"Too complex for me!" Why do performance-approach and performance-avoidance goals predict exam performance?

• Published in: European journal of psychology of education 2009-12, Vol.24 (4), p.423-434
• Main Authors: Darnon, Céline, Butera, Fabrizio, Mugny, Gabriel, Quiamzade, Alain, Hulleman, Chris S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Academic achievement; Academic motivation; Achievement Need; Biological and medical sciences; Classroom Research; Difficulty Level; Education; Educational Psychology; Educational research; Foreign Countries; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Goal Orientation; Motivation; Motivation research; Observational research; Pedagogic Psychology; Personality psychology; Prediction; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Pupil and student. Academic achievement and failure; Questionnaires; Replication (Evaluation); Resistance (Psychology); Social psychology; Student Attitudes; Switzerland (Geneva); Undergraduate Students; Verbal Tests
• ISSN: 0256-2928; 1878-5174
• DOI: 10.1007/bf03178759

Classroom research on achievement goals has revealed that performance-approach goals (goals to outperform others) positively predict exam performance whereas performance-avoidance goals (goals not to perform more poorly than others) negatively predict it. Because prior classroom research has primarily utilized multiple-choice exam performance, the first aim of the present study was to extend these findings to a different measure of exam performance (oral examination). The second aim of this research was to test the mediating role of perceived difficulty. Participants were 49 4th year psychology students of the University of Geneva. Participants answered a questionnaire assessing their level of performance-approach and performance-avoidance goal endorsement in one of their classes as well as the perceived difficulty of this class for themselves. Results indicated that performance-approach goals significantly and positively predicted exam grades. Performance-avoidance goals significantly and negatively predicted grades. Both of these relationships were mediated by the perceived difficulty of the class for oneself. Thus, the links previously observed between performance goals and exam performance were replicated on an oral exam. Perceived difficulty is discussed as a key dimension responsible for these findings. Les recherches sur les buts d'accomplissement ont montré que les buts de performance-approche (réussir mieux que les autres) prédisent positivement la performance alors que les buts de performance-évitement (ne pas réussir moins bien que les autres) la prédisent négativement. Celles-ci ayant principalement utilisé des examens à choix multiples, le premier objectif de la présente étude était d'étendre ces résultats à une mesure différente de performance (examen oral). Le second objectif de cette recherche était de tester le rôle médiateur de la difficulté perçue. Les participants étaient 49 étudiants de 4ème année de psychologie de l'Université de Genève. Les participants ont répondu à un questionnaire mesurant leur niveau de buts de performance-approche et performance-évitement dans l'une de leur classe, ainsi que leur perception du niveau de difficulté de cette classe. Les résultats indiquent que les buts de performance-approche prédisent de manière significative et positive la note obtenue à l'examen. Les buts de performance-évitement la prédisent négativement. Ces deux relations sont médiatisées par la difficulté perçue de la tâche pour soi. Ainsi,