Individual Differences in Stable Motivational Qualities and Skill Acquisition: Dispositional Goal Orientation and Self-Efficacy

Abstract

The current study extends previous research on skill acquisition to develop a more complete picture of the motivational variables that influence task performance. Participants completed measures of cognitive ability, global self-efficacy, dispositional and state-dependent goal orientation, and experience. Participants then completed Sudoku grids as measure of performance, as well as measures of subjective task complexity and task specific self-efficacy across three trials. Experience, cognitive ability, and subjective task complexity were stable predictors of performance across the skill acquisition trials.