26
This is the author’s version of a work that was submitted/accepted for pub- lication in the following source: Gilmore, Linda, Cuskelly, Monica,& Purdie, Nola (2003) Mastery Motiva- tion: Stability and Predictive Validity from Ages Two to Eight. Early Educa- tion and Development, 14(4), pp. 411-424. This file was downloaded from: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis This is a preprint of an article submitted for consideration in the Early Ed- ucation and Development c 2003 [copyright Taylor & Francis]; Early Ed- ucation and Development is available online at: www.tandfonline.com with the open URL of your article, which would be the following address: http://www.tandfonline.com/openurl?genre=article&issn=10409289&volume=14&issue=4&spage=41 Notice: Changes introduced as a result of publishing processes such as copy-editing and formatting may not be reflected in this document. For a definitive version of this work, please refer to the published source: http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15566935eed1404_2

c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

  • Upload
    others

  • View
    2

  • Download
    0

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

Page 1: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

This is the author’s version of a work that was submitted/accepted for pub-lication in the following source:

Gilmore, Linda, Cuskelly, Monica, & Purdie, Nola (2003) Mastery Motiva-tion: Stability and Predictive Validity from Ages Two to Eight. Early Educa-tion and Development, 14(4), pp. 411-424.

This file was downloaded from: http://eprints.qut.edu.au/10671/

c© Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

This is a preprint of an article submitted for consideration in the Early Ed-ucation and Development c© 2003 [copyright Taylor & Francis]; Early Ed-ucation and Development is available online at: www.tandfonline.com withthe open URL of your article, which would be the following address:http://www.tandfonline.com/openurl?genre=article&issn=10409289&volume=14&issue=4&spage=411

Notice: Changes introduced as a result of publishing processes such ascopy-editing and formatting may not be reflected in this document. For adefinitive version of this work, please refer to the published source:

http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15566935eed1404_2

brought to you by COREView metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk

provided by Queensland University of Technology ePrints Archive

Page 2: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 1

Running head:

MASTERY MOTIVATION

Gilmore, L., Cuskelly, M., & Purdie, N. (2003). Mastery motivation: Stability and

predictive validity from ages two to eight. Early Education and Development, 14(4), 411-424.

Mastery motivation: Stability and predictive validity from ages two to eight

Linda Gilmore

School of Learning and Professional Studies

Queensland University of Technology

Brisbane, Australia

Monica Cuskelly

Fred and Eleanor Schonell Special Education Research Centre

School of Education

The University of Queensland

Brisbane, Australia

Nola Purdie

School of Learning and Professional Studies

Queensland University of Technology

Brisbane, Australia

Address correspondence to the first author at

School of Learning and Professional Studies

Queensland University of Technology

Victoria Park Road

Kelvin Grove QLD 4059 Australia

Fax 61 7 3864 3987

E-mail [email protected]

Page 3: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 2

Mastery motivation: Stability and predictive validity from ages two to eight

Abstract

Forty-three children participated in a longitudinal study of mastery motivation.

Children’s levels of mastery motivation (persistence) and cognitive functioning were

measured at ages 2 and 8. In addition, academic achievement was measured at age 8.

Task persistence was stable across time for girls only, but maternal reports of mastery

motivation were not consistent across the two ages for either gender. Maternal reports,

but not task persistence, at age 2 predicted cognitive functioning and academic

achievement at age 8 for girls. No predictive relationships were evident for boys, and

boys were significantly less persistent than girls with a task requiring sustained effort at

age 8. The findings offer empirical support for the view that early motivation is

important for later functioning. Significant gender differences suggest that, in this

respect, girls and boys may develop differently or be influenced by different contextual

experiences. The need for educators to base their practice on a more complete

understanding of how motivation develops in both boys and girls is stressed.

Page 4: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 3

Mastery motivation: Stability and predictive validity from ages two to eight

The construct of mastery motivation has received considerable attention in early

childhood research over the past 25 years and has been described as one of the core

concepts of development (Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000). Research within the paradigm has

developed from White’s (1959) conceptualisation of an inherent drive for competence,

and Harter’s (1978, 1981) subsequent operationalisation of this theory. Described as “a

psychological force that stimulates an individual to attempt independently, in a focused

and persistent manner, to solve a problem or master a skill or task which is at least

moderately challenging for him or her” (Morgan, Harmon & Maslin-Cole, 1990, p. 319),

mastery motivation is most frequently operationalised as persistence with challenging,

but developmentally appropriate, tasks (Barrett & Morgan, 1995; Morgan, Busch-

Rossnagel, Maslin-Cole & Harmon, 1992).

