Reading Map #7 - Pauline Muljana

Self-Efficacy and Academic Motivation (Schunk, 1991)

Extrinsice Rewards and Intrinsic Motivation in Education: Reconsidered Once Again (Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 2001) --> Meta-analysis

Reflection

One type of academic motivation, self-efficacy, defined as individual's judgments of his or her capabilities to perform given actions (Schunk, 1991, p. 207).

Related Constructs

Expectations and values

Attributions

Self-concept

Perceived control

Rotter's (1966) locus of control

External control (due to external factors, e.g. luck, chance, or fate.

Internal control (controlling their own actions)

Skinner and colleagues (1998, 1990)

Agency or capacity beliefs

Control beliefs

Means-end or strategy beliefs

Focuses on the outcomes

Focuses on the acquisition

Focuses on independent efforts

Bandura (1977)

Self-efficacy

Outcome expectations

Related but separable when outcomes are not linked with performance quality

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Atkinson (1957), Eccles (1983), and Vroom (1964)

Expectations to achieve an outcomes as a result of performing a behavior

Doesn't guarantee learning motivation. There's a need of balance between self-efficacy and performance outcomes according to students' efforts

How valuable those outcomes are

Doesn't guarantee learning motivation.

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It goal is attractive and doable, people are motivated.

There's a need of balance between outcome values and students' own belief in their capabilities.

Heider (1958), Kelley & Michela (1980), and Weiner (1985)

Students seek to explain the causes of outcomes

Students use attribution as a factor to appraise efficacy. Students who achieve an outcome through difficult tasks and efforts tend to have higher self-efficacy.

Self-perceptions which are a result of a combination of prior experiences, interpretation and the environment. It's heavily influenced by reinforcements and evaluations by significant others.

Consists of self-esteem, self-confidence, stability , and self-crystallization.

Doesn't guarantee students' confidence in all academic areas, but it depends on each context.

Research and Substantive Issues

Goal setting

Specificity

Difficulty

Proximity

Proximal goal is better than distant goal because students can judge their progress temporally.

Specific performance goals are better than general goals.

Easy goals may increase efficacy and motivation in the beginning. Difficult goals can guide students to better or advanced skill acquisition.

Goal proximity may influence self-regulation. Thus, further research on this can reveal how students with distant goals self-regulate themselves.

Information Processing

Self-efficacy on cognitive process can affect motivation and learning

Self-efficacy, mental effort, and achievement are correlated positively in text learning, but correlated negatively in TV learning (Salomon, 1984). Learning from TV can be efficacious but required less effort and thus achieved lower performance.

Learning strategies may influence self-efficacy and motivation (Corno & Mandinach, 1983). Also, self-efficacy is associated positively to motivation to use learning strategies.
When a certain strategy is used to improve performance, it promotes efficacy and hence students will more likely use the strategy again.

Teaching students to use learning strategies (e.g. by showing model strategy and promoting the use of this strategy) also increase self-efficacy and achievement.

Model

Observing models are beneficial on efficacy and motivation, resulting in high persistence and high confidence that can promote motivation (Zimmerman & Ringle, 1981; Relich, Debus, & Walker, 1986).

Observing multiple models is better than observing one model because students will tend to view their similarity with at least one model (Schunk, 1987).

Self-modeling is also beneficial in terms of monitoring progress in skill development which results in higher self-efficacy.

Attributional Feedback

Effort feedback

Ability feedback

If given early on during the learning process, it may increase self-efficacy and motivate students to work hard (make more effort) to succeed (Schunk & Cox, 1986).

Once students have demonstrated progressed skills, ability feedback is used.

Rewards

Rewards linked with accomplishment and reflecting progress enhance efficacy.

Performance-contingent rewards + proximal goals = highest efficacy and learning among children (Schunk, 1984).

Performance-contingent rewards

Task-contingent rewards

Enhance motivation, self-efficacy, and skill

No benefits

Predictive Utility

Self-efficacy predicts motivational outcomes.

Self-efficacy predict motivation and achievement.

What deserve further research

When external influences are heavily used, efficacy doesn't predict persistence.

In a learning environment where students have achieved high skills, self-efficacy doesn't always predict persistence.

