Perceived challenge and threat as mediators between goal orientation and task outcomes

PERCEIVED CHALLENGE AND THREAT AS MEDIATORS BETWEEN GOAL ORIENTATION AND TASK OUTCOMES HO KAH HUI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE 2004 PERCEIVED CHALLENGE AND THREAT AS MEDIATORS BETWEEN GOAL ORIENTATION AND TASK OUTCOMES HO KAH HUI (B.B.A.(Hons), NUS) A THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE IN MASTER OF SCIENCE (MANAGEMENT) DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION SCHOOL OF BUSINESS NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE 2004 I extend my sincerest gratitude to the individuals who made this thesis a possibility Especially to the following folks, whom I must make special mention to – thank you for accompanying me through this journey It has been a rewarding ride To Dr Chia Ho Beng, thank you for your guidance, and for being a great mentor To Dr Foo Maw Der and Dr McAlister Daniel, thank you for the valuable comments and insights for improving the thesis To Jason, thank you for coding the program, and for faithfully following up To Mum and Dad, thank you for your unending love Finally, to all others who matter and who really care, thank you for your genuine concern i Page Acknowledgements Table of Contents Summary List Tables List of Figures i ii iv vi vii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction to Goal Orientation 1.1.1 1.1.2 3 1.2 1.3 Process Measures Perceived Challenge and Threat as Mediators Purpose of Study Organization of Thesis CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW & RESEARCH HYPOTHESES 2.1 Goal Orientation 2.1.1 Goal Orientation and Task Complexity Goal Orientation Effects on Task Outcomes 2.2.1 Goal Orientation Effects on Acceptance of Challenge and Persistence 2.2.2 Goal Orientation Effects on Information Search 2.2.3 Goal Orientation Effects on Risk Taking 2.2.4 Goal Orientation Effects on Performance 10 11 11 2.2 2.3 Perceived Challenge and Threat as Mediators 12 2.3.1 Goal Orientation Effects on Perceived Challenge and Threat 16 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 18 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Subjects Experimental Design Experimental Task Procedure Measures 18 18 19 21 23 3.5.1 Independent Variables 3.5.2 Dependent Variables 3.5.3 Mediators 3.5.4 Control Variables 23 24 26 26 ii CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS 29 4.1 Data Analysis 30 4.1.1 31 4.2 4.3 Manipulation Checks Hypotheses Testing 32 4.2.1 Goal Orientation Effects on Perceived Challenge and Threat 4.2.2 Perceived Challenge and Threat Effects on Task Outcomes 4.2.3 Goal Orientation Effects on Task Outcomes and Mediation Effects of Perceived Challenge and Threat 32 33 33 Post Hoc Analysis 48 4.3.1 Process Variables as Mediators 48 CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION & CONCLUSION 50 5.1 Discussion 50 5.1.1 5.1.2 5.1.3 5.1.4 5.1.5 5.1.6 50 51 52 52 54 54 5.2 5.3 Goal Orientation Effects on Task Outcomes Goal Orientation Effects on Perceived Challenge and Threat Perceived Challenge and Threat Effects Process-outcome Measures in a Complex Task Stability of the Trait Goal Orientation Scale Cultural Differences in Goal Orientation Managerial Implications Limitations and Future Research Directions 55 57 REFERENCES 60 APPENDIXES 66 Appendix A Appendix B Appendix C Appendix D Appendix E Appendix F Appendix G Framing Manipulation Diagrammatic Flow of Experimental Task Scales for Independent Variables Scales for Mediators Scales for Control Variables Scales for Manipulation Checks Summary of Findings for Hypotheses 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 iii This study (N = 225) empirically demonstrates how dispositional learning and performance goal orientation can affect task outcomes under a complex task situation A tried and tested complex and difficult financial simulation task is used Other than measuring absolute performance (an end-outcome), other process-outcomes namely acceptance of challenge, persistence, information search and risk taking and are also assessed It is also found that an individual’s perception of a task as either a challenge or a threat may mediate the relationship between goal orientation and certain task outcomes Results showed that learning goal orientation had main effects on acceptance of challenge (p ≤ 05), persistence (p ≤ 01) and performance (p ≤ 01) The more learning-oriented an individual is the more the challenges accepted, the more the persistence, and the better the performance However, performance goal orientation did not have any significant effects on all task outcomes It was also found that learning goal orientation was positively correlated to perceived challenge (p ≤ 001) and negatively correlated with perceived threat (p ≤ 001); but performance goal orientation was positively correlated to both perceived challenge (p ≤ 001) and perceived threat (p ≤ 001) iv Perceived challenge was also positively related to the task outcomes while perceived threat was negatively related to the task outcomes Furthermore, perceived challenge and threat fully mediated the relationship between learning goal orientation and acceptance of