In mastery motivation research there is usually an implicit assumption that

patterns of motivation are established early in life (Carlton & Winsler, 1998) and that

mastery motivation is important for later cognitive competence (see, for example, Barrett

& Morgan, 1995). It is surprising, then, that links with achievement motivation and

competence in middle childhood have not yet been established empirically (Messer,

1993; Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000) for as Gottfried, Fleming and Gottfried (2001) have

pointed out, “the issue of continuity is of central importance for understanding

development” (p. 3).

Across the early childhood years, there is some evidence of stability in measures

of mastery motivation. Moderate to high stability has been established in infancy

Page 5: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 4

(Hrncir, Speller & West, 1985) and from 3½ to 4½ years (Jennings, Connors & Stegman,

1988). Two studies found significant correlations from infancy to the preschool years in

boys, but not girls (Jennings, Yarrow & Martin, 1984; Vondra, 1987, cited in MacTurk,

Morgan & Jennings, 1995). Other studies have established only low or modest

correlations of measures from 6 to 12 months of age (Yarrow et al., 1983) and during the

second year of life (Frodi, Bridges & Grolnick, 1985; Maslin-Cole, Bretherton &

Morgan, 1993).

Since mastery behaviors represent the processes a child uses to become competent

(Barrett, Morgan & Maslin-Cole, 1993; Hunt, 1965), cognitive competence should be

predictable from previous measures of mastery motivation (Morgan et al., 1990; Morgan,

Maslin-Cole, Biringen & Harmon, 1991). In early childhood, several studies have

confirmed this relationship over periods ranging from 6 months to several years.

(Jennings et al., 1984; Messer et al., 1986; Sigman, Cohen, Beckwith & Topinka, 1987).

Jennings et al.’s results were, however, specific to girls with measures of mastery

motivation at 12 months predicting cognitive competence at 3½ years. Similarly, Messer

et al. found persistence within a goal directed task at 12 months to be significantly

correlated with cognitive ability at 30 months for girls but not for boys. Boys and girls

showed similar associations of persistence at age 2 with cognitive functioning 1 to 3

years later in Sigman et al.’s study of children born prematurely.

There appear to be no studies reporting on relationships between mastery

motivation in early childhood and measures of cognitive competence and academic

achievement in the early years of schooling, despite assumptions about the predictive

value of mastery motivation (see, for example, Carlton & Winsler, 1998; McCall, 1995).

Page 6: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 5

Evidence from longitudinal studies is required to validate the construct of mastery

motivation and to enhance our understanding of the development of motivation.

The aims of the current study were to investigate the stability and predictive

validity of early childhood measures of mastery motivation. Within a framework of

possible gender differences, the study addressed the following questions:

What relationships exist among concurrent measures of mastery motivation and

competence at ages 2 and 8?

Are measures of mastery motivation at age 2 related to measures of mastery

motivation at age 8?

Are measures of mastery motivation at age 2 related to children’s intellectual and

academic competence at age 8?

Method

Participants

The participants were 43 typically developing children (20 girls) who were

recruited using a variety of methods including approaches to playgroups and childcare

centres, and referrals from other families. All children were at least second generation

Australian except for two whose fathers were born outside Australia. In the first phase of

the study (Gilmore, Cuskelly & Hayes, 2003) the children were aged between 2 and 3

years (mean CA = 2 years 6 months). The majority of children attended weekly

playgroups with their mothers and a few went to daycare settings on an occasional basis.

The sample represented a range of levels of education and occupation. Using an 8-point

scale in which 1 represented education up to junior high school and 8 was equivalent to

postgraduate study, fathers and mothers had mean education levels of 5.10 (SD = 2.46)

Page 7: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 6

and 4.09 (SD = 2.56), respectively. Occupational status was ranked using the Australian

Standard Classification of Occupations (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 1992) and re-

coded so that the direction of the two scales was the same: one denoted labourers/related

workers and 8 signified managers/administrators. Occupational rankings for mothers

who were not employed at the time of the study were based on their most recent

occupation. On this scale, the means for father and mother occupation were 5.67 (SD =

2.20) and 4.74 (SD = 1.66), respectively.

All 43 families were located and agreed to take part in the second phase of the

study. At that time, the children’s ages ranged from 7½ years to just over 9 years (mean

CA = 8 years 2 months). Thirty-four of the children were attending local schools in

Brisbane while 5 children were now residing in regional areas in the state of Queensland

and one was living in a New South Wales country town. Three children had moved

overseas (to England, Canada and Sweden) but visited Australia during the year in which

data were collected for the follow-up study. All of the children were enrolled in the

appropriate school level (either second or third grade) for their ages.