Cognitive effort and academic motivation

Learning strategies during learning process and academic motivation

The role of self-efficacy in transferring motivation and learning across different contexts

Self-efficacy generality

The role of self-efficacy in the relationship between goal orientation and motivation

The role of self-efficacy to fostering students' motivation

The association between teacher's efficacy and student motivation

A Review of Cognitive Evaluation Theory (CET)

Rewards and external factors have impact on intrinsic motivation since it may enhance perceived competence and self-determination.

Verbal rewards

Tangible rewards

Explicit positive performance feedback

Tend to be controlling feedback, but can be conducted via different contingencies

Informational

Controlling

Less effective in increasing intrinsic motivation compared to informational positive feedback

Task-noncontingent rewards

Task-contingent rewards

Performance-contingent

Rewards for simply participating

Given upon completion of a task or activity

Given upon successful performance on an activity

No effect on intrinsic motivation

Engagement-contingent rewards may undermine intrinsic motivation due to controlling aspect

Completion-contingent rewards would also undermine intrinsic motivation. The controlling aspect is stronger than engagement-contingent rewards.

It the feedback doesn't reflect good-quality performance, the rewards may undermine intrinsic motivation. It also depends on the context of how the rewards are administered (e.g. if interpersonal context is demanding and controlling)

Results

Verbal rewards can enhance intrinsic motivation.

Tangible rewards undermine intrinsic motivation

These rewards tend to impact on older persons' intrinsic motivation positively than on children's. Also, if the rewards are administered in a controlling manner, these can have a negative effect.

These rewards have negative effect on children than on college students, especially on persistence and preference for challenge.

Unexpected rewards

Do not significantly undermine intrinsic motivation

Eggagement-contingent rewards

Undermine intrinsic motivation

Completion-contingent rewards

Task-contingent rewards

Performance-contingent rewards

Undermine intrinsic motivation

Undermine intrinsic motivation, worse on children

Can enhance intrinsic motivation if administered informationally

Can have negative effect if conducted in a controlling manner.

If used as a direct function of performance (e.g. in which participants receive unequal rewards), it may negatively affect intrinsic motivation

Other keypoints

Rewards do not add interest value. "... the issue is how to facilitate people's understanding the importance of the activity to themselves and thus internalizing its regulation so they will be self- motivated to perform it" (Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 2001, p. 15)

Facilitate interesting learning activities, provide learning choices, and challenging task rather than giving rewards generously.

Teachers should be mindful about when and how to use rewards so that intrinsic motivation can be enhanced, rather than undermined.

  1. Teach learning strategies early rather than waiting for students' mastery level on the subject. When strategies are taught early, students will more likely apply early. If it works, they will use it again and thus increase their efficacy and achievement. If it doesn't work, they still has time to alter their strategies (under teacher's guidance) before it's too late.
  1. When designing instructions, it is important to present the materials such a way to trigger students' interests, to give learning choices, and to increase the task challenges incrementally. Don't merely give rewards generously.
  1. Assign tasks by increasing the challenge incrementally. Easy task in the beginning may enhance students' self-efficacy. More challenging tasks in the later stage requires more mental efforts and thus can lead to higher performance. Students may also feel rewarding from achieving a new challenge.
  1. Similar to the feedback types, rewards should be granted with a careful thought according to the context. Effort feedback can be provided more frequently early in the learning process to boost self-efficacy. Then, performance/ability feedback should be given to show students' progress and confirm their ability as they develop skills. Performance rewards can boost intrinsic motivation if they are not conducted in a controlling manner. Instead, these rewards should be administered to inform where the progress is, how good it is and suggested steps to improve.
  1. Specify learning goals and also objectives. While learning goals help students see the big picture about the course, the learning objectives (particularly included in each module) can serve as proximal goals to aid students to reflect on their learning gap and progress. Learning objectives should be spelled out according to Bloom's Taxonomy to convey the expected performance outcomes.
  1. Teacher should learn to be self-regulated in order to be able to make a good role model to students' self-regulation. When teachers have self-regulation, it can be reflected on their teaching style. There is a need on further studies related to pre-service and in-service teachers' self-regulation.