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“I Want to Try and Try”: Increasing Achievement Motivation in Young Children

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“I Want to Try and Try”: Increasing Achievement Motivation in Young Children “I WANT TO TRY AND TRY”: INCREASING ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION IN YOUNG CHILDREN A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY AND THE COMMITTEE ON GRADUATE STUDIES OF STANFORD UNIVERSITY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Allison Master May 2011 © 2011 by Allison Leigh Master. All Rights Reserved. Re-distributed by Stanford University under license with the author. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution- Noncommercial 3.0 United States License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/us/ This dissertation is online at: http://purl.stanford.edu/hx314zv7838 ii I certify that I have read this dissertation and that, in my opinion, it is fully adequate in scope and quality as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Carol Dweck, Primary Adviser I certify that I have read this dissertation and that, in my opinion, it is fully adequate in scope and quality as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Ellen Markman I certify that I have read this dissertation and that, in my opinion, it is fully adequate in scope and quality as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Gregory Walton Approved for the Stanford University Committee on Graduate Studies. Patricia J. Gumport, Vice Provost Graduate Education This signature page was generated electronically upon submission of this dissertation in electronic format. An original signed hard copy of the signature page is on file in University Archives. iii ABSTRACT Motivation to learn plays a critical role in students’ academic success. This dissertation reports five experiments (N = 250) that increase children’s motivation (specifically, challenge seeking and persistence) through storybooks. The first two studies examined how manipulating the similarity between the main character of a story and the participating child affected preschoolers’ (Study 1) and kindergarteners’ (Study 2) motivation as assessed by the choice of and persistence on challenging puzzles. Study 2 also compared effects for struggling versus non-struggling students. Study 3 examined whether persuasion would increase challenge seeking, when children convince someone else of the value of taking on challenges and persisting. Study 4 examined effects over time, and found that children showed a robust boost in challenge seeking two weeks later, especially those who were reminded of the original book. Study 5 examined whether the effects could be due to a particular aspect of the books, process praise, which sends a message that effort and persistence are effective and valued. Increasing children’s motivation at a young age may set the stage for future academic achievement, creating a cycle of positive motivation and academic success. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This work would not have been possible without the support and encouragement of a number of people. First, I would like to thank Carol Dweck for her tremendous support, wisdom, and mentoring over the past few years. Her work and ideas have forever changed my life. I also consider myself fortunate to have had the opportunity to collaborate with and learn from Ellen Markman, Greg Walton, Geoff Cohen, Mark Lepper, and James Gross. They have all had a profound effect on the way I think about the world and the psychological processes that shape motivation and well-being. I would also like to thank the members of the Dweck/Walton and Markman Labs, and all the other DevoStuds, for all of their friendship, advice, and game nights through the years, especially Quin Yow, Carissa Romero, and Luke Butler. The majority of this research was conducted at the Bing Nursery School, so I would like to thank the children who participated and the teachers who encouraged them to participate. I am particularly grateful to Chia-wa Yeh, Jennifer Winters, and Beth Wise for all of their help and valuable feedback. Bing is an amazing place, and I have had far more fun there over the past few years as “Teacher Game Room” than a respectable doctoral candidate should. Thanks as well to the staff and students of the Palo Alto Unified School District. Many outstanding research assistants helped me collect data for this and other projects. Special thanks to Emily Campbell, Lauren Hay, Amy Ho, Armando Lopez, Charishma Chotalia, Isa Dillingham, Carly Janiga, Jessica Snyder, Whitney Worthen, Cole Murphy-Hockett, Kristine Baluyot, Sadie Zapata, Jacky Mendoza, Charissa Tansomboon, and Hannah Jaycox for all their hard work. I would like to acknowledge the financial support provided by a Regina Casper Stanford Graduate Fellowship, a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, and an Elizabeth Munsterberg Koppitz Child Psychology Graduate Fellowship from the American Psychological Foundation. Finally, I would like to thank my family. My parents and my sister Karen have always supported me, believed in me, and let me be as intrinsically motivated as I wanted to be. They are wonderful. And speaking of wonderful (and tylerrific), I am v grateful to Tyler for his love and support. Together we have climbed mountains and had amazing adventures, and I can’t wait for the next. I love you. