1

TOPIC 6COGNITIVE THEORIES,

MOTIVATION AND HUMAN ACHIEVEMENT

What affects motivation?

2

3

COGNITIVE THEORIES

•Suggest that motivation is a function of cognition and thought; that is, what we think about influences motivation

Achievement Theory

Attribution Theory

4

ACHIEVEMENT THEORY

• Suggest that motivation is a function of the interaction between one’s need for achievement/fear of failure and the difficulty level of the task

5

• The need for achievement can be defined as a tendency to approach new/novel tasks

• The fear of failure can be defined as a tendency to avoid new/novel tasks

ACHIEVEMENT THEORY

6

7

ATTRIBUTION THEORY

• Suggests motivation will decrease when we attribute our failures to stable factors like ability and task difficulty.

• Suggests motivation will decrease when we attribute our failures to unstable factors like effort.

8

Atkinson’s Expectancy-Value Theory

• John Atkinson (e.g., 1964) went a different direction with achievement motivation research.

• First, he put the theory into the framework of expectancy-value theory.

• Second, he emphasized the role of conflict, especially between need for achievement and fear of failure.

9

Expectancy-value in classic economic theory

• Expectancy-value theory is theory of rational economic choice.

• The basic idea is that people act in such a way as to "make the best deal" they can on the basis of what they consider valuable and how likely they are to get that valuable commodity.

10

• Often we must make a choice between a very valuable commodity with little chance of success and a less valuable commodity with a greater change of success.

• The Expected Value (EV) of an Outcome = Outcome Probability x Outcome Value

EV = P x V

Expectancy-value in classic economic theory

11

Expectancy-value in classic economic theory

• Example:– Manufacturing a product that has demonstrated

rate of 0.1 percent failure to pass inspection coming off the assembly line

– It cost $.50 to inspect each item to find the failure and remove it

– It cost $50 if a faulty item is returned– Suppose that we manufactured 10,000 item– Should we bother to inspect?

• Cost of inspection = 10,000 x $.50 = $5,000• Cost of not inspection = (.001x10,000) x $50 =$500

12

• Subjective probability: Our "feeling" that one is more likely to win than the other.

• Subjective measure of value, called utility: Our choices are not as rational as the original theory had in mind.

Expectancy-value in classic economic theory

13

Atkinson's achievement theory

• Atkinson's modification of achievement theory says that the tendency to engage in any particular achievement-oriented behavior depends on the probability of success and the incentive value of success, as well as need for achievement.

14

• The theory assumes that there is greater incentive value in achieving something difficult (where there is a low probability of success) than there is in achieving something easy (where there is a high probability of success).

• Therefore, the incentive value of success (Is) is defined as 1 - probability of success (1-Ps).

• Since probabilities range from zero to one. The lower the probability of success the greater the incentive value of success

Atkinson's achievement theory

15

The tendency to success (Ts) • In Atkinson's theory the tendency to engage

in achievement-oriented behaviors (tendency to success, or Ts) is a multiplicative function of

1. the motivation for success (Ms),

2. the probability of success (PS),

3. the incentive value of success (IS )

Ts = Ms x PS x IS

-if any of the components is zero, then there will be no tendency to strive for success in a particular situation

16

The tendency to avoid failure (Taf)

• Besides the "satisfaction" or "pride" that comes from success, there is "shame" from failure (tendency to avoid failure, or Taf).

• This negative affect presumably depends on one's previous experience with failure, for example, whether one was punished or ridiculed for failing.

17

• A multiplication formula is also used to determine the strength of the tendency to avoid failure. The components are:1) the motive to avoid failure (Maf), the fear of

failure, commonly measured by a test anxiety questionnaire

2) the probability of failure (Pf), which for any given

task is 1 - PS

3) the negative incentive value of failure (I-f) is

- (1 - Pf), which is the same as - PS

The tendency to avoid failure (Taf)

Taf = Maf x Pf x I-f

18

The combination of Ts and Taf

• The values of IS, Pf and I-f are all determined once we know the value of PS.

