Mastery Motivation and School Readiness in Children Served by Head Start

• In Event: Poster Session 3
  In Poster Session: Head Start and Pre-Kindergarten Issues

Abstract

Embracing challenging tasks and coping with setbacks broadly characterize a set of skills known as mastery motivation. Smiley and Dweck (1994) define two motivational orientations (MO): mastery and performance motivated. The former is characterized by viewing failure as an opportunity for growth while the latter views it as confirmation of negative self-attributions. Project aims: 1) examine the stability and distribution of mastery vs. performance orientation in a sample of Head Start children, 2) examine the relationship between MO and approaches to learning, and 3) examine relationships between MO and school readiness outcomes. Results broaden our understanding of motivation and school readiness in children served by Head Start, and will aid in fostering these adaptive skills in future interventions.

Author

• Andres Sebastian Bustamante, Universtiy of Miami