title: University Students' Emotion During Online Search Task: A Multiple Achievement Goal Perspective.
abstract: Endorsing a multiple goal perspective, students' academic emotions were examined with different goal profiles while solving learning tasks online. One hundred and seven Chinese undergraduates were classified based on the 2 × 2 achievement goal framework into three groups: Mastery-approach-focused, Approach-oriented, and Avoidance-oriented group. Participants' emotional states were assessed immediately prior to the task and following the task. Prior to the task, the Avoidance-oriented group reported significantly higher levels of deactivated negative emotion (i.e., bored and confused) than the Approach-oriented group. The Mastery-approach-focused group reported significantly higher levels of activated positive emotions (i.e., excited and eager) than the Avoidance-oriented group after the task. Within each group, all three groups followed a similar emotion change pattern prior versus after the search task in deactivated positive emotion, with a significant increase. In addition, the Mastery-approach-focused group also reported a significantly higher level of happiness after completing the task, whereas the other two groups did not report much change. The Avoidance-oriented group also reported a significant drop in the feeling of excitement, eagerness, anxiety, and nervousness; whereas, the Approach-oriented group reported a significantly higher level of confusion after the task was finished. Implications of the findings are further discussed.
authors.affiliation: a University of Macau.
authors.forename: Mingming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D000124:Achievement; D000328:Adult; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D014495:Universities; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Chinese university students; academic emotions; achievement goal orientation