Motivation and emotion/Book/2015/Stress and achievement motivation

Stress and achievement motivation:
What are the effects of stress on achievement motivation?

Multimedia presentation (3 min)

“ Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence. — Helen Keller ”

Overview What motivates us to achieve our goals? Why are some people more motivated to achieve than others? How does stress impact our motivation to achieve these goals? What can be done to decrease the effect on stress on our motivation levels? What is the relationship between stress and achievement motivation? This book chapter aims to discuss the relationship between achievement motivation and stress, focusing these effects among students in particular. This chapter also aims to suggest different strategies that we can adopt in order to better manage stress levels and habits that should be changed in order to create a more positive mindset in regards to achieving set goals. It also aims to look at the different steps needed to solve problems that may arise throughout this process which can also be seen in Figure 1. Focus questions What is stress and achievement motivation? How are they related? What theoretical evidence is there to support the relationship between stress and achievement? What strategies can be used to manage stress and boost motivation?

Stress

Stress has become a permanent part of today's society. It is defined as an experience that occurs when an individual's demands outweigh their resources to meet these demands which results in the increase of mental and emotional strain (Cruess et al., 2015). Whilst low levels of everyday stressors are common and not harmful, it can actually be useful in helping to motivate individuals towards the desired direction (Cruess et al., 2015). In contrast, lengthy exposure to these situations that increase stress levels can have many damaging effects (Cruess et al., 2015).

Figure 2. Stress Symptoms.

The experience of stress from academic failure can have terrible effects on students' social and emotional health and development, which in turn, promotes avoidance behaviours (Sideridis, 2005). Students face many pressures whilst studying. In conjunction with their academics, students are expected to balance their time for different things such as socializing, resting and leisure which can then affect their achievement motivation (Shearer, Hunt, Chowdhury, & Nicol, 2015).

In addition to the many psychological problems that exposure to chronic stress results in, undergraduate students that reported higher levels of stress, were more likely to consume unhealthy food and soft drinks, and were less likely to exercise regularly and eat healthily (Hintz, Frazier, & Meredith, 2015). If these poor behaviours become a habit, they can lead to other health problems that negatively affect the body.

Types of stressors

Stressors are the occurrence of conditions or events that evoke emotional or mental strain (Nägel, Sonnentag, & Kühnel, 2015). Stressors can be broken down into two sub-categories, life changes and mircrostressors (Sobolewski, Strelau, & Zawadzki, 2001).

The life changes stressor include stressors that may be short-lived and limited in time, but may also be sequential, cylic or chronic such as serious health problems, or remembering traumatic events (see post-traumatic stress disorder (Sobolewski, Strelau, & Zawadzki, 2001). In contrast, microstressors include daily hassles that vary day to day such as an approaching deadline for a piece of assessment or exam, or having to give an important presentation (Sobolewski, Strelau, & Zawadzki, 2001).

Physiological effects of stress

Low to moderate levels of acute stress are normal in everyday living, but chronic stress exposure can lead to negative health outcomes such as cognitive decline, poorer health and well-being, and avoidance of social situations (Cruess et al., 2015). Chronic stress levels has also been linked to the development of mental illnesses such as anxiety and depression (Cruess et al., 2015; Shearer, Hunt, Chowdury, & Nicol, 2015). Stress can impact the body, mind, behaviour and emotions in many different ways. Figure 2 gives a few examples of these.

Figure 3. Stress Related Health Problems

Research has also shown that stress has also been linked to brain and cognitive aging (Head, Singh, & Bugg, 2012). Associations have been shown between the release of stress hormones, such as cortisol, and the damage that results in the hippocampus and memory impairment (Head, Singh, & Bugg, 2012). In addition to the possibility of developing mental illnesses, stressor accumulation or stressor pile-up can increase cognitive decline with age (Head, Singh, & Bugg, 2012; Schilling & Diehl, 2014).

