On the measurement of achievement goals: Critique, illustration, and application.

TLDR

The current literature on achievement goals suffers from measurement problems, particularly with the AGQ. The study aimed to remedy these issues by developing the AGQ‑Revised and testing its validity and predictive utility. The authors created the AGQ‑Revised and evaluated it with 229 undergraduates, examining its structural validity and predictive relationships. The revised measure confirmed the hypothesized factor structure, outperformed alternatives, and its predictions about antecedents and consequences of achievement goals were largely supported, highlighting the importance of precise goal measurement.

Abstract

The authors identified several specific problems with the measurement of achievement goals in the current literature and illustrated these problems, focusing primarily on A. J. Elliot and H. A. McGregor's (2001) Achievement Goal Questionnaire (AGQ). They attended to these problems by creating the AGQ-Revised and conducting a study that examined the measure's structural validity and predictive utility with 229 (76 male, 150 female, 3 unspecified) undergraduates. The hypothesized factor and dimensional structures of the measure were confirmed and shown to be superior to a host of alternatives. The predictions were nearly uniformly supported with regard to both the antecedents (need for achievement and fear of failure) and consequences (intrinsic motivation and exam performance) of the 4 achievement goals. In discussing their work, the authors highlight the importance and value of additional precision in the area of achievement goal measurement.