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While intergroup contact is effective in reducing prejudice toward outgroup members, especially under positive conditions (Pettigrew & Tropp, 2006), more research is needed to concentrate on how to avoid and overcome negative psychological experiences of intergroup contact, e.g., intergroup anxiety and discomfort (Dovidio, Kawakami, & Gaertner, 2002; Stephan & Stephan, 1985). The anxiety and discomfort people feel during intergroup contact largely involve ego concerns (Crocker & Garcia, 2006), or the implications of cross-group interactions for one’s self (see also Vorauer & Kumhyr, 2001). Therefore, it is suggested that one approach to improving peoples’ expectations for and experiences in intergroup contact is setting the goals that would shift their focus away from the self and toward learning about their outgroup partners. Adapting a goal distinction framework from the academic achievement literature (Dweck & Elliot, 1983; Grant & Dweck, 2003), we hypothesized that shifting one’s focus from performance to learning will reduce their negative affect and enhance group members’ expectations for and experiences in intergroup contact. In both studies 1 and 2, participants’ self-reported data did not converge with our original predictions. However, participants’ nonverbal behaviors observed in Study 2 evidenced support for the positive effect of the learning orientation on participants’ experiences in anticipation of and during intergroup contact.

While self-determination researchers emphasize the importance of pursuing internally motivated goals for self-regulation, cybernetic theorists instead highlight the structural features of goal systems and the manner in which such structural features should facilitate controlled behavior in daily life. However, it was our intuition that a consideration of both these literatures might best explain self-regulatory processes in daily life. Along these lines, we conducted two studies in which we measured the degree to which a person's goals are organized in hierarchical manner with respect to their intrinsic versus extrinsic properties. In Study 1, we found that individuals with hierarchical goal structures were less likely to experience increased motivation to quit following frustrating events. Consistent with this pattern, in Study 2 we found that negative feedback concerning goal progress adversely affected only those without hierarchical goal structures. Implications of these findings for perspectives on self-regulation are discussed, as well as potential new directions for testing cybernetic concepts within human functioning.

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Human beings have always had goals which they have tried to reach. With the pace of the technological development, requests for digitalized solutions to problems which previously have been faced without technology increase. This study tests whether a web application could help users to achieve their goals. This was conducted by implementing three functions: Monetary incentive, publication and reminders. The functions’ design and implementations of these are supported by scientific theory. The purpose is to increase the number of users who fulfil their goals, thus helping people to achieve goals, with the help of the three implemented functions. In this study, a user test is conducted with the web application’s functions where the results are based on a test group. The user test results in both quantitative and qualitative data. The results of the study shows that a web application is a possible tool to increase the users’ chances of reaching their goals. This report also presents suggestions for improvement of the functions, which was clarified in the user tests. / Människor har i alla tider haft mål som de försökt uppnå. I takt med den tekniska utvecklingen ökar efterfrågan på digitaliserade lösningar på problem som tidigare hanterats utan tekniskt stöd. I denna studie testas huruvida en webbapplikation kan hjälpa användare att nå sina mål. Det utfördes genom att implementera de tre funktionerna monetära incitament, offentliggörande och påminnelser. Funktionernas design och implementeringen av dessa stöds via vetenskaplig teori. Syftet är att med hjälp av dessa funktioner öka antalet användare som uppfyller sina mål, sålunda hjälpa människor klara sina mål, med hjälp av de tre funktionerna. I arbetet utförs ett användartest med webbapplikationens funktioner där resultaten baseras på en testgrupp. Användartestet resulterar i både kvantitativa och kvalitativa data. Resultaten av arbetet visar på att en webbapplikation med de tre funktionerna är ett möjligt verktyg till att öka användarens chanser att nå sina mål. I arbetet påvisas även förslag kring hur utformningen av dessa funktioner vidare skulle kunna förbättras, något som klargjordes främst av data från användartestet.

The purpose of the current study was to examine the effectiveness of preparatory training for mentors and proteges with respect to relationship processes and outcomes. Specifically, it was proposed that training provided to mentors and their proteges should foster a high learning goal orientation and a low avoid goal orientation. The former is associated with learning for the sake of continuous improvement and the latter is associated with a willingness to be perceived by others as having failed at a task. It was hypothesized that mentors and proteges who received goal orientation training prior to beginning their formal mentoring sessions would engage in greater feedback-seeking and would be more willing to self-disclose potentially ego-threatening information. Moreover, it was expected that training would also lead participants to expect such behaviors from their partners and as a result respond more positively when the desired behaviors were demonstrated. Eighty (i.e., first and second semester freshmen) were paired with eighty mentors (i.e., college juniors and seniors with a minimum grade point average of 3.0), resulting in a total of 160 study participants. All participants received one hour of preparatory training. A two by two factorial design was employed whereby mentors and proteges each received either goal orientation training or training simply designed to orient them to computer-mediated communication. After training, mentors and proteges met with one another using online chat for four, 30-minute weekly chat sessions. Results indicated that a) proteges in a high state of avoid goal orientation felt they received less psychosocial support the more their mentor disclosed his/her own personal downfalls, b) mentors who received goal orientation training felt they had provided greater career support the more their proteges sought feedback but the reverse was true for mentors who did not receive goal orientation training, c) mentor self-disclosure was more strongly related to their protege's self-disclosure if the protege had received goal orientation training, and finally d) mentor and protege perceptions of the psychosocial and career support that had been provided/received during online sessions were more strongly correlated if the two had received the same type of preparatory training (especially if both received goal orientation training).