Increased blood pressure is also caused by elevated stress levels (Bowen et al., 2014). An increase in blood pressure can cause further health problems including cardiovascular issues such as heart disease, coronary artery disease, and strokes (Bowen et al., 2014; Tuomisto, Majahalme, Kähönen, Fredrikson, & Turjanmaa, 2005). Additional examples of other health problems caused by increased stress levels can be seen in Figure 3.

Stress managing strategies

In order to maintain one's emotions and control its effects in certain situations, stress managing strategies are widely used in order to regulate distressing emotions. Coping strategies are used in order to gain control over the stressor which involves the ability to escape, avoid or decrease the effects of the stressor (Spacapan, & Cohen, 1983).

There are many different stress managing strategies but some may not be as positive as others. Some students may manage their stress levels negatively with smoking and alcohol consumption which could lead to alcoholism (Shearer, Hunt, Chowdhury, & Nicol, 2015). Although their stress levels are being lowered, these individuals are picking up habits that have negative affects on the body.

Problem-focused coping

Problem-focused coping is used as a defense mechanism directed at managing or altering the problem or stressors (Folkman, Lazarus, Pimley, & Novacek, 1987; Heppner, Cook, Wright, & Johnson, 1995). This type of coping strategy generally occurs when individuals consider they are unable to effectively address the stressor (Krischer, Penney, & Hunter, 2010). It involves short-circuiting negative emotions through the release of behaviours that modify the stressor or that allows avoidance or minimization of its impact and cognitive activity that leads to the belief that the stressors can be controlled by using different tools and techniques (Strentz, & Auerbach, 1988). Problem-focused coping involves providing information to specify accurate expectations about events concerning stressors, and/or expectations about sensory stimuli, and the solution of implementing action plans and problem solving (Strentz, & Auerbach, 1988). It has been suggested that responses in relation to moods, feelings and attitudes play important roles in this stress managing strategy as it provides evidence that an underlying problem exists, it provides feedback on the progress of problem solving, and it also influences perceptions of a particular problem (Heppner, Cook, Wright, & Johnson, 1995).

Problem-focused coping was broken down into three different styles and were examined to determine their effects (Heppner, Cook, Wright, & Johnson, 1995). These styles included the reflective style, which involved different cognitive activities such as planning, reflecting and analyzing on their approach to resolving problems which also engages in coping, the reactive style, which highlights both emotional and cognitive activities which exhausts the individual or alters activities involving problem-solving (Heppner, Cook, Wright, & Johnson, 1995). The final style is the suppressive style which illustrates denial and an avoidance of problem-solving activities which is associated to withdrawal of activities (Heppner, Cook, Wright, & Johnson, 1995).

The possibility arises for an individual to experience feelings of mastery, efficacy and control over stressors, even in difficult situations that seem uncontrollable all because of the problem-focused coping strategy (Dunkley, Ma, Lee, Preacher, & Zuroff, 2014). This strategy is useful in targeting the problem directly.

Emotion-focused coping

Emotion-focused coping focuses on regulating emotional responses towards a stressful situation or problem that causes distressing emotions (Folkman, Lazarus, Oimley, & Novacek, 1987; Heppner, Cook, Wright, & Johnson, 1995). These emotional responses motivate an action to occur, as without emotion, no motivation to action occurs (Greenberg, 2008). This type of coping attempts to reduce emotional exhaustion (Krischer, Penney, & Hunter, 2010). It is indicated that emotion-focused coping is most effective in situations that an individual has little or no control over the situation and the stressors (Krischer, Penney, & Hunter, 2010). Emotion-focused coping activities predominantly involve unconscious processes which makes it more difficult to assess through self-report (Heppner, Cook, Wright, & Johnson, 1995). These activities can range from expression of their emotions, reinterpreting events in a positive light, seeking social support, and engaging in other activities as a distraction from the stressful situation or problem (Krischer, Penney, & Hunter, 2010).

