HANDBOOK OF COMPETENCE AND MOTIVATION



Handbook of
Competence and Motivation
SECOND EDITION

Theory and Application
Edited by

Andrew J. Elliot
Carol S. Dweck
David S. Yeager

THE GUILFORD PRESS
New York  London


Copyright © 2017 The Guilford Press
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All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted,
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or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher.
Printed in the United States of America
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Last digit is print number: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Elliot, Andrew J., editor. | Dweck, Carol S., 1946– editor. | Yeager,
  David S., editor.
Title: Handbook of competence and motivation : theory and application /
  edited by Andrew J. Elliot, Carol S. Dweck, David S. Yeager.
Description: Second edition. | New York : Guilford Press, [2017] | Includes
  bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016036820 | ISBN 9781462529605 (hardcover)
Subjects: LCSH: Achievement motivation.
Classification: LCC BF504 .H36 2017 | DDC 153.8—dc23
LC record available at />

About the Editors

Andrew J. Elliot, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at the University of Rochester. He has
been a visiting professor at Cambridge University and Oxford University, United Kingdom; King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia; and the University of Munich, Germany;
and a Visiting Fellow at Churchill College (Cambridge) and Jesus College (Oxford).
Dr. Elliot’s research focuses on achievement motivation and approach–­avoidance motivation. He is editor of Advances in Motivation Science and author of approximately 200
scholarly publications. The recipient of multiple awards for his teaching and research
contributions to educational and social/personality psychology, Dr. Elliot has given
keynote or university addresses in more than 20 countries, and his lab regularly hosts
professors, postdocs, and graduate students from around the globe.
Carol S. Dweck, PhD, is the Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology at Stanford University. Her research focuses on the critical role of mindsets in students’ achievement and has led to successful intervention to foster student learning. She is a member
of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, and is the recipient of nine different lifetime achievement awards for her research.
Dr. Dweck addressed the United Nations at the beginning of its new global development agenda and has advised governments on educational and economic policies. Her
bestselling book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success brought her research to the
wider public.
David S. Yeager, PhD, is Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at
Austin. His research focuses on motivation and adolescent development and on the use
of behavioral science to make improvements toward pressing social issues. Dr. Yeager

is co-chair of the Mindset Scholars Network, an interdisciplinary network devoted to
improving the science of learning mindsets and expanding educational opportunity. He
holds appointments at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, the
Population Research Center and the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas
at Austin, and the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences. Dr. Yeager is
the recipient of more than 15 awards in social, developmental, and educational psychology.
v



Contributors

Katherine A. Adams, PhD,
Department of Applied Psychology,
New York University, New York, New York
Eric M. Anderman, PhD,
Department of Educational Studies,
The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
Sian L. Beilock, PhD, Department of Psychology
and Committee on Education,
University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Rebecca S. Bigler, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
Clancy Blair, PhD,
Department of Applied Psychology,
New York University, New York, New York
Kathryn L. Boucher, PhD,
School of Psychological Sciences,
University of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana

Shannon T. Brady, MS,
Graduate School of Education,
Stanford University, Stanford, California
Fabrizio Butera, PhD, Institute of Psychology,
University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
Ruth Butler, PhD, School of Education,
Hebrew University of Jerusalem,
Jerusalem, Israel
Andrei Cimpian, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
New York University, New York, New York

Geoffrey L. Cohen, PhD,
Department of Psychology
and Graduate School of Education,
Stanford University, Stanford, California
David E. Conroy, PhD,
Department of Kinesiology,
The Pennsylvania State University,
University Park, Pennsylvania;
Department of Preventive Medicine,
Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
Rhonda G. Craven, PhD,
Institute of Positive Psychology and Education,
Australian Catholic University,
Sydney, Australia
Ronald E. Dahl, MD,
Community Health Sciences Division,
School of Public Health,
University of California, Berkeley,

