The relationship between learning goal orientation, goal setting, and performance: a longitudinal study

Abstract

In an educational setting, we examined the relationship of learning goal orientation with goal setting and performance over time. At the first time point, we assessed levels of trait learning goal orientation and asked participants to set performance goals. At each follow-up time point, we reported to participants their current course grade and allowed them to revise their goals. Learning goal orientation was associated with both setting higher goals and maintaining higher performance over time. Additionally, the relationship of learning goal orientation and performance was found to be mediated by goal setting.Beginning with research on goal setting, several streams of research have emerged on the effects of self-regulatory processes on behavior (Locke & Latham, 1990Locke, Shaw, Saari, & Latham, 1981). Early work on goal-setting theory focused on the importance of various goal characteristics on performance, consistently demonstrating the positive effects of setting challenging and specific goals coupled with feedback (Austin & Vancouver, 1996). This research has expanded to incorporate the role of perceptions and cognitions on key self-regulatory processes, including goal establishment, goal striving, and goal revision (Locke & Latham, 2004). While some studies have focused on particular aspects of the goalsetting process, others have focused on trait-level motivational variables, such as goal orientation (e.g., Duda & Nicholls, 1992).Goal orientation refers to how individuals define and strive for success. People with high learning goal orientation (LGO) consistently strive toward mastery of a skill or task in an effort to increase competence, whereas those with high performance goal orientation (PGO) focus more immediately on demonstrating their competence through meeting performance goals (Nicholls, 1975(Nicholls, , 1984. Typically, LGO results in higher levels of performance than PGO (Button, Mathieu, & Zajac, 1996), likely owing to the fact that LGO is associated with more effective self-regulation strategies and greater on-task attention (Kanfer, 1990;Payne, Youngcourt, & Beaubien, 2007). Additionally, LGO has been found to be positively related to self-set goal difficulty, whereas PGO has been found to be unrelated or negatively related (Payne et al., 2007).Although research has demonstrated the effects of LGO on performance outcomes and goal regulation, a common limitation of many of these studies is their cross-sectional nature. Indeed, Mitchell and James (2001) suggested that time is an influential factor in determining the dynamics of goaloriented behavior. Moreover, Williams, Donovan, and Dodge (2000) demonstrated that the effect of goal discrepancy on goal revision may be stronger in latter stages of goal striving. In the current study, we gathered data on the academic goals and performance of college students at multiple time points throughout the course of a semester. This allowed us to explore the underlying mechanisms by which LGO influences performance over time. Little research has exa...

The interactive effects of achievement goals and task complexity on enjoyment, mental focus, and effort

“…Empirical research has succeeded in relating achievement goals to several important outcome variables such as organizational training performance (e.g., Brett & VandeWalle, ; Kozlowski et al, ; Stevens & Gist, ), posttraining performance (e.g., Gegenfurtner, Könings, Kosmajac, & Gebhardt, ; Guarino, Whitaker, & Jundt, ), task performance (e.g., Kozlowski et al, ; Seijts, Latham, & Woodwark, ), and sales performance (e.g., Chakrabarti, Barnes, Berthon, Pitt, & Monkhouse, ; VandeWalle, Brown, Cron, & Slocum, ). Similarly, research has also linked achievement goals to critical motivational processes that are likely to impact performance, including goal setting (e.g., Breland & Donovan, ; Phillips & Gully, ; Taing, Smith, Singla, Johnson, & Chang, ), goal revision (Donovan & Hafsteinsson, ), feedback seeking (e.g., Gong, Wang, Huang, & Cheung, ; VandeWalle, Cron, & Slocum, ; VandeWalle & Cummings, ; Whitaker & Levy, ), behavior following feedback (e.g., Bell & Kozlowski, ; Mangos & Steele‐Johnson, ), and performance adaptability (e.g., Elliot & Church, ; Elliot & Harackiewicz, ),…”

“…Empirical research has succeeded in relating achievement goals to several important outcome variables such as organizational training performance (e.g., Brett & VandeWalle, 1999;Kozlowski et al, 2001;Stevens & Gist, 1997), posttraining performance (e.g., Gegenfurtner, K€ onings, Kosmajac, & Gebhardt, 2016;Guarino, Whitaker, & Jundt, 2016), task performance (e.g., Kozlowski et al, 2001;Seijts, Latham, & Woodwark, 2013), and sales performance (e.g., Chakrabarti, Barnes, Berthon, Pitt, & Monkhouse, 2014;VandeWalle, Brown, Cron, & Slocum, 1999). Similarly, research has also linked achievement goals to critical motivational processes that are likely to impact performance, including goal setting (e.g., Breland & Donovan, 2005;Phillips & Gully, 1997;Taing, Smith, Singla, Johnson, & Chang, 2013), goal revision (Donovan & Hafsteinsson, 2006), feedback seeking (e.g., Gong, Wang, Huang, & Cheung, 2017;VandeWalle, Cron, & Slocum, 2001;VandeWalle & Cummings, 1997;Whitaker & Levy, 2012), behavior following feedback (e.g., Bell & Kozlowski, 2002;Mangos & Steele-Johnson, 2001), and performance adaptability (e.g., Elliot & Church, 1997;Elliot & Harackiewicz, 1996), While this body of research has provided us with useful information regarding the outcomes associated with achievement goals, it is important to realize that the vast majority of these studies have focused on examining the simple main effects of these goals. In contrast, the results of several studies have demonstrated that achievement goals are likely to interact with other variables in their effects on motivation and performance (e.g., Bell & Kozlowski, 2002;Davis, Carson, Ammeter, & Treadway, 2005;Dietz, van Knippenberg, Hirst, & Restubog, 2015;Donovan & Hafsteinsson, 2006;Yeo et al, 2009).…”

Cross-level impact of team goal orientation and individual goal orientation on individual creativity

“…Shalley (1991Shalley ( , 1995 found in a series of research that creativity could be significantly improved by goal setting. Taing, Smith, Singla, Johnson, and Chang (2013) report that goal setting is associated with goal orientation. In addition, they also mention that goal setting mediates the relationship between learning goal orientation and individual's performance outcome.…”

Goal setting and planning for Norwegian students with and without intellectual disabilities: Wishing upon a star?

“…Active student engagement throughout the learning process and autonomous goal setting can also lead to higher achievement and higher levels of self-efficacy and self-regulation (Furtak and Kunter 2012;Moeller, Theiler, and Wu 2012). When students are successful in achieving their goals, this in turn may influence subsequent goal setting, as students continue to set higher goals for themselves, thus resulting in a positive upward spiral of continuous higher performance (Gross et al 2014;Taing et al 2013). Stevenson (2015) found that the implementation of a goal-setting intervention was closely related with increased time-on-task behaviour and reduced latency to task engagement for students with reading difficulties, thus enhancing academic engagement and student achievement.…”