Students'   motivational   goals,   perceived   ability,   and   beliefs   about the  purpose  of  school   were   investigated   by   questionnaire.   450   Form  Five students participated in the study. The extent  to  which  students differentiate   between   motivational   goals    was    examined.    Predictions were made regarding the  relationships  between  motivational  goals  and students' perceived ability and beliefs about the purpose of school.
It  was  found  that   students   did   not   clearly   distinguish   between 'task',  'ego',  and  'work  avoidance'   motivational   goals.   However,   when these goals were considered separately they were found to  be  related  to students' perceived ability  and  beliefs  about  the  purpose  of  school. Predictions regarding  subject  -  specificity  of  perceived  ability  were supported,   but   predictions   of   ethnic   differences   in   perceived   ability were   not.   There   were   slight   gender   differences   in   perceived    ability and beliefs about the purpose of school.
The findings were discussed in terms  of  their  relationship  to  other studies, and the implications for past and future methods of studying  motivational goals

Hunt, Susan R

Massey Research Online

Copyright is owned by the Author of the thesis.  Permission is given for a copy to be downloaded by an individual for the purpose of research and private study only.  The thesis may not be reproduced elsewhere without the permission of the Author.  Massey University Library Thesis Copyright Fann Title of thesis: /}10111/Aftol\lf-tL GtOtt'l,,-S, Ph-sl61Veo fH3iUTY ,WD 11tE fyl\tft?SE; or ~ltvot. B .STvWY Dr fo~VVl fl~ ~ 1U0etvt5 (1) (a) I give pennission for my thesis to be made available to (2) (a) ()-0_ ( 3) (a) (,)Q readers in the Massey University Library under conditions detennined by the Librarian. I do not wish my thesis to be made available to readers without my written consent for ----rronths. I agree that my thesis, or a copy, may be sent to another institution under conditions detennined by the Librarian. I do not wish my thesis, or a copy, to be sent to another institution without my written consent for rronths. ----I agree that my thesis may be copied for Library use. I do not wish my thesis to be copied for Library use for ____ r'rDnths. Signed A ·fl, llu.d:. Date '?:,O · i • $'Cl The copyright of this thesis belongs to the author. Readers must sign their narre in the space below to show that they recognise this. They are asked to add their permanent address. NAME AND ADDRESS DATE AA A c'ec:v 111\11\/f:D<:.ITV MOTIVATIONAL GOALS, PERCEIVED ABILITY, AND THE PURPOSE OF SCHOOL: A STUDY OF FORM FIVE STUDENTS A thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University Susan R. Hunt 1989 For my parents, Ron and Joy Hunt ABSTRACT Students' motivational goals, perceived ability, and beliefs about the purpose of school were investigated by questionnaire. 450 Form Five students participated in the study. The extent to which students differentiate between motivational goals was examined. Predictions were made regarding the relationships between motivational goals and students' perceived ability and beliefs about the purpose of school. It was found that students did not clearly distinguish between 'task', 'ego', and 'work avoidance' motivational goals. However, when these goals were considered separately they were found to be related to students' perceived ability and beliefs about the purpose of school. Predictions regarding subject - specificity of perceived ability were supported, but predictions of ethnic differences in perceived ability were not. There were slight gender differences in perceived ability and beliefs about the purpose of school. The findings were discussed in terms of their relationship to other studies, and the implications for past and future methods of studying motivational goals. 111 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my supervisors, Dr. James Chapman, of the Education Department, for his assistance and encouragement, and Dr. Dave Clarke, of the Psychology Department, for his interest in the study and willingness to help. I also wish to thank Dr. John Spicer of the Psychology Department and Dr. Charles Lawoko of the Mathematics and Statistics Department, for their willing assistance with statistical analyses. Thanks are also due to the principals, teachers and pupils who gave their time to make this study possible. Finally, I wish to thank my husband, Colin Eagle, for his continual support and understanding. lV TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER ONE PAGE INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................. 1 1WO REVIEW OF LITERATURE AND RESEARCH .................................................................... 6 THEORIES OF ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION ....................................................... 6 METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES ................................................................................ 12 ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION AND BELIEFS ABOUT THE PURPOSE OF SCHOOL .......................................................................................... 2 3 ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION AND PERCEIVED ABILITY .............................. 2 7 GENDER AND ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION .................................................... 31 ETHNICITY AND ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION ............................................... 3 6 SUMMARY AND HYPOTHESES .......................................................................... 42 THREE METHOD ........................................................................................................................... 47 SAMPLE SELECTION ........................................................................................... 4 7 INSTRUMENTS .................................................................................................... 50 PILOT STUDY ...................................................................................................... 5 3 PROCEDURE ......................................................................................................... 54 SUMMARY OF PROCEDURE ............................................................................... 