Measures: Age 2

Task persistence. Two structured mastery tasks developed by Morgan et al. (1992)

for children aged 15 to 36 months were used to provide measures of children’s task

persistence. They consist of jigsaw puzzles and shape-sorters, each with six levels of

difficulty to ensure that individual children are assessed on tasks that are optimally

challenging. The puzzles and shape-sorters were specially made according to Morgan,

Busch-Rossnagel, et al’s specifications and the three highest levels were used because of

their appropriateness for the developmental age range of participants in this study.

Page 8: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 7

During a 4-minute period for each task, the researcher records whether or not the child’s

behavior for each 15 second interval is predominantly task-directed (coded 1) or non-

task-directed (coded 0). The possible range of scores is 0 to 16 on each task, with higher

scores reflecting greater persistence. In order to ensure that the task level is optimally

challenging for an individual child, specific interventions are made if the task is

completed within the first 2 minutes (a puzzle or shape-sorter one level higher is

substituted) or if no parts are completed by 2 minutes (the lower level is administered).

In these interventions, the child works for a further 4 minutes at the new level. The tasks

and the procedures for their use are described in detail in Morgan, Busch-Rossnagel et al.

(1992).

Cognitive competence. The Bayley Scales of Infant Development - Second Edition

(BSID-II; Bayley 1993) is a standardised developmental assessment instrument for

infants and young children between the developmental ages of one month and 42 months.

It has good reliability and validity at 24-36 months. Results from the mental scale

(Mental Development Index; MDI), which included items measuring problem solving,

number concepts and language, were used as the measure of cognitive competence.

Measures: Age 8

Task persistence. In order to maximise the likelihood that children would be

interested in the persistence activity, they were offered a choice of two tasks that were

designed to be age-appropriate measures of persistence. The first task was a magnetic

fishing game in which the strength of the magnets had been adjusted so that some of the

fish could not be removed from the bucket using just the fishing rod. The second task

was a 16-piece game with flat square pieces which depicted heads and tails of various

Page 9: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 8

insects on each side. The heads and tails were to be matched to form a large square. The

two tasks were equally popular, and girls and boys were fairly evenly divided in their

choice of the puzzle (11 girls and 11 boys) and the fishing game (9 girls and 12 boys).

Persistence with these challenging tasks was coded by following the same procedures as

those used with the Morgan, Busch-Rossnagel et al. (1992) tasks at age 2, although there

were no levels of difficulty within each task, and the maximum time for this age group

was extended to 10 minutes. Scores for persistence at this age had a potential range of 0

to 40 on the single task of choice.

Academic motivation. The Young Children’s Academic Intrinsic Motivation

Inventory (Y-CAIMI, Gottfried, 1990) is a reliable and valid instrument for measuring

self-reported motivation for academic tasks in 7-8 year old children. It comprises three

scales of 12 items each: Reading (e.g., I like to do as much work as I can in reading),

Maths (e.g., I don’t like to practise new maths work), and General (e.g., School work is

interesting), as well as a 3-item preference for challenge scale (Difficulty)(e.g., I like to

do easy maths work). For each item, children respond that the statement is either Not

True, A Bit True, or Very True for them. Scores on each scale range from 12 to 36, with

the exception of Difficulty which has a range of 3 to 9. Across all scales, higher scores

reflect higher academic intrinsic motivation.

Academic achievement. The Wechsler Individual Achievement Test Screener

(WIAT-Screener; The Psychological Corporation, 1992) provides norm-referenced scores

in three academic areas: basic reading, spelling and mathematics reasoning. Age norms

were used in the present study because the children were not all at the same grade level.

Page 10: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 9

Cognitive competence. The Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI;

The Psychological Corporation, 1999) is a standardised measure for obtaining estimates

of overall intelligence in children and adults. It contains four subtests – Vocabulary,

Block Design, Similarities, and Matrix Reasoning which provide measures of Full Scale

IQ, Verbal IQ and Performance IQ. As reported in the manual, the WASI has excellent

psychometric properties. Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) was used as the age 8 measure of

cognitive competence.