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction . .. .... 1 The Importance of Motivation…………………………………….…………………1 The Importance of Motivation in Early Childhood……………………………...…..3 Factors that Increase Motivation in Children……………………………………..…5 Factors that May Help Children Internalize Motivation………………………….…7 Motivational Factors to be Examined………………………….………………...…11 Study 1: Motivation in Preschoolers…………………………………………………...14 Method…………………………………………………………………….……16 Results……………………………………………………………………….…18 Discussion…………………………………………………………………..…..24 Study 2: Motivation in Older Children……………………………………………...….26 Method……………………………………………………………………..…...26 Results…………………………………………………………………….……27 Discussion…………………………………………………………………...….32 Study 3: Persuasion and Challenge Seeking………………………………………...…34 Method……………………………………………………………………..…...35 Results……………………………………………………………………….....37 Discussion………………………………………………………………………39 Study 4: Longitudinal Effects on Challenge Seeking………………………………......41 Method…………………………………………………………………….…....42 Results……………………………………………………………………….....43 Discussion…………………………………………………………………...….46 Study 5: Effects of Praise on Motivation…………………………………………...….49 Method……………………………………………………………………….....51 Results……………………………………………………………………...…..53 Discussion………………………………………………………………………57 General Discussion………………………………………………………………..…....59 References Appendices……………………………………………………………………..71 vii List of References………………………………………………………………78 Tables…………………………………………………………………………………..91 Figures………………………………………………………………………………….97 viii LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Challenge seeking scale, Studies 1 and 2…………………………........91 Table 2 Summary of results……………………………………………………..92 Table 3 Helmert style contrasts for condition, Studies 1 and 2…………………93 Table 4 Effects of condition on puzzle and activity choices, and pre-challenge and post-challenge choices………………………….…………….....…94 Table 5 Effects on children’s open-ended explanations for their choices………95 Table 6 Effects of condition on length of time persisted and number of puzzle pieces correctly placed…………………………………………………96 ix LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Challenge seeking, Study 1..……………………………...................…97 Figure 2 Children’s global badness beliefs and challenge seeking, Study 1….....98 Figure 3 Persistence, Study 1..……………………………...............................…99 Figure 4 Motivation composite, Study 1………………………………………..100 Figure 5 Children’s global badness beliefs and challenge seeking, Study 2...…101 Figure 6 Persistence, Study 2..…………………………….............................…102 Figure 7 Motivation composite, Study 2…………………………………….….103 Figure 8 Challenge seeking, Study 3..…………………………….................…104 Figure 9 Challenge seeking by age, Study 3..…………………………..........…105 Figure 10 Challenge seeking, Study 4, Time 1..…………………………........…106 Figure 11 Challenge seeking, Study 4, Time 3…………………………………..107 Figure 12 Interaction between booster and age on challenge seeking for children in the treatment condition, Study 4..……………………………......…108 Figure 13 Self-evaluation composite, Study 5..…………………….……........…109 Figure 14 Challenge seeking, Study 5..…………………………........………….110 Figure 15 Motivation composite, Study 5..………………………………........…111 Figure 16 Mastery-orientation composite (self-evaluations, challenge seeking, and persistence), Study 5..…………………………...................…..…112 x INTRODUCTION Mastery and learning can be challenging and time-consuming processes. Many practical and scientific discoveries, from the invention of sliced bread to the discovery of radium, are the result of years of constant struggle and effort, and history is filled with examples of people who took on enormous challenges and never gave up despite frustration (Curie, 1921; Van Dulken, 2000). For example, Thomas Edison persisted in efforts to improve the design of the light bulb despite thousands of failures to get the results he wanted before he finally succeeded. Instead of giving up, he viewed each “failure” as a learning experience (Edison, 1948). Many individuals seek out challenge and keep right on going, even when the going gets tough. Yet many others give up at the first sign of trouble and consistently take the easy way out. What motivates those individuals who persevere in school and beyond? And how can that information be used to increase the motivation of young students who seem to lack that inner drive? This dissertation
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