If the core emotion being avoided is adaptive, it is suggested that a two-step therapeutic proccess should occur (Greenberg, 2008). The indicative secondary emotions including hopelessness, feelings of distress and despair, are stimulated by therapy, then the core adaptive emotions are interrupted such as the sadness of grief or anger are acquired and justified (Greenberg, 2008). If the core emotion being avoided is maladaptive however, a three-step process is suggested to take place (Greenberg, 2008). After the secondary emotion has been evoked, the avoidance of the core maladaptive emotions are then accessed such as shame, anger or fear (Greenberg, 2008). These maladaptive emotions are transformed by accessing other adaptive emotions including sadness, anger and compassion which are then used to transform views of self and personal accounts (Greenberg, 2008).

Emotion-focused coping is useful in regulating distressing emotions, but effects may differ from individual to individual in relation to the situation and emotions involved (Strentz, & Auerbach, 1988).

Mindfulness

Figure 4. Buddist monk engaging in meditation

Mindfulness is another widely used strategy in managing and controlling the effects of stress by decreasing the symptoms of anxiety, depression and stress which helps to improve the quality of life (Shearer, Hunt, Chowdhury, & Nicol, 2015; Snippe, Nyklíček, Schroevers, & Bos, 2015). Mindfulness can be defined as the ability to be more aware of the present-moment and to pay attention in a particular way that involves non-judgmental thoughts (Shearer, Hunt, Chowdhury, & Nicol, 2015; Snippe, Nyklíček, Schroevers, & Bos, 2015).

Training in mindfulness focuses on developing and practicing mindfulness in day-to-day life whilst also encouraging and accepting non-judgmental thoughts toward events and experiences to promote the practice of mindful presence (Biegel, Brown, Shapiro, & Schubert, 2009). It has been associated with trait measures of psychological well-being which includes negative associations of distress, depression and anxiety measures in conjunction with positive correlations with positive measures of affect (Snippe, Nyklíček, Schroevers, & Bos, 2015).

The effects of mindfulness therapy can include feeling less fatigued, less tense and more upbeat which in turn enhances the ability to be more aware of experiences (Snippe, Nyklíček, Schroevers, & Bos, 2015). Increase in the practice of mindfulness from day-to-day leads to improvements in psychological well-being rather than any improvements on depressive moods (Snippe, Nyklíček, Schroevers, & Bos, 2015). It has also been shown to reduce the effects of stress among other positive psychological health benefits that have been associated with mindfulness.

Mindfulness based activities include mindfulness meditation as a core component apart of the intervention program (Dimidjian, & Segal, 2015). These activities also include different types of meditation such as sitting meditation, walking meditation and body scan meditation, in addition to yoga and can also include mindful eating habits (Dimidjian, & Segal, 2015). These practices aid participants in developing certain skills or means in order to meet their personal goals, such as preventing depression and anxiety, and reducing stress levels and its effects (Dimidjian, & Segal, 2015).

“ Breathing in, I calm my body and mind. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is the only moment. — Thich Nhat Hanh ”

Motivation

Motivation is defined as a function of different beliefs including goals, norms, oneself, and reality, that are relevant to an individual's growth (Shiri, Wexler, & Kreitler, 2010).

It is suggested that motivation includes the combination of high performance and the desirability of the outcome, in addition to the motivational forces that influence behaviour (Evans, 1974). Emotion plays a key role in motivation, if there is no emotion involved, no action occurs (Greenberg, 2008).

Achievement motivation

Achievement motivation involves moving in the direction towards either success or avoidance of failure (Renellucci, Hall, & Goetz, 2015). Achievement motivation can also be defined by the achievement goal theory, the expectancy-value theory, and the self-worth theory (De Castella, Byrne, & Covington, 2013; Zielgler, Schmukle, Egloff, & Bühner, 2010).

Achievement goal theory

According to the achievement goal theory, in order for students to accomplish a task, they must have already obtained the necessary skills and knowledge, but they must also have the desire and determination to invest their energy and resources in order to complete the task (Marshik, Kortenkamp, Cerbin, & Dixon, 2015). Achievement goals are defined as the reasons behind the motivation that guides behaviour in order to reach or avoid a certain outcome (Ranellucci, Hall, & Goetz, 2015). These goals focus on the specific reasoning that influence and motivate behaviours in achievement situations which creates outcomes in which individuals interpret as either successes or failures (Bandalos, Finney, & Geske, 2003; Ranellucci, Hall, & Goetz, 2015).