Berkeley, California
Céline Darnon, PhD,
Social and Cognitive Psychology Laboratory,
Clermont Auvergne University,
Clermont‑Ferrand, France
Carsten K. W. De Dreu, PhD,
Institute of Psychology,
Social and Organizational Psychology,
Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands;
Center for Experimental Economics
and Political Decision Making,
University of Amsterdam,
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

vii


viii
Maria K. DiBenedetto, PhD,
Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School,
Kernersville, North Carolina
Andrea G. Dittmann, BA,
Kellogg School of Management,
Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois
Carol S. Dweck, PhD,
Department of Psychology, Stanford University,
Stanford, California
Jacquelynne S. Eccles, PhD,
School of Education,
University of California, Irvine,

Irvine, California
Andrew J. Elliot, PhD,
Department of Clinical and Social Sciences
in Psychology, University of Rochester,
Rochester, New York
Meiyu Fang, PhD, Graduate Institute
of Human Resource Management,
National Central University,
Jhongli City, Taiwan
Julio Garcia, PhD,
Department of Psychology
and Graduate School of Education,
Stanford University, Stanford, California
Barry Gerhart, PhD,
Department of Management
and Human Resources,
University of Wisconsin–Madison,
Madison, Wisconsin
J. Parker Goyer, PhD,
Department of Psychology
and Graduate School of Education,
Stanford University, Stanford, California
DeLeon L. Gray, PhD,
Department of Teacher Education
and Learning Sciences, College of Education,
North Carolina State University,
Raleigh, North Carolina
Wendy S. Grolnick, PhD,
Department of Psychology, Clark University,
Worcester, Massachusetts

Jeremy M. Hamm, PhD,
Department of Psychology and Social Behavior,
University of California, Irvine,
Irvine, California

Contributors
Judith M. Harackiewicz, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Wisconsin–Madison,
Madison, Wisconsin
Liat Hasenfratz, PhD,
Martin Buber Society of Fellows,
Hebrew University of Jerusalem,
Jerusalem, Israel
Amy Roberson Hayes, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Texas at Tyler, Tyler, Texas
Jutta Heckhausen, PhD,
Department of Psychology and Social Behavior,
University of California, Irvine,
Irvine, California
Chris S. Hulleman, PhD,
Center for the Advanced Study
of Teaching and Learning,
University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia
Jeremy P. Jamieson, PhD,
Department of Clinical and Social Sciences
in Psychology, University of Rochester,
Rochester, New York
Ruth Kanfer, PhD,

Department of Psychology,
Georgia Institute of Technology,
Atlanta, Georgia
Maximilian Knogler, PhD,
School of Education,
Technical University of Munich,
Munich, Germany
Beth E. Kurtz-Costes, PhD,
Department of Psychology and Neuroscience,
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Hae Yeon Lee, MA,
Department of Psychology,
University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
Michael P. Leiter, PhD,
School of Psychology, Deakin University,
Geelong, Victoria, Australia
Herbert W. Marsh, PhD, DSc,
Institute of Positive Psychology and Education,
Australian Catholic University,
Sydney, Australia


Contributorsix
Andrew J. Martin, PhD,
School of Education,
University of New South Wales,
Sydney, Australia
Christina Maslach, PhD,
Department of Psychology,

University of California, Berkeley,
Berkeley, California
Daniel C. Molden, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois
Arlen C. Moller, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, Illinois
Bernard A. Nijstad, PhD,
Department of Organizational Behavior
and Human Decision Making,
University of Groningen,
Groningen, The Netherlands
Meagan M. Patterson, PhD,
Department of Educational Psychology,
University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
Reinhard Pekrun, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Munich, Munich, Germany;
Institute for Positive Psychology
and Education, Australian Catholic University,
Sydney, Australia
Raymond P. Perry, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Manitoba, Winnipeg,
Manitoba, Canada

