Thesis
Children's goals and competence: the relation between children's goals, competence, and adjustment
Washington State University
Master of Arts (MA), Washington State University
2007
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/103347
Abstract
The current study was designed to explore children's strivings and competence and how these relate to children's overall adjustment. The three main aims of the research were: (1) to explore the number and type of strivings children set, as well as how effective their strategies are for achieving those strivings; (2) to investigate how children's competence (both self-perceived, and objective, as rated by teachers) relates to the goals they set and their effectiveness for achieving those goals; and (3) to determine how children's feelings of competence relate to their adjustment. One hundred thirteen 3rd-6th graders, their mothers, and 79 teachers from three elementary schools participated in the study. Home interviews were conducted with both the students and mothers and the teachers completed surveys to determine the children's level of competence and adjustment. The results indicated that children set Achievement strivings most frequently and generally have low ratings of strategy effectiveness for achieving their strivings. Also, ratings of children's strategy effectiveness for achieving their strategies were more strongly related to perceived rather than objective competence. Also, perceived competence was more strongly related to internalizing behaviors compared to objective competence. However, objective competence significantly related to externalizing behaviors, with perceived competence also having an influence.
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Details
- Title
- Children's goals and competence
- Creators
- Janelle Karina Hood
- Contributors
- Laura G. Hill (Degree Supervisor)
- Awarding Institution
- Washington State University
- Academic Unit
- Human Development, Department of
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Arts (MA), Washington State University
- Publisher
- Washington State University; Pullman, Wash. :
- Identifiers
- 99900525179601842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Thesis