A 2?×?2 achievement goal framework.

A 2?×?2 achievement goal framework comprising mastery-approach, mastery-avoidance, performance approach, and performance-avoidance goals was proposed and tested in 3 studies. Factor analytic results supported the independence of the 4 achievement goal constructs. The goals were examined with respect to several important antecedents (e.g., motive dispositions, implicit theories, socialization histories) and consequences (e.g., anticipatory test anxiety, exam performance, health center visits), with particular attention allocated to the new mastery-avoidance goal construct. The results revealed distinct empirical profiles for each of the achievement goals; the pattern for mastery-avoidance goals was, as anticipated, more negative than that for mastery-approach goals and more positive than that for performance avoidance goals. Implications of the present work for future theoretical development in the achievement goal literature are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Achievement goals as predictors of achiement-relevant processes prior to task engagement.

This research comprised 3 studies (2 prospective and 1 short-term longitudinal) designed to investigate mastery, performance-approach, and performance-avoidance goals as predictors of achievement-relevant processes prior to the undergraduate examination experience. Results from across the 3 studies were supportive of the authors' hypotheses and revealed a differential predictive pattern for each of the achievement goals. Mastery goals were linked to numerous positive processes (e.g., challenge appraisals, absorption during preparation), performance-approach goals were linked to a more limited set of positive processes (e.g., challenge appraisals, grade aspirations), and performance-avoidance goals were linked to numerous negative processes (e.g., threat appraisals, anticipatory test anxiety). Implications for the trichotomous achievement goal model and educators are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Subgoals as substitutes or complements: The role of goal accessibility.

The self-regulation process often involves breaking an ongoing goal (e.g., keeping in shape) into many individual, constituent subgoals that monitor actual actions (e.g., eating healthy meals, going to the gym). The article examines how pursuing each of these subgoals may influence subsequent goal pursuit. The authors show that when people consider success on a single subgoal, additional actions toward achieving a superordinate goal are seen as substitutes and are less likely to be pursued. In contrast, when people consider their commitment to a superordinate goal on the basis of initial success on a subgoal, additional actions toward achieving that goal may seem to be complementary and more likely to be pursued. These predictions were tested in four studies that explored the conditions under which subgoals attainment have a counterproductive versus favorable effect on further pursuit of similar actions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Habits as knowledge structures: Automaticity in goal-directed behavior.

This study tested the idea of habits as a form of goal-directed automatic behavior. Expanding on the idea that habits are mentally represented as associations between goals and actions, it was proposed that goals are capable of activating the habitual action. More specifically, when habits are established (e.g., frequent cycling to the university), the very activation of the goal to act (e.g., having to attend lectures at the university) automatically evokes the habitual response (e.g., bicycle). Indeed, it was tested and confirmed that, when behavior is habitual, behavioral responses are activated automatically. In addition, the results of 3 experiments indicated that (1) the automaticity in habits is conditional on the presence of an active goal (cf., goal-dependent automaticity; J. A. Bargh, 1989), supporting the idea that habits are mentally represented as goal—action links, and (2) the formation of implementation intentions (i.e., the creation of a strong mental link between a goal and action) may simulate goal-directed automaticity in habits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Together or apart: When goals and temptations complement versus compete.

This research examined how the presentation of items related to goals and temptations influences the dynamic of self-regulation, as reflected in evaluation and choice. The authors found that when items, such as healthy and unhealthy foods or academic and leisure activities, are presented together in a unified choice set (e.g., in 1 image) and seem to complement each other, people express a positive evaluation of and a preference for tempting items. Conversely, when the items are presented apart from each other in 2 choice sets (e.g., 2 images) and seem to compete with each other, people express a positive evaluation of and preference for goal items. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The time for doing is not the time for change: Effects of general action and inaction goals on attitude retrieval and attitude change.