Richard M. Ryan, PhD,
Institute for Positive Psychology and Education,
Australian Catholic University,

Sydney, Australia;
Department of Clinical and Social Sciences
in Psychology, University of Rochester,
Rochester, New York
Robert J. Rydell, PhD,
Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences,
Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana
Marjorie W. Schaeffer, MA,
Department of Psychology,
University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Dale H. Schunk, PhD,
Department of Teacher Education
and Higher Education,
University of North Carolina at Greensboro,
Greensboro, North Carolina
Jacob Shane, PhD,
Department of Psychology, Brooklyn College,
City University of New York,
Brooklyn, New York
Christopher M. Spray, PhD,
School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences,
Loughborough University,
Loughborough, United Kingdom
Nicole M. Stephens, PhD,
Kellogg School of Management,
Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois
Robert J. Sternberg, PhD,
Department of Human Development,
Cornell University, Ithaca, New York


Eva M. Pomerantz, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign,
Champaign, Illinois

Sarah S. M. Townsend, PhD,
Marshall School of Business,
University of Southern California,
Los Angeles, California

C. Cybele Raver, PhD,
Department of Applied Psychology,
New York University, New York, New York

Elliot M. Tucker-Drob, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas

Christopher S. Rozek, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois

Katie J. Van Loo, PhD,
Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences,
Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana

Emily Q. Rozenzweig, PhD,
Department of Human Development
and Quantitative Methodology,
University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland


Nico W. Van Yperen, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Groningen,
Groningen, The Netherlands


x
Gregory M. Walton, PhD,
Department of Psychology, Stanford University,
Stanford, California
Kathryn R. Wentzel, PhD,
Department of Human Development
and Quantitative Methodology,
University of Maryland,
College Park, Maryland
Allan Wigfield, PhD,
Department of Human Development
and Quantitative Methodology,
University of Maryland,
College Park, Maryland

Contributors
Taniesha A. Woods, PhD,
independent consultant, New York, New York
David S. Yeager, PhD,
Department of Psychology,
University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
Alexander Seeshing Yeung, PhD,
Institute of Positive Psychology and Education,

Australian Catholic University,
Sydney, Australia
Barry J. Zimmerman, PhD,
Doctoral Program in Educational Psychology,
Graduate Center, City University of New York,
New York, New York


Contents

PA R T I .   I N T RODU C T IO N
  1. Competence and Motivation: Theory and Application3
ANDREW J. ELLIOT, CAROL S. DWECK, DAVID S. YEAGER

PA R T I I .   C E N T R A L C O NS T RU C T S
  2.Intelligence and Competence in Theory and Practice9
ROBERT J. STERNBERG

  3.Achievement Motives25
DAVID E. CONROY

  4.Achievement Goals43
ANDREW J. ELLIOT and CHRIS S. HULLEMAN

  5.An Attribution Perspective on Competence and Motivation:61
Theory and Treatment Interventions
RAYMOND P. PERRY and JEREMY M. HAMM

  6.Competence Self‑Perceptions85
HERBERT W. MARSH, ANDREW J. MARTIN, ALEXANDER SEESHING YEUNG,

and RHONDA G. CRAVEN

  7. Achievement Values: Interactions, Interventions, and Future Directions116
ALLAN WIGFIELD, EMILY Q. ROSENZWEIG, and JACQUELYNNE S. ECCLES

xi


xii

Contents

  8.Mindsets: Their Impact on Competence Motivation and Acquisition135
CAROL S. DWECK and DANIEL C. MOLDEN

  9.Understanding and Addressing Performance Anxiety155
SIAN L. BEILOCK, MARJORIE W. SCHAEFFER, and CHRISTOPHER S. ROZEK

PA R T I I I .   R E L E VA N T P RO C E S S E S
10. Challenge and Threat Appraisals175
JEREMY P. JAMIESON

