Experimental Studies of Motivation in Education

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Experimental Studies of Motivation in Education

• Judith M. Harackiewicz
• Department of Psychology

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Goals are mental representations of things we
hope to accomplish
Why are goals important?

• Guide and regulate
• behavior
• Provide standards
• Achievement

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Individual Factors (e.g., achievement
orientation, initial interest)
Perceived Goal
Motivational Processes competence valuation task
involvement perceived competence
Intrinsic Motivation
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ACHIEVEMENT GOALS Situationally specific
orientations that represent the desire to
develop, attain, or demonstrate competence
Mastery or Learning Goals - Define competence
self-referentially - Focus on the development
of skills
Performance Goals - Define competence
normatively - Focus on the demonstration of
ability
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ACHIEVEMENT GOAL MANIPULATION Neutral Control .
. . students' reactions to games and leisure
activities . . . and collecting data on what
they think of our pinball machines. Performance
. . . how well some students play pinball
compared to others . . . and collecting data on
how well they play compared to others. Mastery .
. . how students develop their pinball skills on
our pinball machines . . . and collecting data
on how they learn to play and improve on our
Jungle King machine.
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Henry Murray, 1938 NEED TO ACHIEVE the desire
or tendency to do things as rapidly and/or as
well as possible.. to accomplish something
difficult. To master or manipulate and organize
physical objects, human beings or ideas.. To
overcome obstacles and attain a high standard.
To excel ones self. To rival and surpass
others..
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Jackson, 1974 Personality Research
Form Self-report measure of achievement
orientation, based on Murrays definition HAMs
- high achievement orientation LAMs - low
achievement orientation
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Free time spent playing pinball
Harackiewicz Elliot, 1993, Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology
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He says that he really enjoyed his first semester
at college. I know I should be pleased by this,
but I'm not convinced that enjoyment is what
it's all about. (Whenever a student tells me he
or she "enjoyed" my course, I want to ask "Yes,
but did you learn anything?") I suppose my
attitude is antediluvian, and in principle I
guess there's nothing wrong with learning being
enjoyable. Still, I can think of a good many
courses I took that I didn't enjoy, but that I'm
glad I took.
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• How should we define success in college
  education?
• - learning and performance typically indexed with
• GRADES
• students experiences and continuing motivation
  may be reflected in
• INTEREST

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Mastery Goals In a class like this, I prefer
course material that really challenges me so I
can learn new things. My goal in this class is
to learn as much as I can about this topic.
Performance Goals It is important for me to do
well compared to others in this class. My goal
in this class is to get a better grade than most
of the other students.
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Personality Factors (e.g., achievement
orientation)
Perceived Goal
Intrinsic Motivation
Performance
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Interest
?
.35
Mastery Goals
Interest in Psychology
.16
Enjoyment of Class
Performance Goals
.16
Final Grade
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Further studies of interest

• Examine the development of interest over time
• Consider the role of individual and situational
  factors
• Consider the reciprocal relations between mastery
  goals and interest
• Consider the possibility that we can influence
  interest with experimental interventions
• Examine the role of perceived value in the
  interest process

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Interest can develop or deepen during a college
class..
Interest can be triggered or caught
emotional reactions, attention,
stimulation Interest can be maintained or held
personal importance, meaning, values
And, we need to consider the interest that
students bring to the class at the outset
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Hidi Renninger (2006) Four-phase model of
interest

• Interest is the outcome of an interaction between
  a person and particular content the potential
  for interest is in the person, but content and
  environment determine direction and development
  of interest
• Interest develops and deepens over time through
  four phases

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Externally prompted Arousal Attention Affect
Triggered situational interest Maintained
situational interest Emerging individual
interest Well-developed individual interest
Focused attention Persistence Meaningfulness Perso
nal Relevance
Personal value Knowledge Re-engagement
Enduring predisposition Curiosity questions
Self-generated
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Study Design
- Consider the role of initial interest in goal
adoption and promoting situational interest -
Examine the development of interest over time,
and the role of goals in that process

• First day of Introductory Psychology course
  Initial Interest
• Second week Achievement Goals and Enjoyment of
  Lecture (Catch-1)
• Last weeks Interest (Catch-2 and Hold)
• End of course Final Grade
• Four year follow-up Continued Interest
  (behavioral measure) N858