challenge (p ≤ 001 for both), and persistence (p ≤ 01 and p ≤ 001 respectively); whilst only perceived challenge fully mediated the relationship between learning goal orientation and performance (p ≤ 05) This study therefore suggests that other than an individual’s dispositional goal orientation and a given environment, the individual’s subjective perception of a task is also central to the decision making process It also tested that learning and performance goal orientations are somewhat stable traits Implications of these findings were then discussed v Page Table Descriptives and Pearson Correlation Coefficients 29 Table Logistic Regression for Acceptance of Challenge for Model 36 Table Logistic Regression for Acceptance of Challenge for Model 38 Table Cross Tabulation of Complexity Levels with Perceived Challenge and Threat 40 Table Hierarchical Regression for Persistence 43 Table Hierarchical Regression for Information Search 44 Table Hierarchical Regression for Risk Taking 45 Table Hierarchical Regression for Performance 46 Table Process Variables as Mediators 49 vi Page Figure Hypotheses Figure Results 47 vii INTRODUCTION 1.1 INTRODUCTION TO GOAL ORIENTATION Differences that contribute to and determine and individual’s work behaviour and performance have always been a major research interest Of particular interest in the past two decades, is that of goal orientation – a framework developed by Diener and Dweck (1978, 1980) that has explained part of the mystery (VandeWalle, 1997) Past studies on goal orientation have demonstrated that goal orientation can influence the way individuals’ make decisions and solve problems (e.g Elliot & Dweck, 1988; Steele-Johnson, Beauregard, Hoover & Schmidt, 2000; Sujan, Weitz, & Kumar, 1994; VandeWalle & Cummings, 1997) Goal orientation refers to two types of superordinate goals (i.e learning or performance) that people can hold during achievement situations (Dweck & Leggett, 1988; Elliot & Dweck, 1988) An individual with a learning goal orientation aims to acquire new skills and master tasks while an individual with a performance goal orientation desires to demonstrate and validate one’s competence by seeking favourable judgements and avoiding any opportunities of failure and negative feedback (VandeWalle, 1997; VandeWalle, Brown, Cron, & Slocum, 1999; VandeWalle, Cron, & Slocum, 2001) Extensive streams of research on goal orientation have since followed, not only in the educational (e.g Meece, Blumenfeld, & Hoyle, 1988; Ng, 1999), but also in the industrial- Chapter 5: Discussion & Conclusion Nevertheless, our findings still provide evidence that learning goal orientation is able to significantly predict task outcomes and behaviours under a complex situation while a performance goal orientation is unable to so Hence, benefits of a given goal orientation may very much depend on the task context Also, an important contribution of this study is that it highlights the relevance of perceived challenge and threat as an explanation of the goal orientation-task outcome relationships 59 Ackerman, P L., & Humphreys L G (1990) Individual difference theory 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Choose out of stocks + 1RF Give Up Post-Task Questionnaire Exit Post-Task Questionnaire Advance to Most Complex Stage Choices: Remain, Advance or Give Up? Choices: Remain Post-Task Questionnaire Start Portfolio Selection Task Advance to Moderately Complex Stage Choices: Remain, Advance or Give Up? Concept Quiz & Practice Tutorial Trials Remain Choose out of stocks + 1RF Trials Remain Choose out of stocks + 1RF Trials Fundamental Finance Concepts APPENDIX B - DIAGRAMMATIC FLOW OF EXPERIMENTAL TASK End Task End Task End Task 67 Appendices Appendices APPENDIX C – SCALES FOR INDEPENDENT VARIABLES Learning Goal Orientation (Button et al., 1996) 7-point Likert-type scale; strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (7) The opportunity to challenging work is important to me When I fail to complete a difficult task, I plan to try harder the next time I work on it I prefer to work on tasks that force me to learn new things The opportunity to learn new things is important to me I my best when I am working on a fairly difficult task I try hard to improve on my past performance The opportunity to extend the range of my abilities is important to me When I have difficulty solving a problem, I enjoy trying different approaches to see which one will work Performance Goal Orientation (Button et al., 1996) 7-point Likert-type scale; strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (7) I prefer to things that I can well rather than things that I poorly I am happiest at work when I perform tasks on which I know that I won’t make any errors The things I enjoy the most are the things I the best The opinions other have about how well I can certain things are important to me I feel smart when I something without making any mistake I like to be fairly confident that I can successfully perform a task before I attempt it I like to work on tasks that I have done well in the past I feel smart when I can something better than most other people 68 Appendices APPENDIX D – SCALES FOR MEDIATORS Perceived