Deck 2: Understanding Motivation

Question 1

All of the following are indicators of motivated behavior EXCEPT:

A) Choice of behavior
B) Declaration of intent to achieve goals
C) Level of activity and involvement
D) Persistence and management of effort

Answer 1

B

Question 2

The most detrimental motivational profile to have in college is that of a(n):

A) Overstriver
B) Failure avoider
C) Failure acceptor
D) All of the above

Answer 2

C

Question 3

All of the following are sociocultural factors that influence motivation EXCEPT:

A) Parental expectations
B) Socioeconomic levels
C) Self-efficacy
D) Level of parental education

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Stereotype threat is:

A) The anger a person feels when someone uses a stereotype against them
B) The belief that a person cannot succeed because of a largely known stereotype
C) The fear of doing something that would inadvertently confirm a stereotype
D) The fear of threatening someone else with a stereotype and causing them to fail

Question 5

Stereotype threat tends to lower performance owing to the burden it places on the:

A) Short-term sensory store
B) Working memory
C) Long-term memory
D) None of the above

Question 6

Which of the following has been shown to reduce stereotype threat?

A) A growth mindset
B) Vicarious experiences
C) Both a and b
D) None of the above

Question 7

Which of the following environmental factors may influence your motivation?

A) Diversity of your classmates
B) The amount of time it takes to receive feedback from the professor
C) Whether or not you are being graded on a curve
D) All of the above
E) None of the above

Question 8

"Even though I don't enjoy this subject, I work hard because I see myself as a good student," is an example of which value orientation?

A) Intrinsic value (personal interest)
B) Attainment value (importance value)
C) Extrinsic value (usefulness value)
D) None of the above

Question 9

"I am majoring in neuroscience, because I am passionate about how the brain works," is an example of which value orientation?

A) Intrinsic value (personal interest)
B) Attainment value (importance value)
C) Extrinsic value (usefulness value)
D) None of the above

Question 10

"I'm majoring in political science, so I can be a lawyer and earn a high salary," is an example of which value orientation?

A) Intrinsic value (personal interest)
B) Attainment value (importance value)
C) Extrinsic value (usefulness value)
D) None of the above

Question 11

It is important for you to become aware of your possible selves because:

A) Possible selves play a role in directing your behavior
B) You may work harder to avoid a feared future self
C) Possible selves only help your motivation if you are conscious of them
D) a and b
E) a and c

Question 12

Self-efficacy is:

A) A belief about one's overall academic ability
B) The feeling one has about one's overall academic ability
C) The belief about one's confidence in completing a specific task
D) The feeling about oneself as a student

Question 13

According to Covington, students often procrastinate in order to protect their:

A) Self-concept
B) Self-efficacy
C) Self-esteem
D) Self-worth

Question 14

An example of an external and uncontrollable attribution for failing an exam is:

A) "I didn't put enough effort into studying."
B) "I have the worst luck on exams."
C) "I had the flu."
D) None of the above.

Question 15

An example of an internal and controllable attribution for failing an exam is:

A) "I didn't put enough effort into studying."
B) "I have the worst luck on exams."
C) "I had the flu."
D) None of the above.

Question 16

Preethi had an important presentation in her linguistics class, but she waited until the last minute to start working on it. She frantically gathered articles the day before, but did not have enough time to thoroughly read them. As a result, her presentation was lacking, and she was not able to answer some of the questions posed to her by her professor and classmates. When Preethi received her grade, she was disappointed but realized it was due to her lack of preparation. Preethi's attribution for her failure was:

A) Internal and uncontrollable
B) Internal and controllable
C) External and uncontrollable
D) External and controllable

Question 17

Marcus was having difficulty in completing writing assignments in several of his courses. Before long, he began to have increased anxiety when writing assignments were due and would wait until the last minute to start them. Upon finding out that the final in his sociology class was an in-class essay, he stopped coming to class. He felt like there was no hope for him-he was never going to be a strong writer. He eventually dropped the course, because he knew he would fail it anyway. Marcus's attribution for his continued failure in writing is:

A) Internal and uncontrollable
B) Internal and controllable
C) External and uncontrollable
D) External and controllable

Question 18

Motivation is exhibited by the following behavioral indices: choice of behavior, level of activity and involvement, and persistence and management of effort.

Question 19

Students who do not value a course enough to put in their maximum effort are often lazy or unmotivated.

Question 20

"I'm not doing as well as I can, but I will improve," is an example of performance goal orientation.

Question 21

Self-efficacy is similar to self-esteem as both reflect how we feel about ourselves.

Question 22

When people fail for uncontrollable reasons, they experience shame.

Question 23

Effort is an internal and controllable attribution.

Question 24

Effort and ability are the two most common academic attributions.

Question 25

Internal and controllable attributions are the most adaptive.

Question 26

Boredom is an internal and uncontrollable attribution.

Question 27

Help-seeking is an external and controllable attribution.

Question 28

Read the following statements. Write M if the statement is an example of a mastery orientation or P if it is an example of a performance orientation.
-"I can see my improvement in this class and it's encouraging me to keep going."

A) Mastery
B) Performance

Question 29

Read the following statements. Write M if the statement is an example of a mastery orientation or P if it is an example of a performance orientation.
-"I thought I did well on my paper, but then I saw that Jim got a higher score than I did."

A) Mastery
B) Performance

Question 30

Read the following statements. Write M if the statement is an example of a mastery orientation or P if it is an example of a performance orientation.
-"It's important for me to do better than my friends and classmates."

A) Mastery
B) Performance

Question 31

Read the following statements. Write M if the statement is an example of a mastery orientation or P if it is an example of a performance orientation.
-"I'm creating representations to make sense of this material, so I can learn it well."

A) Mastery
B) Performance

Question 32

Read the following statements. Write M if the statement is an example of a mastery orientation or P if it is an example of a performance orientation.
-"I may have gotten a lower score than my last exam, but at least I scored higher than everyone else."

A) Mastery
B) Performance

Question 33

Read the following statements. Write M if the statement is an example of a mastery orientation or P if it is an example of a performance orientation.
-"I enjoy finding extra material to read for this course.
"

A) Mastery
B) Performance

Question 34

How can fear of failure influence a student's motivation and behavior?

Question 35

Explain the key differences between self-efficacy and self-worth.

Question 36

Define and explain social persuasion and vicarious experiences.

Question 37

Explain stereotype threat. List and explain two strategies that have been proven helpful in reducing stereotype threat.

Question 38

Explain the relationship between stereotype threat and the information-processing system.

Question 39

Which type of goal orientation is more adaptive to learning? Explain.

Question 40

Explain 2 sociocultural factors that may cause adversity for a minority student who is the first in her family to attend college.

Question 41

If a student attributes her failure on a test to a lack of effort rather than ability, what is she most likely to do for the next test, and why?

Question 42

Your level of motivation in college is affected by both internal and sociocultural factors. Identify and describe two internal factors AND two sociocultural factors that influence your level of motivation (total of four factors). Be specific about using key terms referred to in lectures and the textbook in your discussion.

Question 43

Your friend just received a D- on a foreign language exam that he took after having been out of town owing to a family emergency. Consequently, he did not have a chance to prepare. Without looking at the exam and analyzing which answers he got wrong, he has decided to drop the course because he does not feel he has the ability to pass it. In fact, he never wants to try learning another language again. First, explain how attribution theory could be used to interpret your friend's reaction to his grade. Then, make a suggestion about how your friend can change his perspective.