Choosing Between Person- and Process-Praise: Exploring Students' Preferences for Feedback in Success Versus Failure Conditions

• In Event: 70.023 - Students' Choices of, and Responses to, Varying Types of Feedback

Abstract

Whereas many existing studies on person- and process-praise expose children to one type of feedback at a time, the current study exposes children to two teachers -- one endorsing person-praise and one endorsing process-praise -- thus allowing us to examine children’s preferences between the two while manipulating their feeling of success or failure. Children told that they were failing on a task were significantly more likely to report that they preferred the process feedback teacher, while those led to believe that they were succeeding showed equal preferences for both teachers. Results were more highly significant for boys than girls, and for children who endorsed permanent labels of goodness. Implications for help-seeking and applications of theories of intelligence are also discussed.

Authors

• Charissa Tansomboon, University of California Berkeley

• Allison Master, University of Washington

• Carol Dweck, Stanford University