The push to further the use of technology in learning has broadened the attempts of many to find innovated ways to aid the new, technologically savvy generation of learners, in acquiring the knowledge needed for their education and training. A critical component to the success of these initiatives is the proper application of the science of learning (Cannon-Bowers and Bowers, 2009). One technological initiative that can benefit from this application is the use of synthetic learning environments (SLEs). SLEs are instructional systems embedded within virtual worlds. These worlds can be simulations of some task, for instance a simulation that may be completed as part of a military training to mimic specific situations, or they could be in the form of a video game, for example, a game designed to maintain the attention of school children while teaching mathematics. The important components to SLEs are a connection to the underlying task being trained and a set of goals for which to strive toward. SLEs have many unique characteristics which separate them from other forms of education. Two of the most salient characteristics are the instructorless nature of SLEs (most of the learning from SLEs happens without instructor interaction) and the fact that in many cases SLEs are actually fun and engaging, thus motivating the learner to participate more and allowing them to experience a more immersive interaction. Incorporating the latter of these characteristics into a model originally introduced by Davis (1989) and adapted by Yi and Hwang (2003) for use with web applications, an expanded model to predict the effects of enjoyment, goal orientation, ease of use, and several other factors on the overall use of SLEs has been created. Adapting the Davis and Yi and Hwang models for the specific use of SLEs provides a basis understanding how each of the critical input variables effect the use and thus effectiveness of learning tools based on SLEs. In particular, performance goal orientation has been added to the existing models to more accurately reflect the performance characteristics present in games. Results of this study have shown that, in fact, performance goal orientation is a significant factor in the SLE Use and Learning model. However, within the model it is important to distinguish that the two varieties of performance goal orientation (prove and avoid) play different roles. Prove performance goal orientation has been shown to have significant relationships with several other critical factors while avoid performance goal orientation is only accounted for in its significant correlation with prove performance goal orientation. With this understanding, training developers can now have a better understanding of where their resources should be spent to promote more efficient and effective learning. The results of this study allow developers to move forward with confidence in the fact that their new learning environments will be effective in a number of realms, not only limited to classroom, business, or military training.

The plan of care in occupational therapy for caregivers of children with acquired brain injury (ABI), created through goal setting, is the foundation for providing services in a pediatric neurorehabilitation setting. During the first year after the injury, caregivers often experience gaps in education, feelings of decreased competence, and decreased understanding of the recovery process. These factors can make developing goals a challenge for caregivers and service providers alike. Although a number of goal-setting mechanisms exist, they currently lack options sensitive to this population’s unique needs. This project set out to explore the clinical barriers involved in goal setting in pediatric rehabilitation and to develop a relevant solution that guides the process. The results identified two theoretical models to use as “lenses” by which the problem was explored and understood. An explanatory model was developed to highlight relationships among contributing factors. A thorough review of evidence was conducted and synthesized to support the explanatory model, and existing solutions explored. Shared-decision making in healthcare through the use of decision aids was identified and investigated as a promising direction for solution development. The Guide for Occupational ALliance (GOAL) in Pediatric Rehabilitation is a shared decision-making and measurement tool designed to facilitate collaborative goal setting with caregivers of children with ABI. The GOAL fosters a family-centered approach that provides education while facilitating discussion around caregiver preferences. Additionally, it gathers helpful outcome data on caregivers’ comfort and satisfaction with goal setting in order to gauge change over time. The GOAL implementation will involve gathering insights, testing the tool, and disseminating the findings. It will be evaluated in three phases: Phase 1, a needs-assessment process involving collection of caregiver and clinician data; Phase 2, a pilot test of the GOAL to explore its effectiveness, content relevance, validity, and benefits; and Phase 3, a repeated measure-outcomes study to understand its reliability, validity, and effectiveness. The GOAL provides an opportunity to enhance collaboration during goal setting with caregivers of children with ABI and their occupational therapy service providers for optimal outcomes.

Motivation and goal-setting are important concepts in athletics and sport and exercise psychology. However, little research has compared motivation and goal-setting by gender. The self-determination theory was used and the purpose of this study was to determine if there is a difference between male and female athletes when looking at amotivation, external regulation, identified regulation, intrinsic motivation, and goal-setting. One hundred and six student-athletes (fifty one males and fifty five females) from a Division I college in Virginia participated in the study. These student-athletes compete in either cross country (n= 7), track (n = 16), field (n= 16), track and cross country (n= 8), track and field (n= 2), track, field and cross country (n= 2), swimming (n= 47), or diving (n= 8). The student-athletes completed two instruments; the Situational Motivation Scale (SIMS) and a goal-setting questionnaire. The results revealed that there was a significant difference between gender and question number two of the Situational Motivation Scale (“because I’m doing it for my own good.”) There was no significant difference when comparing gender to amotivation, external regulation, identified regulation, and intrinsic motivation. There was no significant finding between gender and the use of goal-setting. Lastly, a significant difference was found on number twelve of the goal-setting questionnaire (“I believe setting goals helps improve my performance”) based on year in college. In conclusion, there were no significant differences found between male and female athletes when looking at amotivation, external regulation, and intrinsic motivation. Significance was found on one identified regulation question. Females reported that they are participating in the sport –for their own good– more than males. There were no significant differences found between male and female athletes when looking at goal-setting. / Ph. D.