Goal complex and OVE
1. Achievement goals
In an achievement situation, people’s goals for achievement striving can be divided into four categories: mastery approach goals, mastery avoidance goals, performance approach goals, and performance avoidance goals. People who adopt mastery goals show a desire to learn, improve, and develop their competence. Therefore, they tend to be concerned more with learning new skills and improve themselves in the learning process. On the other hand, people who adopt performance goals have a desire to prove their outperformance, especially while others are watching. Thus, they are more likely to be concerned with looking intelligent and with not looking brainless. At the same time, mastery and performance goals can be integrated with one’s dispositional tendencies such as the need for achievement or fear of failure. The need for achievement allows people to adopt mastery and performance approach goals. Conversely, the fear of failure serves as an antecedent for adopting mastery and performance avoidance goals.
In an achievement situation, people’s goals for achievement striving can be divided into four categories: mastery approach goals, mastery avoidance goals, performance approach goals, and performance avoidance goals. People who adopt mastery goals show a desire to learn, improve, and develop their competence. Therefore, they tend to be concerned more with learning new skills and improve themselves in the learning process. On the other hand, people who adopt performance goals have a desire to prove their outperformance, especially while others are watching. Thus, they are more likely to be concerned with looking intelligent and with not looking brainless. At the same time, mastery and performance goals can be integrated with one’s dispositional tendencies such as the need for achievement or fear of failure. The need for achievement allows people to adopt mastery and performance approach goals. Conversely, the fear of failure serves as an antecedent for adopting mastery and performance avoidance goals.
2. Combinations of hope for success and fear of failure
Depending on the individual’s reliance on hope for success (i.e., success-oriented) and fear of failure (i.e., failure-avoidant), each individual can be divided into four types: optimists, failure avoiders, failure accepting, and overstrivers. First, people with high hope for success and low fear for failure are defined as optimists. They tend to have positive beliefs about their ability to achieve their goals. Second, people with high hope for success and high fear of failure are defined as overstrivers. They can think through all possible outcomes of their effort and see various routes not only for success but for failure. For their successful achievement, they feel pride but feel the relief of not failing at the same time. Thus, overstrivers’ success can accompany emotional fatigue and burnout. Third, people with low hope for success and high fear for failure are labeled as failure avoiders. They tend to set low level of achievement goals and make excuses for their poor performance (i.e., defensive mechanisms). Finally, people with low hope for success and fear for failure are called failure accepting. They are likely to have low academic motivation and a sense of helplessness.
3. From an overstriver through failure accepting to an optimist
Throughout Ove’s life, he went through changes in his beliefs in hope for success and fear of failure. In Ove’s early life he may be defined as an overstriver. After his father passed away, Ove had to take care of himself financially. Therefore, he gave up attending college and chose to work at the same company his dad had worked for. Nevertheless, he never complained about the situation and tried his best at his job, because he had learned from his dad the value of hardworking and honesty. With these values, he believed his life will go better. However, there were some people around him making his situation tough. Their interruptions made Ove lose his house, savings, and job. These unexpected difficulties in his early life make Ove have a high fear of failure at the same time. Ove knew that there was no one around to ask for help, so he began to struggle to avoid further failure.
Ove, an overstriver, ended up being changed into failure accepting after his wife’s death. Ove lost his motivation for goal-striving after Sonja’s death because the only reason for his effort was to make his wife happy. He did not have any hope for success nor fear for failure. Being filled with strong sense of loss and helplessness, Ove even tried to commit suicide on the day when he got fired from his job. However, Ove, who still had many lovely neighbors around him, was able to become an optimist in the end thanks to their supports. Ove realized that he still could help his neighbors with difficulties and felt rewarding by helping them. Once again, Ove tried to manage his life better by taking care of himself and neighbors, and this time, there was no more fear of failure nor sense of defeat and impatience.
Throughout Ove’s life, he went through changes in his beliefs in hope for success and fear of failure. In Ove’s early life he may be defined as an overstriver. After his father passed away, Ove had to take care of himself financially. Therefore, he gave up attending college and chose to work at the same company his dad had worked for. Nevertheless, he never complained about the situation and tried his best at his job, because he had learned from his dad the value of hardworking and honesty. With these values, he believed his life will go better. However, there were some people around him making his situation tough. Their interruptions made Ove lose his house, savings, and job. These unexpected difficulties in his early life make Ove have a high fear of failure at the same time. Ove knew that there was no one around to ask for help, so he began to struggle to avoid further failure.
Ove, an overstriver, ended up being changed into failure accepting after his wife’s death. Ove lost his motivation for goal-striving after Sonja’s death because the only reason for his effort was to make his wife happy. He did not have any hope for success nor fear for failure. Being filled with strong sense of loss and helplessness, Ove even tried to commit suicide on the day when he got fired from his job. However, Ove, who still had many lovely neighbors around him, was able to become an optimist in the end thanks to their supports. Ove realized that he still could help his neighbors with difficulties and felt rewarding by helping them. Once again, Ove tried to manage his life better by taking care of himself and neighbors, and this time, there was no more fear of failure nor sense of defeat and impatience.
4. Dual-process model of perceived control
The dual-process model describes an individual’s behaviors to cope with a loss of control or helplessness and to maintain perceptions of personal control. In this model, an individual’s perceived control is facilitated by primary control and secondary control. Primary control is attempts to change the environment based on an individual’s needs and desires. With primary control strategies, individuals make effort with endurance to achieve desired outcomes. Secondary control is attempts to adapt to the environment. With secondary control strategies, individuals can change their interpretation of the current situation even when it is stressful and uncontrollable. Therefore, secondary control protects our emotional well-being and self-esteem. In addition, it motivates us to make effort for goal-striving by guiding us not to be in the loss of control and encouraging us to go back to primary control. Sometimes, secondary control may entail changing our values or goals.
5. Ove's primary and secondary control
Ove’s primary and secondary control helped him not to lose his control in despair after the car accident. Ove wanted to console his wife who lose her leg and baby from the accident, help her return to a normal life, and support her to achieve her dream to be a teacher. Thus, he worked hard and did everything he can do to help her under the unfavorable situation. For example, he rebuilt every kitchen furniture low for Sonja who became a wheelchair dependent. Also, whenever Sonja was refused to be employed as a teacher because of her wheelchair, he sent petitions to government asking for building ramps in schools for wheelchair dependent teachers and students. Such effort of Ove to change his environment was driven by his primary control. At the same time, the secondary control strategies also encouraged Ove exert persistent effort since he believed that seemingly hopeless situations can be changed with his endeavor. Unfortunately, with growing antipathy towards the government and uncontrollable grief over the death of his wife, the strategy of secondary control did not last as a lifelong strategy for Ove.
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