Avoiding the demonstration of lack of ability: An underexplored aspect of goal theory.

TLDR

Motivation has been conceptualized as approach versus avoidance, yet goal‑orientation research has largely focused on performance‑approach and task goals, leaving the performance‑avoid goal underexplored. The authors created a performance‑avoid scale and administered it alongside existing goal‑orientation measures to 703 sixth‑grade students. Factor analysis confirmed distinct performance‑avoid, performance‑approach, and task scales; task goals predicted higher academic efficacy, self‑regulated learning, and less avoidance of help, while performance‑avoid goals predicted lower academic efficacy, greater avoidance of help, and higher test anxiety, and performance‑approach goals were not significant predictors.

Abstract

Traditionally, theorists have described motivation in terms of approach and avoidance tendencies. In contrast, goal orientation research has focused primarily on 2 approach goals: demonstrating ability (performance-approach) and developing ability (task). A scale to assess the goal of avoiding the demonstration of lack of ability (performance-avoid) was included with scales assessing approach goals in a survey given to 703 6th graders. Factor analysis supported the differentiation among the 3 scales. The performance scales were moderately positively correlated and exhibited low correlations with the task scale. With all 3 goals in regression equations, task goals predicted academic efficacy, self-regulated learning, and lower levels of avoiding seeking academic help in the classroom. Performance-avoid goals negatively predicted academic efficacy and positively predicted avoiding seeking help and test anxiety. Performance-approach goals did not emerge as the most significant predictor of any of these educationally relevant outcomes.