11. Competence Assessment, Social Comparison, and Conflict Regulation192
FABRIZIO BUTERA and CÉLINE DARNON

12. Competence as Central, but Not Sufficient, for High‑Quality Motivation:214
A Self‑Determination Theory Perspective
RICHARD M. RYAN and ARLEN C. MOLLER

13. Competence and Pay for Performance232

BARRY GERHART and MEIYU FANG

14. Achievement Emotions251
REINHARD PEKRUN

15. The Many Questions of Belonging272
GREGORY M. WALTON and SHANNON T. BRADY

16. Stereotype Threat: New Insights into Process and Intervention294
ROBERT J. RYDELL, KATIE J. VAN LOO, and KATHRYN L. BOUCHER

17. The Role of Self‑Efficacy and Related Beliefs in Self‑Regulation313
of Learning and Performance
BARRY J. ZIMMERMAN, DALE H. SCHUNK, and MARIA K. DiBENEDETTO

18. Interest: Theory and Application334
JUDITH M. HARACKIEWICZ and MAXIMILIAN KNOGLER

19. On Becoming Creative: Basic Theory with Implications353
for the Workplace
CARSTEN K. W. DE DREU and BERNARD A. NIJSTAD

20.Motivation, Competence, and Job Burnout370
MICHAEL P. LEITER and CHRISTINA MASLACH


Contentsxiii

PA R T I V.   D E V E L O P M E N T
21. Early Reasoning about Competence Is Not Irrationally Optimistic, 387

Nor Does It Stem from Inadequate Cognitive Representations
ANDREI CIMPIAN

22.Self‑Regulation in Early Childhood: 408
Implications for Motivation and Achievement
C. CYBELE RAVER, KATHERINE A. ADAMS, and CLANCY BLAIR

23.Competence and Motivation during Adolescence431
DAVID S. YEAGER, HAE YEON LEE, and RONALD E. DAHL

24.Competence and Motivation at Work throughout Adulthood:449
Making the Most of Changing Capacities and Opportunities
JUTTA HECKHAUSEN, JACOB SHANE, and RUTH KANFER

25.Motivational Factors as Mechanisms of Gene–Environment471
Transactions in Cognitive Development and Academic Achievement
ELLIOT M. TUCKER‑DROB

PA R T V.   S O C I A L G RO U P S A ND S O C I A L I N FL U E N C E S
26.Gender and Competence Motivation489
RUTH BUTLER and LIAT HASENFRATZ

27. Social Class and Models of Competence: How Gateway Institutions512
Disadvantage Working‑Class Americans and How to Intervene
NICOLE M. STEPHENS, ANDREA G. DITTMANN, and SARAH S. M. TOWNSEND

28.Race and Ethnicity in the Study of Competence Motivation529
BETH E. KURTZ‑COSTES and TANIESHA A. WOODS

29.Social Striving: Social Group Membership547

and Children’s Motivations and Competencies
REBECCA S. BIGLER, AMY ROBERSON HAYES, and MEAGAN M. PATTERSON

30.The Role of Parenting in Children’s Motivation and Competence:566
What Underlies Facilitative Parenting?
EVA M. POMERANTZ and WENDY S. GROLNICK

31. Peer Relationships, Motivation, and Academic Performance at School586
KATHRYN R. WENTZEL


xiv

Contents

32.The Roles of Schools and Teachers in Fostering604
Competence Motivation
ERIC M. ANDERMAN and DeLEON L. GRAY

33.Competence and Motivation in the Physical Domain:620
The Relevance of Self‑Theories in Sports and Physical Education
CHRISTOPHER M. SPRAY

34.Competence and the Workplace635
NICO W. VAN YPEREN

PA R T V I .  P S YC H O L O G I C A L I N T E R V E N T I O NS
35.Turning Point: Targeted, Tailored, and Timely Psychological Intervention657
GEOFFREY L. COHEN, JULIO GARCIA, and J. PARKER GOYER




Author Index687



Subject Index707

Purchasers of this handbook can visit www.guilford.com/elliot3-materials
to download a free supplemental e-book featuring several notable, highly
cited chapters from the first edition.

A Conceptual History of the Achievement Goal Construct
ANDREW J. ELLIOT

Motivation from an Attribution Perspective
and the Social Psychology of Perceived Competence
BERNARD WEINER

Self-Theories: Their Impact on Competence Motivation
and Acquisition
CAROL S. DWECK and DANIEL C. MOLDEN

Competence Motivation in the Classroom
TIM URDAN and JULIANNE C. TURNER

Cultural Competence: Dynamic Processes
CHI-YUE CHIU and YING-YI HONG



PA R T I
INTRODUCTION



CH A P T ER 1
Competence and Motivation
Theory and Application

ANDREW J. ELLIOT
CAROL S. DWECK
DAVID S. YEAGER

A dozen years ago, the Handbook of Competence and Motivation (Elliot & Dweck,
2005) was published. The Handbook consisted of 35 chapters written by well-known
scholars across diverse disciplines, and it had
an ambitious aim—to refocus the achievement motivation literature using the concept of competence. Specifically, we (Elliot
and Dweck) sought to establish competence
as the conceptual core of the achievement
motivation literature, and proposed that this
conceptual shift be accompanied by a shift
in terminology from achievement motivation to competence motivation.
Why did we ground the achievement
motivation literature in the concept of competence? We did so because we saw two primary weaknesses in this literature: (1) The
literature lacked coherence and a clear set of
structural parameters on which to base theory and guide operationalization (in short,
there was no obvious, consensual answer to
the question “What should and should not
be included within a literature on achievement motivation?”), and (2) the literature
was too narrowly focused and limited in

scope, especially relative to its potential. As
a function of these weaknesses, the literature that had developed represented a collection of loosely related conceptual ideas

and empirical findings based on a colloquial, primarily Western notion of the term
achievement.
We sought to provide a North Star for
this literature by establishing competence
as its conceptual core. We chose competence as the conceptual core because doing
so addressed both of the weaknesses we had
identified. First, competence may be precisely and clearly defined as a condition or
quality of effectiveness, ability, sufficiency,
or success. Therefore, competence motivation encompasses the appetitive energization and direction of behavior with regard
to effectiveness, ability, sufficiency, or success (as well as the aversive energization and
direction of behavior with regard to ineffectiveness, inability, insufficiency, or failure).
Second, competence motivation is broadly
and deeply applicable to psychological functioning: It is ubiquitous in everyday life,
it has an important influence on emotion
and well-being, it is operative and integral
throughout the lifespan, and it is relevant
to individuals across cultures. In short, we
believed that competence had great potential
as a precise, broadly applicable concept that
could help integrate and provide guidance
for a literature that was failing to reach its
full potential.

3


4


We (and The Guilford Press) were
extremely pleased with the reception that the
Handbook received. This was subjectively
represented by the many positive comments
we received from scholars in the field, and
objectively represented by the large number
of citations of the chapters in the volume
and the large number of copies sold. Given
this positive reception, Guilford approached
us to request that we edit a second edition
of the Handbook. We agreed and (slightly)
expanded our editorial team.
We (Elliot, Dweck, and Yeager) were not
interested in a second edition that merely
rehashed the material from the initial edition; instead, we wanted new, fresh chapters. Indeed, this is what we both solicited
and received from our authors. Structurally,
whereas some of the sections of the Handbook are the same as the original, others
are different. Likewise, some of the chapter
topics are the same, while others are different. Many of the authors are the same, but
again, many are different. What is, emphatically, the same across the two editions of the
Handbook is the caliber of the authors and
the chapters that they have provided. As in
the initial volume, we have received chapters
from well-known researchers in their areas
of expertise and they have, without exception, delivered excellent, authoritative, stateof-the-­science reviews of their focal topic.
What is decidedly new in this edition of the
Handbook is a focus on application.
Since the first edition of the Handbook
was published, the field has entered a new

