Developmental phases in self-regulation: Shifting from process goals to outcome goals.

Abstract

The effects of goal setting and self-monitoring during self-regulated practice on the acquisition of a complex motoric skill were studied with 90 high school girls. It was hypothesized that girls who shifted goals developmentally from process to outcome goals would surpass classmates who adhered to only process goals who, in turn, would exceed classmates who used only outcome goals in posttest dart-throwing skill, self-reactions, self-efficacy perceptions, and intrinsic interest in the game. Support for alt hypotheses derived from the developmental model was found. The girls' self-reactions to dart-throwing outcomes and self-efficacy perceptions about dart skill were highly correlated with their intrinsic interest in the game. It was also found that self-recording, a formal form of self-monitori ng, enhanced dart-throwing skill, self-efficacy, and self-reaction beliefs. Mastery of complex skills, such as reading, writing, dance, music, or athletics, is a time-consuming process requiring intensive teaching and countless hours of personal practice (Ericsson & Charness, 1994). A number of theorists have attempted to identify distinctive phases or steps in the attainment of a self-regulatory level of competence in skills such as these. For example, Fitts (1964) distinguished three phases in the acquisition of motoric skills from the beginner level to mastery. These included a cognitive phase in which knowledge of a skill is acquired first, then an associative phase wherein knowledge is transformed into action sequences, and finally an autonomous phase in which actions become spontaneous or self-regulatory. Robb (1972), M. D. Adams (1971), and J. A. Adams (1980) suggested that distinct learning processes may underlie these phase changes in learning, such as forming plans, motoric practicing, and automatic motoric execution. These accounts drew attention to qualitative changes in learning processes that ultimately became self-regulatory, but they provided relatively little detail about the formative role of teaching and social experiences in the development of these processes. This is an important issue. Complex cognitive-motor skills are difficult to learn on one's own because they are both subtle and covert and because evidence of their effectiveness is often hard to interpret or is delayed in time. To overcome these personal limitations, cultural and familial groups have resorted to social means, such as modeling, verbal descriptions, and written instructions to convey important skills to the next generation. Not only is social