Achievement goals refer to the aim, purpose, or focus of a person’s achievement behavior. These goals are dynamic cognitive entities representing future-based possibilities that respond to changes in the person as well as the situation. They do not refer strictly to the level of aspired performance (as in the goal-setting literature) but, rather, to how
Every waking moment we face an important selection problem. How do we pick some information for further processing while ignoring almost everything else? This problem is not easy to solve given the brevity and fragility of our working memory (the mental system that regulates our conscious awareness) and the all but unlimited array of information
The theory of reasoned action and theory of planned behavior have been influential cognitive models for understanding and predicting social behavior across a variety of domains. Both focus on the question of how to determine the likelihood that an individual will engage in a specific behavior. The theory of reasoned action exam-ines determinants of volitional
Item response theory (IRT), also called latent trait theory, is a psychometric theory that was created to better understand how individuals respond to individual items on psychological and educational tests. The underlying theory is built around a series of mathematical formulas that have parameters that need to be estimated using complex statistical algorithms. These parameters
Measurement is the process of quantifying the characteristics of a person or object. Theories of measurement help to explain measurement results (i.e., scores), thereby providing a rationale for how they are interpreted and treated mathematically and statistically. Classical test theory (CTT) is a measurement theory used primarily in psychology, education, and related fields. It was
Equity theory is a conceptualization that focuses on the causes and consequences of people’s perceptions of equity and inequity in their relationships with others. First proposed by J. Stacy Adams in 1963 and fully developed in a chapter published 2 years later, equity theory draws on earlier social psychological concepts inspired by Fritz Heider’s balance
Drive Theory Definition Drive refers to increased arousal and internal motivation to reach a particular goal. Psychologists differentiate between primary and secondary drives. Primary drives are directly related to survival and include the need for food, water, and oxygen. Secondary or acquired drives are those that are culturally determined or learned, such as the drive
Carol Gilligan was born on November 28, 1936, in New York City. She graduated from Swarthmore College in 1958, majoring in literature. She received her Masters in clinical psychology in 1960 from Radcliffe University and her PhD in social psychology from Harvard University in 1964. She began teaching at Harvard in 1967, becoming a full
David Valentine Tiedeman received his B.A. in psychology at Union College in 1941. Tiedeman would receive a master’s from the University of Rochester in 1943 and go on to Harvard to complete degrees in educational measurement both his Ed.M. in 1948 and an Ed.D. in 1949. While at Harvard, Tiedeman was mentored by the renowned
The origin of John L. Holland’s theory of vocational personalities can be traced back to his 1966 publication Psychology of Vocational Choice, which was followed by four subsequent editions of Making Vocational Choices. With each edition, Holland built a more comprehensive theory of career counseling and tackled new issues arising from the complex relationship between