and exciting phase in which there has been
a burgeoning interest in applying basic
motivational theory, concepts, and ideas to
real-world contexts. Most notably, there has
been an influx of research on the implementation and testing of motivational interventions in schools (especially), the workplace,
and the ballfield (for reviews, see Karabenick & Urdan, 2014; Lazowski & Hulleman,
2016; Lin-­Siegler, Dweck, & Cohen, 2016;
Spitzer & Aronson, 2015; Wilson & Buttrick, 2016; Yeager & Walton, 2011). This
and related work holds considerable promise
for both “giving away” knowledge gleaned
in the ivory tower and feeding back important information from the “front lines” that
can aid in theory refinement and development. For this reason, in this second edition

I. INTRODUCTION

of the Handbook, we changed the charge
to our authors, explicitly asking them to
include coverage of the link between theory
and application. This extended focus may
be concretely seen in the new title: Handbook of Competence and Motivation, Second Edition: Theory and Application. It
is our hope that this extended focus of the
Handbook will broaden and deepen our
coverage of this important area of inquiry,
and prompt new insights from the theory-­to-­
practice interface.
The Handbook reflects and celebrates the
renaissance of motivation as a field, not just
the field of competence motivation, but the
field of motivation more generally. After the
“cognitive revolution,” the field fell into disarray, and research on motivation slowed to

a trickle. In fact, in the 1980s, the esteemed
series, the Nebraska Symposium on Motivation, even considered dropping the term
motivation from its title (it did not do so for
fear of losing name recognition and, accordingly, library subscriptions). How far the
field has come since then is manifest in informative, programmatic research and applications grounded in attribution theories,
goal theories, approach–­avoidance theories,
expectancy–­
value theories, need theories,
implicit theories, cultural theories, identity
theories, and more. We believe that there has
never been a more exciting time in the field
of motivation in general and competence
motivation in particular. We hope the present excitement is only exceeded by the era to
come (which will be, we anticipate, covered
in the future editions of the Handbook).
This volume comprises six sections. Part
I is simply an introduction to the volume,
and it leads into Part II, which focuses on
the constructs that are central to the competence motivation literature. These constructs are intelligence and ability (i.e., competence per se), the motives that energize
competence-­relevant behavior, the goals that
direct competence-­
relevant behavior, the
attributions used to explain competence and
incompetence, the perceptions that one has
of one’s competence, the ways in which one
values competence, implicit theories about
competence, and anxiety regarding incompetence.
Part III focuses on processes that are relevant to competence motivation. In these



1.  Competence and Motivation5

chapters, competence is not the central
focus, but it is nevertheless integrally implicated in the processes under consideration.
These processes are challenge and threat
appraisals, social comparison, autonomy,
performance incentives, emotions, belonging, stereotype threat, self-­regulated learning, intrinsic motivation, creativity, and
burnout. These chapters nicely illustrate
the broad reach of competence motivation
across a diverse set of important psychological processes.
Part IV shifts from constructs and processes to issues regarding the development of
competence motivation. Here the coverage
encompasses mental representations in early
childhood, self-­
regulation in early childhood, competence motivation in adolescence, competence motivation in the aging
process, and gene–­environment interactions
in the emergence of competence motivation.
Following development, the focus in Part
V is on demographic categories and socialization contexts that have a critical, pervasive influence on competence motivation.
The roles of gender, social class, race, and
social identity are addressed, as are the
influences of parents, peers, teachers and
schools, coaches, and employers and the
workplace. Finally, Part VI provides a general primer on the intervention approach to
application that is having a major impact on
contemporary theory and research.
We believe that this second edition of
the Handbook nicely builds on the foundation laid by the initial edition. The chapters