Implicit in many informal and formal principles of psychological change is the understudied assumption that change requires either an active approach or an inactive approach. This issue was systematically investigated by comparing the effects of general action goals and general inaction goals on attitude change. As prior attitudes facilitate preparation for an upcoming persuasive message, general action goals were hypothesized to facilitate conscious retrieval of prior attitudes and therefore hinder attitude change to a greater extent than general inaction goals. Experiment 1 demonstrated that action primes (e.g., “go,” “energy”) yielded faster attitude report than inaction primes (e.g., “rest,” “still”) among participants who were forewarned of an upcoming persuasive message. Experiment 2 showed that the faster attitude report identified in Experiment 1 was localized on attitudes toward a message topic participants were prepared to receive. Experiments 3, 4, and 5 showed that, compared with inaction primes, action primes produced less attitude change and less argument scrutiny in response to a counterattitudinal message on a previously forewarned topic. Experiment 6 confirmed that the effects of the primes on attitude change were due to differential attitude retrieval. That is, when attitude expression was induced immediately after the primes, action and inaction goals produced similar amounts of attitude change. In contrast, when no attitude expression was induced after the prime, action goals produced less attitude change than inaction goals. Finally, Experiment 7 validated the assumption that these goal effects can be reduced or reversed when the goals have already been satisfied by an intervening task. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The multifinality constraints effect: How goal multiplicity narrows the means set to a focal end.

In the presence of several objectives, goal conflict may be avoided via multifinal means, which advance all of the active goals at once. Because such means observe multiple constraints, they are fewer in number than the unconstrained means to a single goal. Five experimental studies investigated the process of choosing or generating such means for multiple goals. We found that the simultaneous activation of multiple goals restricted the set of acceptable means to ones that benefitted (or at least, did not harm) the entire set of active goals. Two moderators of this phenomenon were identified: (a) the feasibility of identifying multifinal means, which was dependent on the relations between the different active goals, and (b) the enhanced importance of the focal goal, which resulted in the inhibition of its alternatives and the consequent relaxation of multifinality constraints. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Structure of Goal Contents Across 15 Cultures.

The authors investigated the structure of goal contents in a group of 1,854 undergraduates from 15 cultures around the world. Results suggested that the 11 types of goals the authors assessed were consistently organized in a circumplex fashion across the 15 cultures. The circumplex was well described by positing 2 primary dimensions underlying the goals: intrinsic (e.g., self-acceptance, affiliation) versus extrinsic (e.g., financial success, image) and self-transcendent (e.g., spirituality) versus physical (e.g., hedonism). The circumplex model of goal contents was also quite similar in both wealthier and poorer nations, although there were some slight cross-cultural variations. The relevance of these results for several theories of motivation and personality are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ideals and category typicality.

Barsalou (1985) argued that exemplars that serve category goals become more typical category members. Although this claim has received support, we investigated (a) whether categories have a single ideal, as negatively valenced categories (e.g., cigarette) often have conflicting goals, and (b) whether ideal items are in fact typical, as they often have unusual attributes. Because past studies on ideals were largely correlational and often used categories not strongly associated to goals (e.g., tree, bird, fish), we took an experimental approach, using categories with obvious goals. Our results indicated that exemplars having goal-fulfilling characteristics are generally judged as less typical than exemplars with average features. Also, although subjects had a general consensus on the ideals of neutral and positive categories, they held opposing opinions on the ideals of the negatively valenced categories. We found that this bimodality in idealness perception was due to differing perspectives taken on the categories; however, perspectives that changed idealness of category exemplars did not influence their typicality. In short, ideal exemplars that best serve category goals are not necessarily perceived as typical. We contrast the goal-fulfilling aspect of ideals with the structural notion of extreme values (e.g., very tall trees), which may influence typicality through other mechanisms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Automatic for the people: How representations of significant others implicitly affect goal pursuit.

Five studies are presented that explore how representations of significant others may automatically affect goal pursuit. Specifically, evidence is presented that suggests goals may be primed by one's representation of a significant other and that this priming may be moderated by one's closeness to this other individual. It is also shown to be affected by the number of different goals associated with this person. The greater the number of goals associated with a significant other, the less likely this individual will invoke any 1 goal very strongly. Such goal priming is shown to have implications for the extent to which goals are pursued (as seen through task persistence and performance) as well as the extent to which they are inhibited or ignored (especially when an individual is associated with a goal unrelated to a current pursuit). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Malleability in communal goals and beliefs influences attraction to stem careers: Evidence for a goal congruity perspective.

The goal congruity perspective posits that 2 distinct social cognitions predict attraction to science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) fields. First, individuals may particularly value communal goals (e.g., working with or helping others), due to either chronic individual differences or the salience of these goals in particular contexts. Second, individuals hold beliefs about the activities that facilitate or impede these goals, or goal affordance stereotypes. Women's tendency to endorse communal goals more highly than do men, along with consensual stereotypes that STEM careers impede communal goals, intersect to produce disinterest in STEM careers. We provide evidence for the foundational predictions that gender differences emerge primarily on communal rather than agentic goals (Studies 1a and 3) and that goal affordance stereotypes reflect beliefs that STEM careers are relatively dissociated from communal goals (Studies 1b and 1c). Most critically, we provide causal evidence that activated communal goals decrease interest in STEM fields (Study 2) and that the potential for a STEM career to afford communal goals elicits greater positivity (Study 3). These studies thus provide a novel demonstration that understanding communal goals and goal affordance stereotypes can lend insight into attitudes toward STEM pursuits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

College student drinking and meaning in the pursuit of life goals.