Harackiewicz, Durik, Barron, Linnenbrink-Garcia,
Tauer, Journal of Educational Psychology, 2007
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Performance-Approach Goal
.24
Final Grade
-.13
Performance-Avoid Goal
.11
Catch-2
Catch-1
.53
.20
.29
.49
Initial Interest
Hold
.20
Mastery Goal
.19
.40
Courses Taken
.14
7 Semesters..
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Can we promote catch and hold in education?
Laboratory studies using an experimental learning
paradigm
Teach students about a new topic or teach them a
new mathematical technique
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Overview

• Study 1
• Test task properties theorized to catch interest
• Study 2
• Replicate study 1
• Test task properties theorized to hold interest

Durik Harackiewicz, 2007, Journal of
Educational Psychology
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Experimental Task

• Four-step, mental math technique for solving
  two-digit multiplication problems

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Design
Non-catch Catch


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Design
Non-catch Catch
Low interest in math
High interest in math
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Non-catch vs. Catch

• Non-catch visually un-stimulating instructional
  materials
• plain text
• Catch visually stimulating instructional
  materials
• Colorful and varied text
• Vivid pictures

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Non-catch Catch
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Process Variables(Harackiewicz Sansone, 1991)

• Task involvement
• Absorption
• Focused attention
• Competence valuation
• Caring about doing well
• Perceived competence
• Self-evaluation of skill

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Math Interest x Catch on Task involvement
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Math Interest x Catch on Competence Valuation
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Math Interest x Catch on Task Interest
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Conclusions from Study 1

• Catch promoted task interest for people with low
  math interest
• Catch undermined task interest for people with
  high math interest
• These effects were mediated by competence
  valuation and task involvement

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Design
Non-catch Catch
Non-hold
Hold
Personal interest in math also included as factor
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Non-catch vs. Catch

• Non-catch similar to Study 1
• Catch slightly different
• Fewer line pictures (more photographs)
• Toned down colors

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Non-hold vs. Hold

• No mention of personal utility
• Hold Personal utility
• monitoring grocery totals
• personal banking
• calculating tips at restaurants
• determining discounts at retail stores
• In catch conditions, accompanied by pictures

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Math Interest x Catch on Task Involvement
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Math Interest x Catch on Competence Valuation
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Math Interest x Hold on Perceived Competence
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Effects on Interest in Technique
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Study 2 Summary of Results

• Catch promoted interest via task involvement
  among individuals with low math interest
• Hold promoted interest via perceived competence
  among individuals with high math interest

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Conclusions Studies 1 and 2

• The effects of situational enhancements can work
  differently for different people
• Situational factors relate to interest via
  different processes (competence valuation,
  involvement, perceived competence)

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How do mastery goals facilitate the development
of interest?

• Interest may deepen when individuals perceive
  value in a task
• Two kinds of task value (Eccles, 2005 Wigfield
  Eccles, 2002) particularly important
• Intrinsic value This class is important to me
  because I enjoy coming to lecture
• Utility value What I am learning in this class
  is relevant to my life

Back to the classroom.
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Psychology Classroom
.13
Mastery
Intrinsic value
.14
.61
.16
.32
Initial Interest
.36
Final Interest
.25
.30
Utility Value
.11
.19
Performance
.18
Final Grade
Hulleman, Durik, Schweigert, Harackiewicz,
Journal of Educational Psychology, in press
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Study 3 Experimental Paradigm

• Mental Math
• 15-minute Learning session
• Manipulate value through writing

Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks Harackiewicz, in prep
Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (2007)
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Study 3 Writing Manipulations

• Utility Value
• Type a short essay briefly describing the
  potential relevance of this technique to your own
  life, or to the lives of college students in
  general. . . Please focus on how this technique
  could be useful to you or to other college
  students. . .

Control Type a short essay describing the
objects that you see in the picture. Simply
describe in detail the objects that you see.
Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (2007)
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Study 3 Results
d .42, p .03 (ß .21)
d .49, p .01 (ß .25)
Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (2007)
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Study 3 Results
Final Utility Value
Final Interest
Interaction ß .26, p .01
Interaction ß .15, p lt .15
Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (2007)
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Summary Studies 3 4

• Perceived utility value predicts interest and
  performance (Studies 3 4)
• Manipulated utility value predicts perceived
  utility value and interest, particularly for low
  achievers (Study 4)
• Can we extend these causal findings to an actual
  classroom?