herein clearly demonstrate that research on

competence and motivation is continuing
apace, with much fruit emerging on both the
theoretical and applied fronts. We trust that,
like ourselves, you will learn much from and
be inspired by what you read in the pages
that follow.
REFERENCES
Elliot, A. J., & Dweck, C. S. (Eds.). (2005).
Handbook of competence and motivation.
New York: Guilford Press.
Karabenick, S. A., & Urdan, T. C. (Eds.). (2014).
Advances in motivation and achievement:
Vol. 18. Motivational interventions. Bingley,
UK: Emerald.
Lazowski, R. A., & Hulleman, C. S. (2016).
Motivation interventions in education: A
meta-­analytic review. Review of Educational
Research, 86, 602–640.
Lin-­Siegler, X., Dweck, C. S., & Cohen, G. L.
(2016). Instructional interventions that motivate classroom learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 108, 295–299.
Spitzer, B., & Aronson, J. (2015). Minding and
mending the gap: Social psychological interventions to reduce educational disparities.
British Journal of Educational Psychology,
85, 1–18.
Wilson, T. D., & Buttrick, N. R. (2016). New
directions in social psychological interventions
to improve academic achievement. Journal of
Educational Psychology, 108, 392–396.
Yeager, D. S., & Walton, G. (2011). Social-­
psychological interventions in education:

They’re not magic. Review of Educational
Research, 81, 267–301.



PA R T II
CENTRAL CONSTRUCTS



CH A P T ER 2
Intelligence and Competence
in Theory and Practice
ROBERT J. STERNBERG

Intelligence tests are supposed to measure a
construct that is (1) unified (so-­called “general intelligence”), (2) relatively fixed by
genetic endowment, and (3) distinct from
and precedent to the competencies that
schools develop (see, e.g., Carroll, 1993;
Hunt, 2010; Mackintosh, 2011). All three of
these assumptions are open to question.
A major goal of work here is to integrate
the study of intelligence and related skills
(see reviews in Sternberg, 1990; Sternberg,
Jarvin, & Grigorenko, 2011; Sternberg &
Kaufman, 2011) with the study of competence (Cianciolo, Matthew, Wagner, &
Sternberg, 2006; Sternberg, 2014). Intelligence tests measure achieved skills or competencies. Even abstract reasoning tests measure achievement in dealing with geometric
symbols, skills taught in Western schools
(see Ang, Van Dyne, & Tan, 2011; Niu &

Brass, 2011).

HOW INDIVIDUALS TRANSLATE SKILLS
INTO ACHIEVEMENT
Achievement does not just depend on abilities, of course. It depends on the interaction
of abilities with other key attributes of the
person. Consider a model for how basic skills
or abilities are translated into achievement.

Elements of the Model
The model of developing competencies has
five key elements (although certainly they do
not constitute an exhaustive list of elements
in the ultimate development of competencies from precursor abilities): metacognitive
skills, learning skills, thinking skills, knowledge, and motivation (Dai & Sternberg,
2004). Although it is convenient to separate
these five elements, they are fully interactive.
They influence each other, both directly and
indirectly. For example, learning leads to
knowledge, but knowledge facilitates further learning.
These elements are, to some extent,
domain specific. The development of competencies in one area does not necessarily
lead to the development of competencies in
another area, although there may be some
transfer, depending on the relationship of
the areas, a point that has been made with
regard to intelligence by others as well (e.g.,
Gardner, 2011; Sternberg, 2002, 2003;
Sternberg & Grigorenko, 2007).
In the augmented theory of successful

intelligence (Sternberg, 1984, 1985, 1999,
2003), intelligence is viewed as having four
aspects: analytical, creative, practical, and
wisdom-­based skills. These aspects can be
somewhat domain specific. For example, our