Measure used at ages 2 and 8

Parent report of persistence. The 12 item Object Persistence Scale of the

Dimensions of Mastery Questionnaire (DMQ; Morgan, Harmon, et al., 1992) provides

ratings of parental perceptions of a child’s mastery motivation. The wording on some

items (e.g., Attempts to master cause and effect toys such as a busy box or curiosity box)

was altered slightly for the older children to ensure that the items reflected age-

appropriate activities (Attempts to master complex manipulative toys). Items were rated

on a four-point scale ranging from “not at all typical” to “very typical” with high scores

representing high levels of persistence. The scale had good internal consistency for the

group used in this study, with Cronbach’s alphas of .85 at age 2 and .88 at age 8.

Procedures

At age 2, children attended a laboratory at the university where both mastery tasks

were administered strictly in accordance with Morgan, Busch-Rossnagel et al.’s (1992)

procedures. Mothers completed the DMQ prior to the persistence measures being taken.

The Bayley Scales assessment was conducted in a separate session.

Page 11: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 10

At age 8, children attended the laboratory for a session which began with the

WASI, followed by the persistence task of their choosing. After a short break, children

completed the YCAIMI and the WIAT. Mothers answered the DMQ while the children

were engaged with the researcher.

Results

In preliminary analyses, measures were examined for gender differences. At age

2, there were no significant gender differences for measures of persistence but MDI

scores for girls were significantly higher (t = 4.36, df = 41, p < .001).

Before conducting analyses on task persistence at age 8, the two tasks were

compared. No differences were found on the two measures (puzzle/fishing game) so the

data were collapsed into a single variable. At age 8 girls showed significantly more task

persistence than boys (t = 2.44, df = 41, p < .05) and girls reported higher motivation for

general school tasks on the YCAIMI (t = 2.04, df = 41, p < .05). There were no other

significant gender differences. Means and standard deviations for all measures are shown

in Table 1.

INSERT TABLE 1 ABOUT HERE

Pearson correlations were used to examine both concurrent and across-time

associations among the measures for girls and boys separately. In order to control for the

increased risk of Type 1 error associated with multiple analyses, a more conservative

alpha level of .01 was accepted.

Concurrent relationships

At age 2, there were no significant relationships between the measures of task

persistence (puzzles and shape-sorters) for either gender. Neither were the maternal

Page 12: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 11

ratings of persistence on the DMQ associated with any of these measures. MDI was

unrelated to all measures of mastery motivation.

At age 8, the behavioral measure of task persistence was not significantly

associated with children’s self-report on any of the scales of the YCAIMI or mothers’

reports on the DMQ for either gender. Mothers’ and children’s reports were unrelated.

Amongst the YCAIMI scales there were some significant correlations, although

the children’s reported preference for difficult work was not related to academic

motivation on the other YCAIMI scales. For girls the general scale on the YCAIMI was

significantly associated with the reading and maths scale ( r = .90 and .72, respectively,

both p < .001) and there was also an association between girls’ reports of intrinsic

motivation for reading and maths (r = .67, p <.001). For boys, there was a similar

association between general academic motivation and reading ( r = .71, p < .001) but no

other relationships reached significance at the .01 level.

Initially, age 8 concurrent relationships among measures of motivation and

competence were considered separately for boys and girls. The correlations were very

similar for the two groups and Fisher’s z test showed no significant differences. Thus,

the combined results for girls and boys are presented in Table 2. There were significant

relationships between children’s self-reported preference for challenge (YCAIMI

Difficulty) and all measures of competence. Mothers’ reports of persistence on the DMQ

showed low to moderate significant associations with competence on maths and reading,

and trends towards significance (p < .05) for the other two measures of competence.

INSERT TABLE 2 ABOUT HERE

Page 13: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 12

Stability of mastery motivation and predictive relationships

The initial correlational analysis examined the association of cognitive ability at

age 2 (MDI) with that at 8 years (FSIQ). A significant relationship was found (r = .43, p

< .01). MDI was therefore partialled out in all subsequent analyses which focused on

competence.

For girls, there was a significant correlation of persistence on the shape-sorter task

at age 2 and task persistence at age 8 (r = .65, p < .01). Girls who were more persistent

with inserting identical blocks into a shape box at age 2 were also more persistent with a

task that required similar sustained effort at age 8. In addition, for girls maternal ratings

of persistence at age 2 on the DMQ were related significantly to age 8 cognitive ability

(r = .61, p < .01) and achievement in reading and spelling (r = .64 & .59, respectively, p

< .01). There were no significant predictive relationships between age 2 and age 8

measures for boys, apart from a negative correlation of maternal ratings at age 2 with age

8 boys’ self-reported motivation for reading. Correlations among age 2 measures of

mastery motivation and age 8 measures of motivation and competence are shown in

Table 3.

