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Social Goal Theory

Definition: Social goal is a theory that discuss about how people’s behaviour is influenced by the goals they want to achieve when interacting with others. Compared to other motivational theory that focuses on academic success, rewards and personal achievement, social goal theory at the other hand focuses on how the individual becomes motivated by his or her desire to build relationships, gain approval, help others, or avoid rejection.

Characteristic: Social goals are the desired outcomes that any individual wants through their social interactions with others such as being accepted by friends, developing friendships, gaining social status, helping others, and avoiding negative judgements.

Type of social goal theory:

1)      Social development goals: This type of social goal focuses on building positive relationships and social competence. Based on this social goal, the students will want to make friends, cooperate with others, learn social skills, and maintain good relationships.

2)      Social demonstration-approach goals: this type of social goal focuses on how the student wants to be socially competent and to gain approval. The students want his or her friends to see him or her positively.

3)      Social demonstration-avoidance goals: this type of social goal focuses on avoiding negative social judgements. The students will try to prevent from being embarrassed or get criticized.

4)      Prosocial goals: This type of social goal focuses on helping others and contributing to the group. The students are motivated and concern to help other people.

5)      Responsibility goals: This social goal focuses on how ones fulfilling obligations and behaving in appropriate manner. The students will try to be responsible members of the classroom.

How does social goals influence motivation?

Effort: student exert more effort when learning helps them achieve desired outcomes.

Participation: Students often participate more actively when social interaction are valued.

Persistence: Positive social relationship can encourage students to continue despite difficulties

Behaviour: Social goals influence cooperation, helping behaviours, and classroom conduct.

Example in kindergarten with special needs context: A child with autism may participate in a classroom activity not only to learn but also to make friends, feel included, receive positive feedback from friends.

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Mastery goal orientation

Definition

Focus on learning, understanding, and improving skills.

Success is measured by personal growth, not by comparing with others.

Students with mastery goals focus on:

Learning and understanding new concepts.

Improving their abilities.

Developing competence.

Putting effort into learning.

Viewing mistakes as opportunities to learn.

Example

Mathematics Student:

Wants to understand the topic.

Practice more questions to improve.

Review mistakes after a test.

Feels successful when performance improves, even if not the highest in class.

Benefits:

1) Academic

Better understanding of subjects

Higher achievement

Better problem-solving skills

2) Motivation

More interested in learning

Higher persistence

Greater self-confidence

3) Emotional

Less fear of failure

More positive attitude towards challenges

Role of Teachers:

Encourage effort, not just grades.

Give constructive feedback.

Allow students to set learning goals.

Create a supportive classroom environment.

Focus on improvement and progress.

Conclusion

Mastery Goal Orientation is learning to self improve.

Students focus on gaining knowledge, developing skills, and becoming better learners rather than competing with others.

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Performance Goal Orientation

Definition

Performance goal orientation is a motivational focus where students try to:

demonstrate competence or ability,

perform better than others,

gain recognition,

and avoid appearing incompetent.

The emphasis is on comparison with others, not personal learning.

Main Characteristics

Students with performance goals tend to:

compare themselves with classmates,

focus on grades, rankings, and competition,

want to be seen as smart or capable,

seek public recognition,

avoid looking weak or failing.

Performance-oriented students are motivated by:

normative standards → doing better than others,

external evaluation,

proving ability publicly.

Success means:

“I succeeded because I performed better than others.”

Approach vs Avoidance

Performance-Approach Goals

Focus on:

outperforming others,

demonstrating high ability,

achieving recognition.

Example:

“I want to be top of the class.”

Possible outcomes:

high achievement,

strong effort,

competitiveness.

Performance-Avoidance Goals

Focus on:

avoiding failure,

avoiding embarrassment,

hiding weakness.

Example:

“I don’t want others to think I’m stupid.”

Possible outcomes:

anxiety,

fear of failure,

reduced participation,

avoidance of difficult tasks.

Summary of Performance Goal Orientation by Outcomes

1. Attributions and Self-Efficacy

Performance goal orientation is often linked to:

maladaptive attribution patterns,

learned helplessness,

unstable self-efficacy.

Students focus on proving ability rather than learning.

Attribution Patterns

Performance-oriented students tend to:

explain success or failure through ability rather than effort,

believe ability is fixed,

think working hard may mean low ability.

Example

“If I need to try hard, maybe I’m not smart.”

This may lead students to:

avoid effort,

protect self-worth,

fear failure.

Self-Efficacy Findings

Performance-Approach Goals

Can sometimes relate positively to self-efficacy if students:

are successful,

outperform others,

feel competent.

Performance-Avoidance Goals

Usually relate negatively to self-efficacy because students:

fear failure,

fear negative judgment,

doubt their ability.

2. Affective Outcomes

(Affective = emotions, interest, enjoyment, motivation)

Performance-Approach Goals

May:

increase motivation,

increase involvement,

increase enjoyment in competitive settings.

Especially effective for:

highly achievement-motivated students,

competitive environments.

Example

Students may enjoy activities when:

they can compete,

demonstrate superiority,

win against others.

Performance-Avoidance Goals

Generally produce:

lower intrinsic motivation,

less enjoyment,

anxiety,

reduced interest.

Students focus more on:

avoiding embarrassment,
than enjoying learning.

3. Cognitive Outcomes

(Cognitive = thinking, learning strategies, processing)

Effects on Learning Strategies

Students with performance goals are:

less likely to use deep learning strategies,

less likely to spend time understanding concepts deeply.

Because:

too much effort may signal “low ability,”

they focus more on appearance than understanding.

4. Behavior Outcomes

Performance goals influence classroom behaviors.

Help-Seeking Behavior

Students with performance goals are:

less likely to ask for help.

Because asking for help may:

make them appear weak,

threaten their image,

suggest low ability.

Possible Behaviors

Performance goal-oriented students may:

avoid challenging tasks,

withdraw from difficult activities,

protect self-image instead of learning.