Achievement goals influence behaviours that creates an outcome in which individuals interpret as either successes or failures (Bandalos, Finney, & Geske, 2003; Cerbin & Dixon, 2015; Ranellucci, Hall, & Goetz, 2015). The achievement goal theory is divided into three sub-types of goals. Mastery goals are linked to more intrinsic interest in the task and are also focused on learning which are motivated predominantly by curiosity, challenge and improvement the self and of the individuals' competencies (Pintrich, 2000; Ranellucci, Hall, & Goetz, 2015). Performance-approach goals focus on out-performing others by demonstrating their abilities and high level of competence (Marshik, Kortenjamp, Cerbin, & Dixon, 2015; Pintrich, 2000; Ranellucci, Hall, & Goetz, 2015). In contrast, performance-avoidance goals focus on the avoidance of negative judgments, which involves the avoidance of failure and the appearance of incompetence which in turn, leads to avoidance of the task by the individual (Pintrich, 2000; Ranellucci, Hall, Goetz, 2015).

Successful adaptive individuals coordinate both their performance goals with their learning goals effectively (Bandalos, Finney, & Geske, 2003). Students that set more performance goals are more likely to interpret the outcome as evidence of their ability or inability to complete the task, whereas students that set more learning goals tend to interpret their success or failure by the effectiveness of their learning strategies (Bandalos, Finney, & Geske, 2003).

Self-efficacy is another important component of the achievement goal-performance relationship as it important to determine how self-perceptions of an individual's abilities correlate between goals and achievement (Bandalos, Finney, & Geske, 2003). It refers to one's own belief about their perception of self-control over future actions (Høigaard, Agder, Kovač, Øverby, & Haugen, 2015). The higher the level of self-efficacy, the higher the level of confidence an individual has in believing that they will accomplish their goals.

Expectancy-value theory

The expectancy-value theory of motivation believes that expectancy-related beliefs result due to individuals' choices, persistence and their achievement behaviours (Conley, 2012). This theory also involves the integration of personal motives with their personality in order to demonstrate how identity shapes an individual's values, goals and behaviours (Magidson, Roberts, Collado-Rodriguez, & Lejuez, 2014). The expectancy probability outlines a correlation between a behaviour and an outcome, in that an individual's beliefs are represented by an outcome that occurs due to their behaviour (Evans, 1974). An example of this expectancy probability is when students invest a lot of effort and persistence in their studies, they expect an outcome of high performance, such as a higher grade.

In this theory, utility value refers to the perceived usefulness of the present task to achieve both present and future goals, and is determined by how closely a task is linked to current and future goals (Vansteenkiste et al., 2004). When accomplishing a task, utility value acquires more of the extrinsic motivation rather than intrinsic motivation (Vansteenkiste et al., 2004).

Self-worth theory

The self-worth theory assumes that the highest human priority is the search for self-acceptance (De Castella, Byrne, & Covington, 2013). It is thought that this need for self-acceptance causes a development of a fear of failure to approach success (De Castella, Byrne, & Covington, 2013).

In relation to academics, this theory can be measured by an individual's ability to achieve, but individuals' self-perception of incompetency are likely to cause negative outcomes such as feelings of shame and humiliation (De Castella, Byrne, & Covington, 2013). Students in particular use two types of deflective strategies in order to protect themselves from the increase of anxiety due to stress-provoking tasks by altering the meaning of failure (De Castella, Byrne, & Covington, 2013). These strategies include defensive pessimism and self-handicapping.

Defensive pessimism involves having unrealistically low expectations for tasks that will involve evaluation of performance for oneself which alters their meaning of failure (De Castella, Byrne, & Covington, 2013). As these expectations are unrealistically low, students are pleasantly surprised if they do much better than their initial thought, or if they did badly, because the expectations were so low, they do not consider it to be such a fail (De Castella, Byrne, & Covington, 2013).