The current study was designed to examine the association between risky alcohol use and life goals among college students. Introductory psychology students completed a questionnaire that included measures of typical life goals and alcohol use behavior. Students listed their 5 most typical life goals and rated them each on a series of dimensions from which 2 factors were derived (i.e., Goal Meaning, Goal Efficacy). Hierarchical regression analyses showed that the lower levels of goal meaning were associated with more heavy episodic use of alcohol and alcohol-related negative consequences. Results are consistent with motivational models of drinking that depict alcohol use as a function of satisfaction from other life goals. Findings support the importance of understanding college student drinking within the broader context of life goal appraisal. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evidence of social comparison in mastery goals in natural academic settings.

Proponents of achievement goal theory typically posit social comparison to be associated with performance goals but not with mastery goals (C. Ames, 1992). Contrary to this postulate, there is some evidence that individuals who are experimentally induced to adopt mastery goals may also use social comparison (e.g., R. Butler, 1992). However, such laboratory studies do not take into account the reality of the classroom, where evidence proves that students can endorse both types of goals. This leaves open the question of whether mastery goals are associated with social comparison, even after controlling for performance goals. The purpose of this study was to examine this question. French junior high school students completed a self-report survey assessing their personal achievement goals (mastery goals, performance-approach goals, and performance-avoidance goals) and their social comparison orientation (SCO) at school. Findings indicated that both types of achievement goals were positively associated with students' SCO. Moreover, mastery goals were still related to SCO even after controlling for performance goals. Implications of the interplay between achievement goals and social comparison theories are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Factors Affecting Effectiveness and Efficiency of DNAPL Destruction Using Potassium Permanganate and Catalyzed Hydrogen Peroxide

This paper describes laboratory studies conducted to evaluate the impact of varying environmental conditions (dense nonaqueous phase liquid (DNAPL) type and mass, and properties of the subsurface porous media) and design features (oxidant type and load) on the effectiveness and efficiency of in situ chemical oxidation (ISCO) for destruction of DNAPL contaminants. Porous media in 160?mL zero-headspace reactors were employed to examine the destruction of trichloroethylene and perchloroethylene by the oxidants potassium permanganate and catalyzed hydrogen peroxide. Measures of oxidation effectiveness and efficiency include (1) media demand (mg-oxidant/kg-porous media), (2) oxidant demand (mol-oxidant/mol-DNAPL), (3) reaction rate constants for oxidant and DNAPL depletion (min?1), (4) the percent (%) DNAPL destroyed, and (5) the relative treatment efficiency, i.e., the rate of oxidant depletion versus rate of DNAPL destruction. While an obvious goal of ISCO for DNAPL treatment is high effectiveness (i.e., extensive contaminant destruction), it is also important to focus on oxidation efficiency, or to what extent the oxidant is utilized for contaminant destruction instead of competing side reactions, for improved cost effectiveness and/or treatment times. Results indicate that DNAPL contaminants can be treated both effectively and efficiently under many environmental and design conditions. In some cases, DNAPL treatment was more effective and efficient than dissolved/sorbed phase treatment. In these experiments, permanganate was a more effective oxidant, however catalyzed hydrogen peroxide treated contaminants more efficiently (e.g., less oxidant required per mass contaminant treated). Results also indicate that oxidation treatment goals can be dictated by environmental conditions, and that specific treatment goals can dictate remediation design parameters (e.g., faster contaminant destruction was realized in catalyzed hydrogen peroxide systems, whereas greater contaminant destruction occurred in permanganate systems).     

Students' help seeking during problem solving: Influences of personal and contextual achievement goals.