Challenge (Drach-Zahavy & Erez, 2002) 7-point Likert-type scale; strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (7) The task seems like a challenge to me The task provides opportunities to exercise reasoning skills The task provides opportunities to overcome obstacles The task provides opportunities to strengthen my self-esteem Overall, I think I’ll succeed in carrying out the task I think that I have the abilities necessary for successful performance Perceived Threat (Drach-Zahavy & Erez, 2002) 7-point Likert-type scale; strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (7) The task seems like a threat to me I’m worried that the task might reveal my weaknesses The task seems long and tiresome I’m worried that the task might threaten my self-esteem Overall, it seems that I cannot succeed in a task like this I’m worried that I lack the abilities to perform the task successfully 69 Appendices APPENDIX E – SCALES FOR CONTROL VARIABLES Goal Acceptance (Renn et al., 1999) 5-point Likert-type scale; strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5) I accept the goal assigned to my by my clients I honestly accept the assigned goal The goal I have been asked to work towards is reasonable 70 Appendices APPENDIX F – SCALES FOR MANIPULATION CHECKS Perceived Task Complexity (constructed based on definition given by Wood, 1986) 10-point Likert-type scale You had to go through a few decision-making processes in this simulation game How would you describe the amount of information you have to attend to as well as process just to make these decisions? (very little (1) to very much (10)) Select the response that best represents how you feel about the following statement: I find that I have to change my decisions frequently because what worked well for a trial did not turn out as well for another (do not agree (1) to agree (10)) Overall, how complex was the task of being a fund manage in these simulations? (very simple (1) to very complex (10)) Task Familiarity 10-point Likert-type scale; very unfamiliar (1) to very familiar (10) How familiar were you with a Portfolio Simulation Game before you played this one? Perceived Goal Specificity (Locke and Latham, 1990) 5-point Likert-type scale; strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5) I understand exactly what I am supposed to for this portfolio simulation game The assigned goal has been stated explicitly I have specific, clear goals to aim for Perceived Goal Difficulty (Locke and Latham, 1984) 5-point Likert-type scale; strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5) The goal set by my clients is challenging The goal set by my clients will stretch my limits the goal set by my clients is so hard it becomes discouraging 71 Appendices APPENDIX G – SUMMARY OF FINDINGS FOR HYPOTHESES Hypothesis Learning goal orientation will be positively related to acceptance of challenge Result Supported (χ2 (2, N = 225) = 5.82; p ≤ 05) H1b Performance goal orientation will be negatively related to acceptance of challenge Not supported H2a Learning goal orientation will be positively related to persistence Supported (β = 19; p ≤ 01) H2b Performance goal orientation will be negatively related to persistence Not supported H3a Learning goal orientation will be positively related to information search Not supported H3b Performance goal orientation will be negatively related to information search Not supported H4a Learning goal orientation will be positively related to risk taking Not supported H4b Performance goal orientation will be negatively related to risk taking Not supported H5a Learning goal orientation will be positively related to performance Supported (β = 18; p ≤ 01) H5b Performance goal orientation will be negatively related to performance Not supported H6a Perceived challenge will be positively related to task outcomes, and will mediate the relationship between goal orientation and task outcomes Partially supported H1a Perceived challenge positively related to: ƒ Acceptance of challenge (r = 33, p ≤ 01), ƒ Persistence (r = 29, p ≤ 01), ƒ Risk taking (r = 19, p ≤ 01), ƒ Performance (r = 27, p ≤ 01) ƒ But not Information search Perceived challenge mediated the relationship between LGO and: ƒ Acceptance of challenge (χ2 (2, N = 225) = 12.86; p ≤ 001), ƒ Persistence (β = 21; p ≤ 01) ƒ Performance (β = 18; p ≤ 05) ƒ But not Information Search and Risk taking 72 Appendices H6b Perceived threat will be negatively related to task outcomes, and will mediate the relationship between goal orientation and task outcomes Partially supported Perceived threat negatively related to: ƒ Acceptance of challenge (r = -.37, p ≤ 01) ƒ Persistence (r = -.35, p ≤ 01) ƒ But not Information search, Risk taking and Performance Perceived threat mediated the relationship between LGO and: ƒ Acceptance of challenge (χ2 (2, N = 225) = 14.39; p ≤ 001) ƒ Persistence (β = - 29; p ≤ 001) ƒ But not Information search, Risk taking and Performance H7a Learning goal orientation is positively related to the perception of the task as a challenge, and negatively related to the perception of the task as a threat Supported LGO positively related with perceived challenge (β = 52, p ≤ 001) LGO negatively related with perceived threat (β = 31, p ≤ 001) H7b Performance goal orientation is positively related to the perception of the task as a threat, and negatively related to the perception of the task as a challenge Partially supported PGO positively related to perceived threat (β = 19, p ≤ 001) However, PGO positively related to perceived challenge (β = 21, p ≤ 001) Note: LGO denotes learning goal orientation and PGO denotes performance goal orientation 73 [...]