INSERT TABLE 3 ABOUT HERE

Discussion

The present study provides some support for assumptions about the stability of

early mastery motivation and its importance for later cognitive and academic functioning.

Interestingly, though, these links between early and middle childhood are evident only for

girls.

Page 14: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 13

Task persistence shows stability across time but this relationship is apparent only

for the shape-sorter task, not the puzzle. Because the two measures of task persistence

and the global parent rating are uncorrelated at age 2, they may not be reflecting an

underlying trait of persistence. Although some researchers view mastery motivation as

an enduring personality trait (Shiner, 2000), we believe that motivation can best be

construed as an interaction between the individual and the task. Persistence depends

upon many factors such as interest in the task, its perceived level of difficulty, and the

child’s prior experience with similar tasks. In early childhood research, the tasks

presented to children to measure mastery motivation have very similar characteristics

(e.g., tasks that primarily require visual-spatial skills). Similar tasks are likely to produce

similar responses, leading researchers to conclude that persistence is an individual

characteristic.

The two tasks used at age 2 to measure mastery motivation were similar in that

they required persistence to complete; however, their essential demands differed. The

puzzle task required a new problem solving effort for each piece, while the shape-sorter,

which consisted of 10 identical shapes, required an initial problem solving effort

followed by a sustained effort towards the goal of task completion (that is, inserting all

the shapes into the box). This task demand was similar to that of the tasks chosen to

measure persistence at age 8. Task completion (getting all the insect heads and tails to

match, or catching all the fish with a magnetic rod) involved sustained effort with

repeated manipulation of the puzzle pieces or the fishing rod. Thus, the age 2 shape-

sorter and the age 8 tasks were similar ones, and girls performed in the same way at the

two different ages.

Page 15: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 14

But, despite the stability of this measure over time for girls, task persistence at age

2 is unrelated to concurrent or subsequent competence. The measure of persistence

which is more important for competence is the DMQ which at age 2 showed predictive

validity for girls and at age 8 concurrent validity for both genders. This measure was

more global in nature than the specific measure of task persistence, incorporating

questions about children’s preference for working independently on challenging

activities, their repetition of new skills until mastery is achieved, and their efforts to

discover how things work. It thus tapped a broader range of ways in which children

might demonstrate their motivation for mastery and so it is not surprising that this

measure showed more predictive validity than the measure of task persistence.

The DMQ failed, however, to demonstrate stability across ages 2 to 8, even

though the questions at the two ages were very similar. The most obvious explanation for

this lack of consistency is that mastery motivation is not a stable trait, but rather that

children’s approaches change over time in many ways. In the present sample, girls

remained constant in their approach to one specific type of task but, in general, boys and

girls did not behave consistently over time, according to their mother’s reports. It is, of

course, possible that the children’s approaches remained the same, but that mothers’

perceptions of their behavior changed, perhaps as a result of increasing exposure to

comparative standards at school. Another possibility for the lack of stability of the DMQ

is that, in an effort to retain comparability of DMQ items across time, we retained the

same content without incorporating the many new ways in which 8 year olds display their

motivation (such as on academic tasks). The DMQ items reflected the challenges that 2

year olds typically experience in their striving for competence (for instance, attempts to

Page 16: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 15

master complex toys). These challenges may still be important, but are probably not the

most important ones for 8 year old children. This may explain the finding that

competence at age 8 is more strongly related to the age 2 DMQ than it is to the

concurrent DMQ, although, of course, the predictive correlation is present only for girls.

Nevertheless, the DMQ at age 8 does predict concurrent cognitive and academic

competence. Even more important, however, is the preference for difficulty scale of the

YCAIMI. Children who stated that they liked doing very difficult tasks were those with

higher intellectual ability who were achieving better academically. Children’s reports of

the extent to which they were motivated for reading, maths and general school work

show some inter-relationships, but are not associated with preference for difficulty and

academic achievement.

The most intriguing findings in the present study are the gender differences that

have been identified. It seems that girls may be consistent in their approach to tasks

requiring sustained effort across ages 2 to 8, whereas boys may not maintain the same

level of persistence over time. Although boys and girls were equally task persistent at

age 2, by 8 years of age, boys were significantly less persistent than girls. These results

suggest the possibility that by 8 years of age, task completion may no longer be a

worthwhile goal for boys. Alternatively, boys may become less compliant with the

demand characteristics of a situation over time. The finding that maternal perceptions of

persistence at age 2 are predictive of competence only for girls may be explained, in part,

by the relative lack of stability in task persistence for boys.

