Regulatory mode and the joys of doing: effects of ‘locomotion’ and ‘assessment’ on intrinsic and extrinsic task‐motivation

Abstract

This research investigates the relation between regulatory‐mode (Higgins, Kruglanski, & Pierro, 2003; Kruglanski et al., 2000) and task motivation. Four studies conducted in diverse field and laboratory settings support the notions that ‘locomotion’, i.e. a self‐regulatory emphasis on movement from state to state, is positively related to intrinsic task motivation, whereas ‘assessment’, i.e. a self‐regulatory tendency to emphasize comparative appraisal of entities and states (such as goals and means) is positively related to extrinsic motivation. It is further found that ‘locomotion’, but not ‘assessment’, is positively related to effort investment, which, in turn, is positively related to goal attainment. Attainment is, additionally, predicted by an interaction of locomotion and assessment, such that individuals are most likely to reach their goals if they are high on both these dimensions. Taken as a body, these findings highlight the relevance of regulatory‐mode concepts to the study of task motivation and activity experience. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Keywords

regulatory mode task motivation effort investment goal attainment

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Aiken

L. S.

West

S. G.

(1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Amabile

T. M.

Hill

K. G.

Hennessy

B. A.

Tighe

E. M.

(1994).The Work Preference Inventory: Assessing intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 66,950–967.

Bagozzi

R. P.

Heatherton

T. F.

(1994).A general approach to representing multifaceted personality constructs: Application to state self‐esteem. Structural Equation Modeling, 1,35–67.

Baron

R. M.

Kenny

D. A.

(1986).The moderator‐mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51,1173–1182.

Bentler

P. M.

(1990).Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological Bulletin, 107,238–246.

Brown

M. W.

(1990). MUTMUM PC: User's guide. Columbus: Ohio State University, Department of Psychology.

Brown

M. W.

Cudeck

(1993). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. In K. A. Bollen , & J. S. Long (Eds.), Testing Structural Equation Models(pp.136–162). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Brunstein

J. C.

(1993).Personal goal and emotional well‐being: A longitudinal study. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65,1061–1070.

Brunstein

J. C.

Schultheiss

O. C.

Grassmann

(1998).Personal goal and emotional well‐being: The moderating role of motive dispositions. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75,494–508.

10.

Carver

C. S.

Scheier

M. F.

(1990).Origins and functions of positive and negative affect: A control process view. Psychological Review, 97,19–35.

11.

Cervone

(2004).The architecture of personality. Psychological Review, 111(1),183–204.

12.

Costa

P. T.

McCrae

R. R.

(1985). The NEO Personality Inventory manual. Odessa, FL: Psychologiacal Assessment Resources.

13.

Csikszentmihalyi

(1975). Beyond boredom and anxiety. San Francisco: Jossey‐Bass.

14.

Deci

E. L.

Ryan

R. M.

(2000).The “what” and “why” of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self‐determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4),227–268.

15.

Deutsch

(1968). Field theory. In G. Lindzey , & E. Aronson (Eds.), Handbook of social psychology. Reading, MA: Addison Wesley.

16.

Emmons

R. A.

(1986).Personal strivings: An approach to personality and subjective well‐being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51,1058–1068.

17.

Eysenck

H. J.

(1994).Q.I. Nuovi test d'intelligenza.Edizione BUR.

18.

Goldberg

L. R.

(1992).The development of markers for the Big Five factor structure. Psychological Assessment, 4,26–42.

19.

Gollwitzer

P. M.

(1990). Action phases and mind‐sets. In E. T. Higgins , & R. M. Sorrentino (Eds.), Handbook of motivation and cognition: Foundations of social behavior(Vol. 2, pp.53–92). New York: Guilford Press.

20.

Grolnick

W. S.

Ryan

R. M.

(1987).Autonomy in children's learning: An experimental and individual difference investigation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52,890–898.

21.

