ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION ACROSS CULTURES

LECTURE OUTLINE I Background II Western conceptualizations of achievement motivation A. What is it? B. How is it measured? C. How does it vary? D. What causes it?

LECTURE OUTLINE III An indigenous view: Yang & Yu A. IOAM and SOAM B. Measurement C. Correlates IV Kiasu-ism: Achievement motivation gone wrong? A. Definition and hypothesized correlates 1. Need for achievement 2. Competitiveness 3. Individualism 4. Uncertainty avoidance

LECTURE OUTLINE B. Measurement and correlates (Ho & Munro) C. Behavioural study of kiasu-ism V Conclusions

Need for achievement (N ach) An intrinsic motivation to achieve individually determined task-oriented objectives

THEMATIC APPERCEPTION TEST

EDWARDS PERSONAL PREFERENCE SCHEDULE I like to stick to a job or problem even when it may seem as if I am not getting anywhere with it. When I have some assignment to do, I like to start it and keep working on it until it is completed. I feel that the pain and misery I have suffered has done me more good than harm. I like to help people who are less fortunate than I am.

EDWARDS PERSONAL PREFERENCE SCHEDULE I like to help other people who are less fortunate than I am. I like to talk about my achievements. I like to finish any task or job that I begin. I like to listen to or tell jokes in which sex plays a major part.

Culture and Achievement Motivation Culture -> Child-rearing practices -> Personality -> Achievement-oriented Society McClelland

An Alternative View The most frequently leveled criticisms are that McClelland’s framework neglects the importance of social and/or inter- personal factors as contextual conditions in defining the concept of achievement motivation, and that it does not do justice to achievement in culturally distinctive non-Western societies, especially those with a collectivist orientation. McClelland’s theory and method, because of their neglect of socio-contextual factors, have obvious limitations, even when applied intra-culturally. Their unsuitability is much more evident when they are adapted in cross-cultural research, especially in subjects from Oriental societies, such as China and Japan.

An Alternative View Previous research using people from collectively oriented Chinese and Japanese societies has repeatedly attested to the fact that their achievement motivation patterns are strikingly different from those of Western peoples and cannot be adequately understood in terms of McClelland’s highly individualistic concept of achievement motives. Yang

Individually Oriented Achievement Motivation and Socially Oriented Achievement Motivation differ in: Goals, Behaviours, Outcomes, Consequences and Overall Characteristics IOAM AND SOAM

SOAMIOAM Standard of excellence and incentive value of goal attainment mainly defined by others in membership groups Means of goal attainment mainly approved by others Standard of excellence and incentive value of goal attainment mainly defined by self Means of goal attainment mainly determined by self

SOAMIOAM Dependence on others’ help in pursuit of achievement Outcome evaluations made by others More reliance on one’s own ability and effort in pursuit of achievement Accomplishments evaluated by self

SOAMIOAM Positive or negative reinforcement given by others Motivation high in social instrumentality and low in self instrumentality Positive or negative reinforcement given by self as result of outcome evaluation Motivation high in functional autonomy

MEASURES OF SOAM AND IOAM I try to reach standards set by my teachers when I am doing my homework. If I don’t do well in school, I couldn’t face my family and relatives. I work hard to reach the standards my parents have set for me. I try to do my best if I consider the task to be valuable to me I would try to figure out different ways of solving a problem rather than asking for help. I evaluate my performance based on my own expectations and standards.

Correlates of IOAM and SOAM IOAM, not SOAM, correlates with nAch on EPPS SOAM correlates with face saving and social skills IOAM correlates with work effectiveness Those high in SOAM are more likely to consider family interests and welfare in job choice Those high in IOAM more likely to consider the development of personal potential

KIASU “Fear of losing out” (Hokkien) An indigenous Singaporean construct?

Correlates of Kiasu N ach Competitiveness Individualism Uncertainty Avoidance

Components of Kiasu (Ho & Munro) GREED –Eat your money’s worth of food. –Rush to be the first one to get food at a buffet. MONEY CONSCIOUSNESS –Go through a lot of trouble just to get something cheap. Collect discount coupons to use.

Components of Kiasu (Ho & Munro) BEING NUMBER ONE –Try to be ahead of others in everything and anything. –Try to outdo everyone you know.. PREVENTING OTHERS FROM WINNING –Keep vital information from your classmates.

Components of Kiasu (Ho & Munro) RUSHING –Speed up when driving if the traffic light turns orange. –Keep changing lanes when driving because the cars in front of you are too slow. VALUE FOR MONEY –Going shopping on tour because things are so cheap. –Take as many photographs as possible when on tour.

EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF KIASU (Ramakrishnan) Independent Variables: –Resource Scarcity –Trait anxiety Dependent Variable: –Kiasu behaviour: Arrival time

Kiasu Behaviour as a Function of Resource Scarcity and Anxiety

QUESTIONS Is kiasu a meaningful construct in NZ? Would NZers be higher or lower in kiasu than Singaporeans?