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Study 5 A Randomized Trial in the Classroom

• Purpose
• Manipulate value and interest in a classroom
• Sample
• Undergraduate, introductory psychology students
  (n 350)
• Interest measures (3 waves)
• Interest in the course (course interest)
• Enjoyment of lectures (intrinsic value)
• Usefulness of the course material (utility
  value)
• Randomized Treatment
• After the 2nd exam
• Random assignment to utility or control
  writing groups
• Outcomes
• Final Course Interest (2 weeks prior to final
  exam)
• Final Course Grade

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Study 5 Writing Manipulations

• ALL
• Select a concept or issue that is covered in this
  unit and formulate a question (e.g., What is the
  impact of sleep loss on a particular cognitive
  activity?).

Utility Value Think of a person who might be
interested in this topic (e.g., a friend,
relative, or a significant other). Write a 1-2
page typewritten letter describing the issue and
explaining why the information is relevant to
this persons life.
Control Use the PsycINFO database to find two
abstracts that relate to your question. Write a
1-2 page essay comparing and contrasting the
findings from the two abstracts. Be sure to
include a discussion of how the findings relate
to and expand upon what was covered in this unit
in class and text.
Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (2007)
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Study 5 Course Interest Over Time
Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (2007)
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Study 5 Course Interest Over Time
d .30 p .01 (ß .15)
Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (2007)
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Study 5 Final Course Interest
ß -.14, p .02
Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (2007)
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Study 5 Psychology Classroom
Manipulated Utility Value
Lo .29 Hi .01
Interest
.15a
Grades
Solid paths are standardized regression
coefficients significant a p lt .05. Dashed paths
are non-significant. Significant interactions
between the manipulation and Initial Exams are
represented with Lo (Low Initial Exams) and
Hi (High Initial Exams).
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Study 5 Psychology Classroom
Manipulated Utility Value
Perceived Utility Value
Lo .20 Hi -.04
Interest
.53
.36
Grades
Solid paths are standardized regression
coefficients significant a p lt .05. Dashed paths
are non-significant. Significant interactions
between the manipulation and Initial Exams are
represented with Lo (Low Initial Exams) and
Hi (High Initial Exams).
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Results

• Finding Utility Value in the course material
  leads to more motivation and better performance
• Writing about how the material applies to your
  life leads to more motivation and better
  performance, particularly for low achieving
  students

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Conclusions

• Consistent patterns Interest matters!
• Survey, Laboratory, and Randomized Trials
• Mechanism Utility value
• Value predicts interest and achievement
• Perceived or manipulated
• Particularly for low achieving students
• High achieving students are not harmed
• Emerges from the situation
• Interventions that are easy to implement..

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Thanks to

• Amanda Durik
• Chris Hulleman
• Olga Godes
• Kenn Barron
• John Tauer
• Lisa Linnenbrink-Garcia
• Shaun Schweigert
• Incredible research assistants
• Interdisciplinary Training Program in Education
  Sciences

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Time 1 Time 2
Time 3 Time 4 (2 weeks into
class) (after 2nd exam) (before
4th exam) (last 2 weeks)
Intrinsic Value
.50
Intrinsic Value
.35

• Final Course Interest

.13
Value Writing (Value 1, No Value -1)
.15
.15 (.05, n.s.)
.12
.23
Utility Value

• Final Course Grade

.19
.38
Utility Value
All paths are standardized regression
coefficients, and are significant at p lt .05.
Indicates the direct effect is moderated by a
significant interaction. Controlling for Time 1
interest and goals, Time 2 exam performance
Hulleman, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (in prep)
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Implications

• Intervention Easy to implement
• Policy Implications
• Pressure of high stakes forces interest out
• Focusing on motivation may help us promote
  achievement in ways that accountability and
  standards-based reform do not
• An understanding of motivation is crucial for
  student/child/parent SUCCESS

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Time 1 Time 2
Time 3 Time 4 (2 weeks into
class) (after 2nd exam) (before
4th exam) (last 2 weeks)
Intrinsic Value
.50
Intrinsic Value
.35

• Final Course Interest

.13
Value Writing (Value 1, No Value -1)
.15
.15 (.05, n.s.)
.12
.23
Utility Value