Self-handicapping involves the intentional creation of an obstacle or sabotage by an individual in order to provide an excuse should they fail, and this failure can be associated to the handicap, rather than the individuals inability to accomplish the task (Snyder, Malin, Dent, & Linnenbrink-Garcia, 1983).

“ A creative man is motivated by the desire to achieve, not by the desire to beat others. — Ayn Rand ”

Relationship between stress and achievement motivation

Impacts of stress on achievement motivation

If stress levels are not properly managed, it can lead to poor physical and psychological health (Shearer, Hunt, Chowdhury, & Nicol, 2015). Additionally, it can lead to the development of mental illnesses such as anxiety and depression, but can also lead to harmful health problems such as cognitive aging, increase in blood pressure, which can lead to many other health problems (Bowen et al., 2014; Tuomisto, Majahalme, Kähönen, Fredrikson, & Turjanmaa, 2005).

Although there are many negative aspects in relation to stress and the effect it is has on achievement motivation, stress can positively impact motivation. As stress is caused due to a lack of resources to meet certain demands, the motivation to change the effects of stress on the body is helpful in changing the situation an individual may be in. For example, if a student is feeling stressed and overwhelmed with the amount of school work they need to finish, rather than staying in the stressed state, the student can be motivated by these feelings to remove themselves away from the stressful situation. The student would be able to complete this by starting one piece of assessment, and completing it, and finishing the rest, one-by-one until they were all finished, resulting in the reduction of feelings of stress.

Impacts of achievement motivation on stress

Although stress can create many negative impacts upon one's achievement motivation, achievement motivation itself can also cause stress levels to rise. The creation of unrealistically high expectations for oneself can cause an increase in stress levels due to the realisation of not being able to reach these expectations. Expectations from others may also cause stress levels to rise as the desire to fulfill these expectations to satisfy these individuals and their expectations adds more pressure, and therefore, more stress and anxiety.

In order for stress levels to be controlled and maintained, individuals should create expectations and goals for themselves that are realistic and achievable. After accomplishing these set goals, the goals can be raised pushing the individual further, making them more challenging until these goals are reached and so on. Goals should be set to be realistic in order for progress to be noticeable increasing an individual's motivation.

Test yourself: Quiz 1 True or False: Acute stress is harmful? True False 2 Stressors are: (Pick the most correct answer) Demands that outweigh the resources that meet these demands Normal in everyday living Conditions that evoke mental and emotional strain A health problem 3 True or False: Stress can lead to cognitive aging? True False 4 What is Achievement Motivation? A combination of high performance and the desirability of the outcome A drive An influence on behaviour It involves moving in the direction towards either success or avoidance of failure

Conclusion

Stress can be defined as an experience that occurs when an individual's demands outweigh their resources to meet these demands which results in the increase of mental and emotional strain. It is a normal part of daily life. When the effects become long-term issues and start negatively affecting the individual's health both psychologically and physiologically, changes need to be made.

Achievement motivation involves moving in a direction either towards success or avoidance of failure. There are many different strategies that can be used to combat and overcome stress to control, manage and decrease its effects. The reason as to why stress occurs can also be defined by different motivational theories.

Stress may be generally used with a negative connotation, but without stress and the emotions that occur in conjunction with them, individuals would never have any motivation or the drive to take action towards or away from particular situations. A balance between stress and motivation must occur in order for full functionality to take place.

See also

• Achievement motivation - Motivation & Emotion 2011 book chapter
• Handling stress - Motivation & Emotion 2011 book chapter
• Stress and emotional health - Motivation & Emotion 2011 book chapter
• Stress inoculation - Motivation & Emotion 2014 book chapter
• Stress reduction - Motivation & Emotion 2013 book chapter
• Stress and motivation - Motivation & Emotion 2014 book chapter

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External links

• Mindfulness Mindfulness exercises
• Kelly McGonigal — How to make stress your friend TEDtalks Youtube video