The author investigated how different types of achievement goals influence elementary school students' help seeking. Fourth and 5th graders were asked to solve math problems and were given the opportunity to request help from an adult. Goals were conceptualized on 2 nested dimensions: (a) locus of the goal (i.e., personal goals that students held at the beginning of the study vs. contextual goals that characterized the task situation) and (b) emphasis of the goal (i.e., the relative importance of learning vs. performance). Personal learning goals had a positive influence and personal performance goals had a negative influence on the frequency of confirmation requests and on actual problem solving. For students who had strong personal performance goals, a contextual learning goal resulted in more process-related help seeking than did a contextual performance goal. Both types of help seeking (i.e., confirmation and process-related requests) had a positive influence on problem solving. Interactions among goals are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Goal setting among adolescents: A comparison of delinquent, at-risk, and not-at-risk youth.

A series of studies was conducted to compare group differences in the goal orientations of delinquent, at-risk, and not-at-ask adolescents. An Importance of Goals Scale was developed by examining the item responses of 230 high school students and validated by administering the revised scale to 80 delinquent, 90 at-risk, and 90 not-at-risk adolescents. Results identified differences in the importance attributed to different goals by the 3 groups. Delinquent and at-risk adolescents attached significantly more importance to goals associated with developing a social image (e.g., delinquency, freedom–autonomy), whereas not-at-ask adolescents were more concerned with goals associated with an academic image (e.g., educational, interpersonal). Results are discussed in terms of their implications for school achievement, peer relations, and future life paths. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Thinking of you: Nonconscious pursuit of interpersonal goals associated with relationship partners.

The mere psychological presence of relationship partners was hypothesized to trigger interpersonal goals that are then pursued nonconsciously. Qualitative data suggested that people tend to pursue different interpersonal goals within different types of relationships (e.g., mother, best friend, coworker). In several studies, priming participants' relationship representations produced goal-directed behavior (achievement, helping, understanding) in line with the previously assessed goal content of those representations. These findings support the hypothesis that interpersonal goals are component features of relationship representations and that mere activation of those representations, even in the partner's physical absence, causes the goals to become active and to guide behavior nonconsciously within the current situation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationship of goal level to valence and instrumentality.

Eight experiments were conducted to explore the relationships between goal level, valence, and instrumentality. Valence, measured in terms of anticipated satisfaction across a range of performance levels, was strongly but negatively related to goal level. This finding was explained by showing that low goals entail using less stringent standards for self-evaluation than do high goals. Instrumentality was positively associated with goal level. Ss believed that trying for hard goals would be more likely to give them a sense of achievement, develop their skills, and prove them competent than would trying for easy goals. Ss also believed that high goals would lead to more practical (job and life) benefits, as well as more pride and self-respect, than would low goals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Consider it done! Plan making can eliminate the cognitive effects of unfulfilled goals.

Unfulfilled goals persist in the mind, as asserted by ample theory and evidence (e.g., the Zeigarnik effect). The standard assumption has been that such cognitive activation persists until the goal is fulfilled. However, we predicted that contributing to goal pursuit through plan making could satisfy the various cognitive processes that usually promote goal pursuit. In several studies, we activated unfulfilled goals and demonstrated persistent goal activation over time. Unfinished goals caused intrusive thoughts during an unrelated reading task (Studies 1 and 5B), high mental accessibility of goal-related words (Studies 2 and 3), and poor performance on an unrelated anagram task (Study 4). Allowing participants to formulate specific plans for their unfulfilled goals eliminated the various activation and interference effects. Reduction of the effects was mediated by the earnestness of participants' plans: Those who ultimately executed their plans were those who also exhibited no more intrusions (Study 4). Moreover, changes in goal-related emotions did not appear to be a necessary component of the observed cognitive effects (Studies 5A and 5B). Committing to a specific plan for a goal may therefore not only facilitate attainment of the goal but may also free cognitive resources for other pursuits. Once a plan is made, the drive to attain a goal is suspended—allowing goal-related cognitive activity to cease—and is resumed at the specified later time. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

When planning is needed: Implementation intentions and attainment of approach versus avoidance health goals.

Objective: This study tested whether forming implementation intentions is an effective strategy for attaining health goals focused on trying to avoid a negative state. Design: Participants chose to either eat more healthy snacks (i.e., an approach goal) or eat fewer unhealthy snacks (i.e., an avoidance goal) over two weeks and were randomly assigned to create an implementation intention to do this or not. Main outcome measures: The authors measured fat and calorie intake after one week and after two weeks. Results: After two weeks, the participants who ate most unhealthily were those who pursued an avoidance goal and did not form an implementation intention. Conclusion: These results suggest that forming implementation intentions for avoidance goal pursuit can help people attain important health goals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)