5 5 DESIGN ................................................................................................................ 55 FOUR RESULTS ......................................................................................................................... 57 MOTIVATIONAL GOALS OF NEW ZEALAND FORM FIVE STUDENTS ............................................................................................................ 57 SUBJECT - SPECIFICITY ..................................................................................... 62 PERCEIVED ABILITY AND BELIEFS ABOUT THE PURPOSE OF SCIIOOL ................................................................................................................ 63 GENDER DIFFERENCES ....................................................................................... 70 ETHNIC DIFFERENCES ........................................................................................ 7 4 FIVE DISCUSSION .................................................................................................................... 7 5 MOTIVATIONAL GOALS OF NEW ZEALAND FORM FIVE STUDENTS ............................................................................................................ 7 5 PERCEIVED ABILITY AND BELIEFS ABOUT THE PURPOSE OF SCIIOOL ................................................................................................................ 79 SUBJECT - SPECIFICITY ..................................................................................... 85 GENDER DIFFERENCES ....................................................................................... 8 6 ETHNIC DIFFERENCES ........................................................................................ 8 8 CONCLUSIONS ..................................................................................................... 8 9 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH ........................................................... 91 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................... 93 Appendix 1 ................................................................................................................... 113 Appendix 2 ................................................................................................................... 114 Appendix 3 ................................................................................................................... 115 Appendix 4 ................................................................................................................... 118 Appendix 5 ................................................................................................................... 13 1 LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE 1. Percentage of Final Sample as a Function of School.. ... .48 2. Comparison of Original Sample with Final Sample by Gender and Ethnicity ........................................................... 49 3. Classification of Students According to Motivational Goal - Using Standard Deviations ................................................ 60 4. Means and Standard Deviations for Three Group Cluster Analysis .................................................................................. 61 5. Multiple Regression Summary Data for Task Motivational Goal .......................................................................................... 66 6. Multiple Regression Summary Data for Ego Motivational Goal .......................................................................................... 68 7. Multiple Regression Summary Data for Work Avoidance Motivational Goal .................................................................. 69 8. Means and Standard Deviations for Discriminant Analysis .................................................................................. 72 CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION The importance of motivation for achievement in school and m later life is widely acknowledged. Indeed, for society to progress, it is important that individuals be committed to increasing their understanding of their world. As Dewey argued, "The most important attitude that can be formed is that of the desire to go on learning" (1963, p. 48). Initially, motivation was seen as a unitary construct and early theories dealt with a limited range of cognitions associated with motivation. The complexity of the achievement motivation construct has now been acknowledged. In particular, attribution theory has been responsible for major advances in our understanding of achievement-related behaviours. Attribution theory is based on the assumption that people search for understanding as to why events occur and that these views, or attributions, can in turn influence future behaviour. Heider (1958) is generally accepted as the first attribution theorist and has influenced subsequent work in the field. Weiner (e.g., 1972) has developed cognitive reformulations of attribution theory and has been largely responsible for the application of concepts of attribution theory to education. More recently, some other researchers have moved beyond the phase of testing the hypotheses associated with Weiner's model, to a phase of theory revision and elaboration. Causal attributions appear to be at least partly an expression of the individual's world view, including their personal goals. Thus, educational programmes designed to enhance achievement motivation may be improved by attending to I students' personal and educational goals as well as more commonly addressed factors, such as attributions for success and failure (Nicholls, Patashnick & Nolen, 1985). The work of Maehr and Nicholls in particular, has broadened current conceptions of achievement motivation. Maehr (1983) argued that achievement motivation should be seen as a function of the meaning of achievement for the individual and includes goals and values in addition to causal attributions. Accordingly, individual differences, for example gender and ethnic influences, are receiving considerable attention. Nicholls has extended Weiner's attribution theory by drawing distinctions between different conceptions of ability and motivational goals. The theories and research findings of Nicholls and Maehr have drawn attention to the ways in which several of the variables they studied may be interrelated. Specifically, the