Higgins

E. T.

(1989). Knowledge accessibility and activation: Subjectivity and suffering from unconscious sources. In J. S. Uleman , & J. A. Bargh (Eds.), Unintended thought(pp.75–115). New York: Guilford Press.

22.

Higgins

E. T.

Kruglanski

A. W.

Pierro

(2003). Regulatory mode: Locomotion and assessment as distinct orientations. In M. P. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology. (Vol. 35, pp.294–345). New York: Academic Press.

23.

Joreskog

K. G.

Sorbom

(1993). Lisrel 8. Structural equation modeling with the SIMPLIS command language. Chicago: Scientific Software.

24.

Kenny

D. A.

Kashy

D. A.

Bolger

(1998). Data analysis in social psychology. In D. A. Gilbert , S. T. Fiske , & G. Lindzey (Eds.), The handbook of social psychology(4th ed.). New York: McGraw‐Hill.

25.

Kruglanski

A. W.

(1989). Lay epistemics and human knowledge: Cognitive and motivational bases. New York: Plenum.

26.

Kruglanski

A. W.

Thompson

E. P.

Higgins

E. T.

Atash

M. N.

Pierro

Shah

J. Y.

Spiegel

(2000).To “do the right thing” or to “Just do it”: Locomotion and Assessment as distinct self‐regulatory imperatives. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79,793–815.

27.

Kuhl

(1985). Volitional mediation of cognition‐behavior consistency: Self‐regulatory processes and action versus state orientation. In J. Khul , & J. Beckmann (Eds.), Action control: From cognition to behavior(pp.101–128). Berlin, Germany: Springer‐Verlag.

28.

Kuhl

(1986). Motivation and information processing: A new look at decision making, dynamic change, and action control. In R. M. Sorrentino , & E. T. Higgins (Eds.), Handbook of motivation and cognition: Fundations of social behavior(pp.404–434). New York: Guilford Press.

29.

Lewin

(1951). Field theory in social science. New York: Harper.

30.

McCrae

R. R.

Costa

P. T.

. (1987).Validation of the five‐factor model of personality across instruments and observers. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52,81–90.

31.

Miller

G. A.

Galanter

Pribram

(1960). Plans and the structure of behavior. New York: Holt.

32.

Mischel

(1973).Toward a cognitive social learning reconceptualization of personality. Psychological Review, 80,252–283.

33.

Mischel

(1974). Processes in delay of gratification. In X. X. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology(Vol. 7, pp.249–292). New York: Academic Press.

34.

Mischel

(1981). Metacognition and the rules of delay. In J. H. Flavell , & L. Ross (Eds.), Social cognitive development: Frontiers and possible futures(pp.240–271). New York: Cambridge University Press.

35.

Pierro

Kruglanski

A. W.

Higgins

E. T.

(in press).Progress takes work: Effects of the locomotion dimension on job involvement, effort investement and task performance in organization. Journal of Applied Social Psychology.

36.

Ryan

R. M.

Connell

J. P.

(1989).Perceived locus of causality and internalization: Examining reasons for acting in two domains. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57,749–761.

37.

Sheldon

K. M.

Elliot

(1998).Goal striving, Need Satisfaction, and longitudinal well‐being: The Self‐concordance model. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 24,546–557.

38.

Sheldon

K. M.

Elliot

(1999).Goal striving, Need Satisfaction, and longitudinal well‐being: The Self‐concordance model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76,482–497.

39.

Steiger

J. H.

Lind

(1980, May).Statistically based tests for the number of common factors. Paper presented at the meeting of the Psychometric Society, Iowa City, IA.

40.

Thompson

M. M.

Naccarato

M. E.

Parker

K. E.

(1989, June).Assessing cognitive need: The development of the Personal Need for Stucture and Personal Fear of Invalidity scales. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Canadian Psychological Association, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

41.

Webster Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary. (1989).Springfield, MA: Merriam‐Webster.

42.

Wiener

(1948). Cybernetics. New York: John Wiley & Sons.