Previous research also has identified gender differences in the predictive

relationships of mastery motivation with later competence (Jennings et al., 1984; Messer

Page 17: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 16

et al., 1986) and it is not unusual to find gender differences in longitudinal studies.

Parental styles of child-rearing, for instance, have differential effects on the development

of resilience in boys and girls (Werner, 2000). It is possible that caregivers and teachers

interact differently with boys and girls, with subsequent effects on their motivation.

Alternatively, similar environmental experiences may have differential effects on

motivation for girls and boys.

In particular, certain experiences within the school context may influence boys’

motivation negatively. We know, for instance, that motivation is diminished when

teachers focus on individual performance and lack interpersonal warmth (Stipek, Feiler,

Daniels & Milburn, 1995). Perhaps boys are more likely than girls to experience such

teacher behaviors, or girls and boys may be reinforced differently for their mastery

attempts. It is possible also that, because boys tend to be more dominant, more disruptive

and more inattentive at school (Fergusson & Horwood, 1997), they may elicit more

directive responses from teachers. Various teacher characteristics, including high levels

of control, have been associated negatively with children’s motivation (Flink, Boggiano

& Barrett, 1990). Although the area of schooling needs further investigation, this focus

does not preclude the possibility that contextual factors in the years before formal

schooling may make a contribution to the pattern of stability and change that was found

in the present study.

In summary, we found that maternal global ratings of persistence have more

predictive value but are not stable over time, perhaps because of the limited way in which

the questionnaire was adapted for the older age group. The more specific measure of task

persistence shows stability over time but is not predictive of later competence. These

Page 18: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 17

associations are evident only for girls. Concurrent measures showed similar relationships

for both genders, with both mothers’ reports of persistence and children’s reports of

preference for challenge being related to cognitive and academic competence. Clearly,

the construct of mastery motivation, defined by Morgan et al. (1990) as persistence and

preference for challenge, is supported by the results presented here, although the picture

is clouded somewhat by the presence of gender differences.

The present study is limited by the reliance on a single observational measure of

persistence at age 8 and by the relatively small sample size, especially when the group is

split according to gender. Given these limitations, it is important that we do not over-

interpret the gender differences which have been observed in this study. In a larger

sample, measures of mastery motivation might be more stable and more predictive of

later motivation and competence. It is possible that the same pattern of relationships

exists for both boys and girls, but that the links are not as strong for boys, or that they

become stronger over time.

The focus for future research should be on the contextual factors that support or

constrain the development of motivation and competence in the early and middle years of

childhood. It is not sufficient for educators to simply assume that “patterns of motivation

are established at an early age” and that “the early childhood years are crucial for

establishing robust intrinsic motivational orientations which will last a lifetime” (Carlton

& Winsler, 1998, p. 159). If the development of children’s intrinsic motivation for

learning is to be fostered, educational practices need to be based on a more complete

understanding of how mastery motivation develops and is maintained over time.

Page 19: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 18

References

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (1992). Australian Standard Classification of

Occupations (1st ed.). Canberra: Commonwealth Government Printer.

Barrett, K. C., & Morgan, G. A. (1995). Continuities and discontinuities in mastery

motivation during infancy and toddlerhood: A conceptualization and review. In R. H.

MacTurk & G. A. Morgan (Eds.), Mastery motivation: Origins, conceptualizations, and

applications (pp. 57-93). Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Corporation.

Barrett, K. C., Morgan, G. A., & Maslin-Cole, C. (1993). Three studies on the

development of mastery motivation in infancy and toddlerhood. In D. Messer (Ed.),

Mastery motivation in early childhood: Development, measurement and social processes

(pp. 83-108). London: Routledge.

Bayley, N. (1993) Bayley Scales of Infant Development (2nd

ed.) San Antonio TX,

Psychological Corporation.

Carlton, M. P., & Winsler, A. (1998). Fostering intrinsic motivation in early childhood

classrooms. Early Childhood Education Journal, 25(3), 159-166.

Fergusson, D. M., & Horwood, L. J. (1997). Gender differences in educational

schievement in a New Zealand birth cohort. New Zealand Journal of Educational Studies,

32(1), 83-96.

Flink, C., Boggiano, A. K., & Barrett, M. (1990). Controlling teaching strategies:

Undermining children’s self-determination and performance. Journal of Personality and

Social Psychology, 59, 916-924.

Page 20: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 19

Frodi, A., Bridges, L., & Grolnick, W. (1985). Correlates of mastery-related behavior:

A short-term longitudinal study of infants in their second year. Child Development, 56,

1291-1298.