... links goal orientation to outcomes is the perception of the degree of threat and challenge that the situation presents and it is proposed that H6a: Perceived challenge will be positively related to task outcomes, and will mediate the relationship between goal orientation and task outcomes H6b: Perceived threat will be negatively related to task outcomes, and will mediate the relationship between goal orientation. .. will mediate the relationship between goal orientation and task outcomes 2.3.1 Goal Orientation Effects on Perceived Challenge and Threat A learning goal orientation has been associated with higher intrinsic motivation and affect than a performance goal orientation under high task demands situations (Steele-Johnson et al, 2000) Mastering the task and finding effective strategies are also the main objectives... goal orientation and its effects on task outcomes, followed by the mediation effects of perceived challenge and threat Figure 1 below shows a diagram relating to the hypotheses of this study LGO denotes learning goal orientation; PGO denotes performance goal orientation; Challenge denotes perceived challenge and threat denotes perceived threat Figure 1: Hypotheses H1a, H2a, H3a, H4a & H5a / + LGO Task. .. performance goal orientation were measured as separate factors The outcome variables were acceptance of challenge, persistence, information search, risk taking, and performance The mediator variables were the participants’ perceived task challenge and perceived task threat, which were also measured as separate variables 3.3 EXPERIMENTAL TASK The computer simulated portfolio selection task was adapted... questionnaire designed to assess dispositional goal orientations, was administered about two weeks before the task Goal orientation was assessed prior the experimental task to preserve causal order and preclude the situation from influencing measures conceptualized as stable dispositions As 1 This task qualifies as a complex task, (having component complexity, coordinative complexity and coordinative complexity,)... performance goal orientation to elicit more positive behaviours and performance outcomes on learning new and difficult tasks (Beaubien & Payne, 1999), it is hypothesized that under a complex task situation, H6a: Learning goal orientation is positively related to the perception of the task a challenge, and negatively related to the perception of the task as a threat H6b: Performance goal orientation. .. available resources to cope with task demands, related to perceived threat) However, a complex task needs extra effort and a larger number of task strategies to be learnt before one can perform the task effectively Even so, effective task strategies can change consistently with the required task demands In turn, rehearsing strategies that are not related to effective task strategies and allocating attentional... appraise the task as a challenge than those under the approach or avoidance goal orientation instructions Those under the approach goal orientation instructions were also more likely to assess the task as a challenge compared to those under the avoidance goal orientation instructions Also, the challenge appraisal partially mediated the effects of the manipulated mastery, approach and avoidance goal orientations... perception of threat and challenge, and that the perception in turn affects the task outcomes In fact, Elliot and Harackiewicz (1996) did study mediator effects of challenge and threat appraisals on the relation between manipulated goal orientations and intrinsic motivation It 14 Chapter 2: Literature Review & Research Hypotheses was found that the subjects under the mastery goal orientation instructions... simple task contexts, while under complex task situations, its effects remain mixed 2.1.1 Goal Orientation and Task Complexity Task complexity is an important factor because researchers have found that it influences the effects of goal orientations (Steele-Johnson et al, 2000; Utman, 1997) Extant research in goal setting has also shown that difficult goals tend to elicit better performance in simpler tasks, ... Perceived Challenge and Threat 4.2.2 Perceived Challenge and Threat Effects on Task Outcomes 4.2.3 Goal Orientation Effects on Task Outcomes and Mediation Effects of Perceived Challenge and Threat. .. to task outcomes, and will mediate the relationship between goal orientation and task outcomes 2.3.1 Goal Orientation Effects on Perceived Challenge and Threat A learning goal orientation has... 2.1 Goal Orientation 2.1.1 Goal Orientation and Task Complexity Goal Orientation Effects on Task Outcomes 2.2.1 Goal Orientation Effects on Acceptance of Challenge and Persistence 2.2.2 Goal Orientation