present study focused on the relationships between students' motivational goals, beliefs about the purpose of school, and perceived ability. Nicholls has distinguished between several distinct forms of motivation which are associated with different motivational goals. The present research investigated 'task', 'ego', and 'work avoidance' motivational goals. Different behaviours are said to be associated with these motivational goals. Positive achievement outcomes have been found to be related to 'task' motivational goals (e.g., Nicholls, 1979; Nicholls et al., 1985). However, in competitive societies the nature of the school environment (e.g., emphasis on norm-referenced examinations) is likely to lead to students adopting 'ego' motivational goals (Nicholls, 1976b). Nicholls (1983) noted that ego-involvement is likely to predominate over task-involvement when conditions, for example competition, induce self-focus or self-evaluation. Before 2 addressing problems in the school environment which are likely to lead to ego-involvement, it would be useful to determine whether New Zealand high school students distinguish between the motivational goals, and whether they typically have 'task', 'ego', or 'work avoidance' motivational goals. Therefore, the present study addressed the issue of whether New Zealand Form Five students can be clearly grouped according to their predominant motivational goal. Also, the situation-specificity of motivational goals and perceived ability has not been fully explored in terms of consistency across subject areas. Several researchers (Stipek & Weisz, 1981; Brophy, 1983; Maehr, 1983; Gottfried, 1985; Harter, 1982) have indicated that there may be subject-specific differences, but those who have studied subject-specificity have not been equally specific in their definition of possible forms of motivation. Thus, the present research attended to this problem by studying specified motivational goals ('task', 'ego', and 'work avoidance' goals) and levels of perceived ability, using both 'general school' and subject-specific measures (English and Mathematics). The intent was to determine whether motivational goal and perceived ability vary between academic domains. Another area of interest to the present study was the relationship of achievement values and achievement motivation. Stipek (1984) noted that little attention has been given to the effect of achievement values on achievement behaviour, and Maehr and Nicholls (1980) have stressed that achievement motivation research must take the function and meaning of behaviour into account. The present research investigated the meaning of school, that is, students' beliefs about the purpose of school. In particular, it was suggested that specified beliefs about the purpose of school may be associated with different motivational goals. 3 Self-concept of ability, or perceived ability, is seen as an important mediator of achievement behaviour (e.g., Nicholls, 1976a; Kukla, 1978). Despite the documented effects of perceived ability on achievement behaviour however, it is often studied in general terms and as an adjunct to other variables. In the present study perceived ability was examined in relation to motivational investigate relationships between perceived motivational goals held by students. Additional variables of interest were goals, in order to ability and the gender and ethnic differences in motivational goals, beliefs about the purpose of school, and perceived ability. Research has indicated gender differences in achievement related behaviours and recent conceptions of achievement motivation have pointed to gender differences in the meaning of achievement. Maehr and Nicholls (1980) noted that it is important that researchers take account of the possibility that in many achievement situations, males and females have different goals, and that we must first define these goals before we can adequately explain the behaviours associated with them. Thus, one purpose of this study was to identify the motivational goals typical of males and females. Other studies have indicated that females often see themselves as having low ability (e.g., Sherman, 1980; Nicholls, 1980; Kukla, 1978). Such self-perceptions would have a negative effect on females' current and future levels of achievement. Given that females are often suggested to be more 'socially' oriented than males, predictions were also made regarding females' beliefs about the purpose of school. With regard to ethnicity, an examination of the literature has indicated the need to take ethnic differences into account when studying achievement motivation. It has become apparent that there are cultural variations in how students value school and that not only 4 may students have different achievement goals, but they may pursue these goals in different ways (Maehr & Nicholls, 1980). While stereotypes regarding Maori/Pakeha differences abound rn New Zealand, there is a lack of objective evidence, particularly with regard to ethnic differences in motivational goals. The present study examined ethnic differences in motivational goals and perceived ability. In conclusion, the findings of achievement motivation research suggest that motivational goals are related to students' perceptions of ability and beliefs about the purpose of school. However, the relationships between these variables have not been fully investigated as yet; nor have subject-specificity or gender and ethnic differences been taken into account adequately. Thus, the purpose of the present research was to investigate relationships between motivational goals, beliefs about the purpose of school, and perceived ability. The need to determine the motivational goal groups of New Zealand high school students, and the possibility of subject-specificity of motivational goals and perceived ability was addressed. Predictions were also made concerning gender and ethnic differences. 5 

Motivational goals, perceived ability, and the purpose of school : a study of form five students : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in psychology at Massey University

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Motivational goals, perceived ability, and the purpose of school : a study of form five students : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in psychology at Massey University

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