Gilmore, L., Cuskelly, M., & Hayes, A. (2003). A comparative study of mastery

motivation in young children with Down’s syndrome: Similar outcomes, different

processes? Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 47(3), 181-190.

Gottfried, A. E. (1990). Academic intrinsic motivation in young elementary school

children. Journal of Educational Psychology, 82(3), 525-538.

Gottfried, A. E., Fleming, J. S., & Gottfried, A. W. (2001). Continuity of academic

intrinsic motivation from childhood through late adolescence: A longitudinal study.

Journal of Educational Psychology, 93(1), 3-13.

Harter, S. (1978). Effectance motivation reconsidered: Toward a developmental

model. Human Development, 1, 34-64.

Harter, S. (1981). A model of mastery motivation in children: Individual differences

and developmental change. In W. A. Collins (Ed.), The Minnesota symposium on child

psychology: Vol. 14. Aspects of the development of competence. (pp. 215-255). Hillsdale,

NJ: Erlbaum.

Hrncir, E. J., Speller, G. M., & West, M. (1985). Wht are we testing? Developmental

Psychology, 21, 226-232.

Hunt, J. McV. (1965). Intrinsic motivation and its role in psychological development.

In D. Levine (Ed.), Nebraska Symposium on Motivation: Vol. 13. (pp. 189-192). Lincoln:

University of Nebraska Press.

Page 21: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 20

Jennings, K. D., Connors, R. E., & Stegman, C. E. (1988). Does a physical handicap

alter the development of mastery motivation during the preschool years? Journal of the

American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 27, 312-317.

Jennings, K. D., Yarrow, L. J., & Martin, P. P. (1984) Mastery motivation and

cognitive development: A longitudinal study from infancy to 3½ years of age.

International Journal of Behavioral Development 7, 441-461.

MacTurk, R. H., Morgan, G. A., & Jennings, K. D. (1995) The assessment of mastery

motivation in infants and young children. In R. H. MacTurk & G. A. Morgan (Eds.)

Mastery motivation: Origins, conceptualizations and applications (pp. 19-56). Norwood,

NJ, Ablex Publishing Corporation.

Maslin-Cole, C., Bretherton, I., & Morgan, G. A. (1993). Toddler mastery motivation

and competence: Links with attachment security, maternal scaffolding and family

climate. In D. Messer (Ed.), Mastery motivation in early childhood: Development,

measurement and social processes (pp. 205-229). London: Routledge.

McCall, R. B. (1995). On definitions and measures of mastery motivation. In R. H.

MacTurk & G. A. Morgan (Eds.), Mastery motivation: Origins, conceptualizations, and

applications (pp. 273-292). Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Corporation.

Messer, D. J. (1993) Mastery motivation: An introduction to theories and issues. In D.

Messer (Ed.) Mastery motivation in early childhood: Development, measurement and

social processes (pp. 1-16). London, Routledge.

Messer, D. J., McCarthy, M. E., McQuiston, S., MacTurk, R. H., Yarrow, L. J., &

Vietze, P. M. (1986). Relation between mastery behavior in infancy and competence in

early childhood. Developmental Psychology, 22, 366-372.

Page 22: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 21

Morgan, G. A., Busch-Rossnagel, N. A., Maslin-Cole, C. A., & Harmon, R. J. (1992)

Individualized assessment of mastery motivation: Manual for 15 to 36 month old

children. Bronx, Fordham University.

Morgan, G. A., Harmon, R. J., & Maslin-Cole, C. A. (1990) Mastery motivation:

Definition and measurement. Early Education and Development 1, 318-339.

Morgan, G. A., Harmon, R. J., Maslin-Cole, C. A., Busch-Rossnagel, N. A., Jennings,

K. D., Hauser-Cram, P., & Brockman, L. M. (1992) Assessing perceptions of mastery

motivation: The Dimensions of Mastery Questionnaire, its development, psychometrics

and use. Ft. Collins, Colorado State University, Human Development and Family Studies

Department.

Morgan, G. A., Maslin-Cole, C. A., Biringen, Z., & Harmon, R. J. (1991). Play

assessment of mastery motivation in infants and young children. In C. E. Schaefer, K.

Gitlin & A. Sandgrund (Eds.), Play diagnosis and assessment (pp. 65-86). New York:

John Wiley & Sons.

Psychological Corporation (1992). Wechsler Individual Achievement Test. San

Antonio: Author.

Psychological Corporation (1999). Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence. San

Antonio: Author.

