COMPETITIVENESS, SCHOOL MOTIVATION AND SELF-CONCEPT IN DIFFERENT NATIONAL SETTINGS Darja Kobal Grum Department of Psychology University of Ljubljana, Slovenia Janez Kolenc Educational Research Institute, Slovenia

Why to study the C and SC together? The first part of the answer: If we examine competitiveness (C) in the framework of self- concept (SC), we reveal not only its negative but also its positive aspects We presume that C has a significant role in a model of SC.

Self-concept SC is an organized cognitive set of traits, opinions, attitudes, notions, beliefs and other mental contents that an individual has about him/her-self.

Competitiveness C refers to different psychological characteristics of an individual that are based on or derived from the rate of domination of a certain type of motive in the individual.

Two types of competitiveness Ryckman’s postulation of competitiveness (Ryckman, Libby, van den Borne, Gold, & Lindner, 1997; Ryckman, Thornton, & Butler, 1994): hyper-competitiveness (HC) personal development competitiveness (PDC).

Hyper-competitiveness 1 HC is a motive; the individual tries to achieve a goal irrespective of the means to be used He/she primarily takes care of his/herself and uses on the way various techniques from manipulation, aggressiveness to exploitation, etc. A hyper-competitive individual values highly achievements, hedonism, power, stimulation, and is egocentrically oriented

Hyper-competitiveness 2 The individual or group aim to beat or eliminate the other persons The individual or group aim to beat or eliminate the other persons They usually compete also in situations that are not of competitive nature

Personal development competitiveness (PDC) 1 PDC is a motive the main emphasis is not on winning, but on own personal development, which is result of the experience that the individual has gained in competitive situations

Personal development competitiveness (PDC) 2 He/she is focused on self- development, self-discovery and discovery of his/her potentials He/she follows the standards of excellency, wants to make progress and do something as good as he/she can.

Why to study the C and SC together? The second part of the answer: In our study, we try to reject a stereotype, that C is not a desired personal characteristic. If C is investigated in a context of SC, also positive dimensions as well as correlations with SC areas could appear. A model of SC and C could be postulated. This model might differ from culture/nation to culture/nation.

The purposes of our study Are there any differences in self- concept and competition among participants from different countries? The investigation of the correlations between self-concept and competition Postulation of a multidimensional model of self-concept and competition.

Subjects 464 first-year students Slovenia (N= 169) Serbia and Monte Negro (N=155) Spain (N=140) They were selected on the grounds of comparable educational programs and similar age (19 years).

Measuring instruments and variables Self-concept: Self Description questionnaire (SDQ III; Marsh and O'Neill, 1984) Self Description questionnaire (SDQ III; Marsh and O'Neill, 1984) School motivation: Inventory of School Motivation (ISM; McInerney et al., 1997) Inventory of School Motivation (ISM; McInerney et al., 1997) Competetiveness: A measure of personal attitudes concerning competitiveness (Ryckman et al., 1996), A measure of personal attitudes concerning competitiveness (Ryckman et al., 1996), Hypercompetitive attitude scale (Ryckman et al., 1990). Hypercompetitive attitude scale (Ryckman et al., 1990).

Self-concept areas(SDQ III) MathematicsVerbalAcademic Problem solving/Creativity Physical abilities Physical appearance Relation with same sex peers Relations with opposite sex peers Relations with parents Religion/Spirit. Honesty/Reliability Emotional stability/Security General self- concept

School motivation fields (ISM) TaskEffort Sense of purpose Social power Affiliation Social concern PraiseToken General motivation Mastery general Performance general Social general

Competitiveness Hyper-competitiveness Personal development competitiveness

Additional data NationalityAgeGender Type of study

Results Correlation analysis – all three nations HC and PDC do not correlate with SC areas Both HC as well as PDC are more related to school motivation than to self-concept The hypothesis of competitiveness as part of the self-concept model is questionable if we analyse all three nations as a whole

Results Correlation analysis – different nations Both HC as well as PDC are more related to school motivation than to self-concept PDC correlates with mathematics (Slo), sincerity (-; Ser), verbal, academic, problem solving, physical abilities, physical appearance, general SC (-; Sp)

Results HC correlates with verbal, physical appearance, relations with same sex peers (-; Ser), academic, physical abilities, sincerity (-; Sp)

General motivation Performance general Personal development competitiveness Mathematics,181,213,176 Table 1: Correlation analysis- Slovenians Correlations are significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Hyper competitiveness Personal development competitiveness Verbal self-concept -,316 Physical appearance -,270 Relations with same sex peers -,236 Sincerity/reliability-,218 Table 2: Correlation analysis- Serbians Correlations are significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Hyper competitiveness Personal development competitiveness Verbal self-concept -,167 Academic self- concept -,178-,172 Problem solving/creativity -,197 Physical abilities/sports,178-,247 Physical appearance -,248 Sincerity/reliability-,420 General self- concept -,271 Table 3: Correlation analysis- Spaniards Correlations are significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Findings We do see that there is slightly different structure under the correlations if we analyse all three nations as one sample or if we analyse each national sample separately The hypothesis of self-concept and competitiveness model is not so questionable if we analyse the participants from each nationality separately

Construction of a model 4 factor analysis (each one with different sample) assumed only one basic model of self-concept and competitiveness

Self- concept PerformanceMasteryHyper C ACADEMICACADEMIC SOCIALSOCIAL EMOTIONALEMOTIONAL GENERALGENERAL AFFILIATIONAFFILIATION SOCIALCONCERNSOCIALCONCERN TOKENTOKEN Figure 1: A multidimensional model of self-concept and competition representing 5 areas EFFORTEFFORT Personal DC SOCIALPOWERSOCIALPOWER SOCIALGENERALSOCIALGENERAL TASKTASK

Final conclusions and suggestions There are more correlations between SC and C in cross national settings One basic model of SC and C could be postulated The model consists of 5 independent areas: one belongs to self-concept, two belong to school motivation and 2 belong to competitiveness More advanced analysis would be proposed to deepen the research of structural model

Thank you!

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