults. Furthermore, gender comparison revealed that regrets concerning relationships and family were more frequent among women than among men. Related to subjective well-being, results showed that regrets concerning education and work were negatively associated with life satisfaction, and depressive symptoms associated with self-related regrets.     

课堂环境目标影响学生成就目标的实验研究

采用现场教学实验的方法,探讨了在我国中学课堂教学中,运用TARGET教学模式引导学生的掌握目标定向,激发学习动机的有效性和可行性。被试是来自同一所中学的初中二年级两个班的学生(实验班36人,控制班34人)。研究结果表明,通过教师在课堂上实施强调掌握目标的教学干预策略,可以有效地改善学生的学习动机模式,促使学生更多地采取掌握目标,提高学生的学习兴趣和学习成绩。     

中学生同伴依恋的特点及其与友谊质量的关系:社会交往目标的中介作用

以593名初高中学生为被试, 用问卷法考察中学生同伴依恋的特点, 并探讨同伴依恋与交往目标、友谊质量的关系。结果表明:(1)中学生同伴依恋可分为安全型、专注型、回避型和恐惧型, 它们在中学生群体中的比例分别为34.5%、23.8%、22.1%和19.6%;(2)中学生同伴依恋的年级、性别差异显著:依恋焦虑初二显著高于高一, 依恋回避初一显著高于初二、高一和高二;男生依恋焦虑显著低于女生, 依恋回避显著高于女生;(3)不同依恋类型中学生交往目标、友谊质量差异显著;(4)交往目标中的帮助与支持、亲密性在同伴依恋和总体友谊质量关系中起部分中介作用。