9


10

research suggests that the development of
competencies in one creative domain (Sternberg & Lubart, 1995, 1996) or in one practical domain (Hedlund et al., 2003; Sternberg, Wagner, & Okagaki, 1993; Sternberg,
Wagner, Williams, & Horvath, 1995) shows
modest-­
to-­
moderate correlations with the
development of competencies in other such
domains. However, psychometric research
suggests more domain generality for the
analytical domain (Jensen, 1998; Sternberg
& Grigorenko, 2002). Moreover, people
can show analytical, creative, practical, or
wisdom-­
based competence in one domain
without showing all three of these kinds of
competencies, or even two of the three.
1.  Metacognitive skills. Metacognitive
skills (or metacomponents; Sternberg, 1985)
refer to people’s understanding and control

of their own cognition. Seven metacognitive skills are particularly important: problem recognition, problem definition, problem representation, strategy formulation,
resource allocation, monitoring of problem
solving, and evaluation of problem solving
(Sternberg, 1985). All of these skills are
modifiable (Sternberg & Grigorenko, 2007;
Sternberg, Kaufman, & Grigorenko, 2008).
2.  Learning skills. Learning skills
(knowledge-­
acquisition components) are
essential to the model (Sternberg, 1985;
Sternberg et al., 2008), although they are
certainly not the only learning skills that
individuals use. Examples of learning skills
are selective encoding, which involves distinguishing relevant from irrelevant information; selective combination, which involves
putting together the relevant information;
and selective comparison, which involves
relating new information to information
already stored in memory (Sternberg, 1985).
3.  Thinking skills. There are four main
kinds of thinking skills (or performance
components) that individuals need to master (Sternberg, 1985, 1994; Sternberg et
al., 2008; Sternberg & Weil, 1980). It is
important to note that these are sets of,
rather than individual, thinking skills.
Critical (analytical) thinking skills include
analyzing, critiquing, judging, evaluating,
comparing and contrasting, and assessing.
Creative thinking skills include creating,

II.  CENTRAL CONSTRUCTS


discovering, inventing, imagining, supposing, and hypothesizing. Practical thinking
skills include applying, using, utilizing, and
practicing (Sternberg et al., 2000; Sternberg
& Hedlund, 2002). Wisdom-­
based skills
include utilizing knowledge toward a common good and balancing one’s own interests
with others (Sternberg, 2013). These various
skills are the first step in the translation of
thought into real-world action.
4.  Knowledge. There are two main kinds
of knowledge that are relevant in academic
situations. Declarative knowledge is of facts,
concepts, principles, laws, and the like. It is
“knowing that.” Procedural knowledge is
of procedures and strategies. It is “knowing
how.”
5.  Motivation. One can distinguish among
several different kinds of motivation. A first
kind of motivation is achievement motivation (McClelland, 1985; McClelland, Atkinson, Clark, & Lowell, 1976). People who are
high in achievement motivation seek moderate challenges and risks. They are attracted
to tasks that are neither very easy nor very
hard. They are strivers—­constantly trying
to better themselves and their accomplishments. A second kind of motivation, competence (self-­efficacy) motivation, refers to persons’ beliefs in their own ability to solve the
problem at hand (Bandura, 1996). This kind
of self-­efficacy can result both from intrinsic and extrinsic rewards (Amabile, 1996;
Sternberg, 1996). Of course, other kinds
of motivation are important, too. Indeed,
motivation is perhaps the indispensable element needed for school success. Without it,
the student never even tries to learn. And,

of course, if a test is not important to the
examinee, he or she may do poorly simply
through a lack of effort to perform well.
Dweck (1999, 2002, 2007; Dweck &
Elliott, 1983) has shown that one of the most
important sources of motivation is individuals’ motivation to enhance their intellectual
skills (also see essays in Aarts & Elliot,
2011). What Dweck and her colleagues have
shown is that some individuals are entity
theorists with respect to intelligence: They
believe that to be smart is to show oneself
to be smart, and that means not making
mistakes or otherwise showing intellectual
weakness. Incremental theorists, in contrast,