Shiner, R. L. (2000). Linking childhood personality with adaptation: Evidence for

continuity and change across time into late adolescence. Journal of Personality and

Social Psychology, 78(2), 310-325.

Shonkoff, J. P., & Phillips, D. A. (Eds.), (2000). From neurons to neighborhoods: The

science of early childhood development. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Page 23: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Mastery Motivation 22

Sigman, M., Cohen, S. E., Beckwith, L., & Topinka, C. (1987). Task persistence in 2-

year-old preterm infants in relation to subsequent attentiveness and intelligence. Infant

Behavior and Development, 10(3), 295-305.

Stipek, D. J., Feiler, R., Daniels, D., & Milburn, S. (1995). Effects of different

instructional approaches on young children’s achievement and motivation. Child

Development, 66, 209-223.

Werner, E. E. (2000). Protective factors and individual resilience. In J. P. Shonkoff &

S. J. Meisels (Eds.), Handbook of early childhood intervention (2nd

ed.) (pp. 115-132).

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

White, R. W. (1959). Motivation reconsidered: The concept of competence.

Psychological Review, 66, 297-333.

Yarrow, L. J., McQuiston, S., MacTurk, R. H., McCarthy, M. E., Klein, R. P., &

Vietze, P. M. (1983). Assessment of mastery motivation during the first year of life:

Contemporaneous and cross-age relationships. Developmental Psychology, 19, 159-171.

Page 24: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Table 1

Means and standard deviations on all measures for boys and girls

Measure

Boys Girls

Age 2

Puzzle Persistence a 8.83 (4.24) 10.00 (4.21)

Shape-sorter Persistence a 9.00 (3.55) 9.10 (5.25)

DMQ Persistence b 35.50 (4.84) 36.85 (4.43)

MDI (cognitive competence) d 91.58 (8.65) 102.95 (8.55)

Age 8

Task Persistence c 26.08 (11.04) 33.45 (8.53)

DMQ Persistence b 35.38 (6.15) 35.30 (6.67)

YCAIMI Reading e 28.42 (5.85) 31.45 (5.46)

YCAIMI Maths e 30.21 (5.85) 30.60 (8.13) YCAIMI General e 28.96 (5.73) 32.40 (5.38)

YCAIMI Difficulty f 5.88 (2.31) 6.10 (2.05)

FSIQ (cognitive competence) d 104.33 (15.36) 111.00 (13.70)

WIAT Reading d 110.21 (17.60) 116.05 (15.59)

WIAT Spelling d 109.13 (17.11) 112.15 (16.15)

WIAT Maths d 105.33 (12.35) 107.75 (13.38)

a Possible range of scores 0 to 16.

b Possible range of scores 12 to 48.

c Possible range of scores 0 to 40.

d Test mean = 100.

e Possible range of scores 12 to 36.

f Possible range of scores 3 to 9.

Page 25: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Table 2

Pearson Correlations among 8-year Measures of Mastery Motivation and Competence

for boys and girls combined

FSIQ Maths Reading Spelling

YCAIMI Reading .21 .00 .12 .05

YCAIMI Maths -.16 -.10 -.25 -.22

YCAIMI General .13 -.01 .10 .06

YCAIMI Difficulty .60 ** .36 * .62 ** .43 *

Task Persistence .29 .14 .09 .04

DMQ Persistence .34 .36 * .43 * .33

* p < .01. ** p < .001.

Page 26: c Copyright 2003 Taylor & Francis

Table 3

Pearson Correlations of age-2 Measures of Mastery Motivation with age-8

Measures of Mastery Motivation and Competence

Age-2 measures

Age-8 measures

Puzzle

Persistence

Shape-sorter

Persistence

DMQ

Persistence

Task Persistence Boys -.23 -.08 -.18

Girls .10 .65 * .20

DMQ Persistence Boys -.07 -.32 .28

Girls .20 .21 .21

YCAIMI Reading Boys .06 -.05 -.51 *

Girls .13 .19 -.29

YCAIMI Maths Boys .14 -.39 -.39 Girls -.00 .20 -.27

YCAIMI General Boys .20 -.27 -.46

Girls .04 .01 -.39

YCAIMI Difficulty Boys .42 .17 -.12

Girls -.35 .04 .30

FSIQ Boys .02 .19 -.08

Girls .06 .24 .61 *

WIAT Reading Boys .10 .05 -.01 Girls -.13 -.06 .64 *

WIAT Spelling Boys .15 -.10 .04

Girls .09 .14 .59 *

WIAT Maths Boys -.15 -.23 .24

Girls -.07 -.21 .34

*p < .01.