• Final Course Grade

.19
.38
Utility Value
All paths are standardized regression
coefficients, and are significant at p lt .05.
Indicates the direct effect is moderated by a
significant interaction. Controlling for Time 1
interest and goals, Time 2 exam performance
Hulleman, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (in prep)
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TARGET GOAL MANIPULATION Performance . . . for
the first game, your goal is 29,750 points. This
goal represents the 65th percentile score for UW
students with your level of pinball experience.
Your goal for the second game is
31,430. Mastery . . . for the first game, your
goal is 29,750 points. This score represents a
moderately challenging goal for a first game on
this machine. Your goal for the second game is
31,430.
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Free time spent playing pinball
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Individual Factors (e.g., achievement
orientation, initial interest)
A
A
Perceived Goal
C
B
Motivational Processes competence valuation task
involvement perceived competence
D
Intrinsic Motivation
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Characteristics of Introductory Psychology at
UW-Madison - large lecture format (400
students) - non-interactive class format - low
probability of individual attention from
instructor - multiple-choice exams - normative
grading structure (the curve)
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Reciprocal relations between interest and
performance?

• - Interest is often measured after students know
  how well they are doing in a class difficult to
  disentangle interest-performance relationships
• But, measure interest before any performance
  feedback is provided, and can test reciprocal
  relationships

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P-App Goal
.25
P-Avoid Goal
-.11
First Exam
.15
.12
Catch-2
.51
Catch-1
.14
.19
Initial Interest
.29
.49
Hold
.20
M Goal
.40
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Reciprocal relations?

• Does interest drive the adoption of mastery goals
  or do mastery goals help people to develop
  interest - or are both of these propositions
  true?
• Does interest drive performance or does
  performance drive interest - or are both of these
  propositions true?

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Method

• Participants 56 men, 64 women
• Design 2 (non-catch vs. catch) x 2 (non-hold vs.
  hold) between subjects design
• Initial session
• learned mental math technique under varying
  conditions of catch and hold
• 2-week follow-up phone interview

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Mediation
Catch (1) vs. Non-catch (-1)
Catch x math interest
Interest
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Mediation
Task involvement
Catch (1) vs. Non-catch (-1)
Catch x math interest
Interest
Catch x math interest
Mediating variable
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Mediation
Task involvement
Catch (1) vs. Non-catch (-1)
Catch x math interest
Interest
Catch x math interest
Mediating variable
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Mediation Model
Task involvement
Catch (1) vs. Non-catch (-1)
-.21
-.17 (from -.21)
Interest
Low math interest .26 High math interest -.24
.41
Competence valuation
Task involvement
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Mediation
Task involvement
Catch (1) vs. Non-catch (-1)
-.04 (from -.21)
Interest
Low math interest .26 High math interest -.24
.26
.41
Competence valuation
Task involvement
.36
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Mediation Model
Catch (1) vs. Non-catch (-1)
Task involvement
Competence valuation
Interest
Hold (1) vs. Non-hold (-1)
Perceived competence
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Football Camp
Mastery Goal
.24
Intrinsic Value
.16
.24
.19
.35
.17
Camp Interest
.10
Initial Interest
.25
Utility Value
.12
.26
Coach Ratings
.17
Performance Goal
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Study 5 Manipulation Checks
Utility Writing (n 127) Control Writing (n 66) t-test p-value d
Writing Grade (0 - 10) 8.09 7.92 0.71 0.45 0.10
Exam 1 Exam 2 90.6 89.5 0.55 0.58 0.08
Time 2 interest 4.57 4.55 0.15 0.88 0.02
Observed Utility Value (0 3 ) 0.93 0.23 8.28 lt .01 1.16
Perceived Utility Value 4.76 4.52 2.17 0.03 0.28
Hulleman, Godes, Hendricks, Harackiewicz (2007)
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• Survey Study Measures (Studies 3 5)
• Interest in Psychology (5-items, alpha .78 -
  .90)
• I think psychology is a very interesting subject.
• Intrinsic Value (3-items, alpha .79 - .89)
• I enjoy coming to lecture.
• Utility Value (4-items, alpha .72 - .91)
• I can apply what we are learning in Introductory
  Psychology to real life.

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Task Enjoyment