• What differentiates Ts and Taf then, are the relative strengths of Ms and Maf. The resolution of the conflict between Ts and Taf is then represented as follows:

Ts + Taf = (Ms x PS x IS) + (Maf x Pf x I-f)

19

Weiner's Attributional Theory of Achievement

• Weiner (1985) has presented the most ambitious attributional theory of achievement motivation and emotion.

• This theory deals with the perceived causes of success and failure, the characteristics of causal thinking, and subsequent emotional experiences in relation to achievement behaviors.

20

• There is a large number of possible causes for any specific success or failure.

• A relatively small number of causes appear repeatedly in relation to many situations, however.

Weiner's Attributional Theory of Achievement

21

• This theory has three attributional dimensions: 1. Internal versus external attributions.

2. Stable versus unstable attributions.

3. Controllable versus uncontrollable

attributions

Weiner's Attributional Theory of Achievement

22

Internal versus external attributions

• A person may attribute success to himself, such as "I have a lot of ability and work hard."

• There is a common bias to attribute success to oneself ("I am clever") but to attribute failure to outside factors ("The exam was too hard").

• There is a phenomenon called the fundamental attribution error, which is the tendency to explain other people's actions in terms of internal causes and to explain one's own actions in terms of external causes.

• For example, "He fell down because he is clumsy" but “ I fell down because the grass is slippery."

23

Stable Versus Unstable Attributions

• A person might attribute success to ability (which is a relatively enduring characteristic) or to effort (which may be more fluctuating).

• Commonly ascribed stable and unstable external causes are task difficulty (stable) and chance (unstable)

• For example, "This is a very hard course" (task difficulty) or "I just didn't study the right things" (chance).

24

Controllable Versus Uncontrollable

Attributions

• Both lack of trying and being ill are internal and unstable causes for failure, but there is an obvious difference between them.

• The former is considered controllable, but the latter is not.

• I might decide to try harder and overcome failure, but I cannot at easily decide to overcome the flu. Effort is more controllable than illness.

25

• More specific attributions can be found for particular situations, but the preceding dimensions cut across considerable research.

• Detailed statistical analyses of the causes given by people to account for their actions have indicated that these categories are those used by real people and are not just figments of attribution theorists' imaginations.

• Table 12-3 summarizes these attributions, with examples.

Controllable Versus Uncontrollable Attributions

26

27

• Weiner assumed that each specific causal attribution for success or failure has particular emotional consequences, which inturn influence future achievement-oriented behaviors.

Controllable Versus Uncontrollable

Attributions

28

COVINGTON’S SELF-WORTH THEORY OF ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION

• Self-worth is the value one assigns to oneself or one's abilities in self assessment.

• The concepts of self-esteem and self-worth are closely linked

29

COVINGTON’S SELF-WORTH THOERY OF ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION

• Self-worth theory focuses attention on the pervasive need implied in the drive-theory model to approach success and to avoid failure, which causes a sense of worthlessness and social disapproval

• Personal worth depends largely on one's accomplishment

30

COVINGTON’S SELF-WORTH THOERY OF ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION

• Ability is seen as a critical component of success, and inability a prime cause of failure, self-perceptions of ability become a significant part of one's self-definition.

• Thus, self-worth theory stresses ability perceptions as a primary activator of achievement behavior

31

• Individuals are driven to succeed not only to reap the personal and social benefits of success, but also because success aggrandizes a reputation for one's ability to achieve; and if success becomes unlikely, one's first priority is to act in ways that minimize the implications of failure-namely, that one lacks ability.

COVINGTON’S SELF-WORTH THOERY OF ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION

32

• Establishing and maintaining a positive self-image (i.e., a positive view of self-worth) is a primary human motive.

COVINGTON’S SELF-WORTH THOERY OF ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION