Perceived competence is an evaluative self-attribute, informed by cognitive and affective perceptions in terms of “…the individual’s actual skill and ability to interact effectively with the environment” (Elliot et al., 2002, p. 363). In this regard, attribution theory outlines the factors that influence the sense of personal control that an individual perceives that s/he has or does not have over the development of self-attributes (Weiner, 1986). These factors include competence and autonomy. Support for competence motivation as a contributory factor within student engagement is a central focus of attribution research. Attributions are posited as the basis for the locus of control and personal causality, in terms of the extent to which an individual perceives that they are able to exert some control over their own learning direction and outcomes (Dweck, 1999). Competence is asserted as a grounded self-attribute, at the heart of which is an innate psychological need to be competent (Dweck and Elliot, 1983; Ryan and Deci, 2000ab). Whether engagement is undertaken for the hope of competence or the fear of feeling or being regarded as incompetent, this still appears to drive a need to achieve and gain mastery within specific domains. The need to feel and be regarded as competent as a basis for individual positive self-regard (Bandura, 2001; Heine et al., 1999). Such perceptions of achievement and competence are dependent upon contextual and internal factors that the student has control over. In its optimal form, this will result in the student feeling more motivated and, as a result, more engaged in their own learning
(deCharms, 1968, 1976; Pintrich, 2004; Weiner, 1986). This supports the view that a key role of the teacher is to help students to recognise their own competence and achievements, and to emphasise the part that the student has played in their own successes. There would, therefore, be an emphasis upon the teacher making explicit to the student the outcomes and successes that have been due to the student’s efforts and use of learning strategies appropriate to the learning activity (Ryan and Grolnick, 1986).
Competence within school-based activities has been asserted as the basis of the
motivational drive to be fully engaged in and make persistent efforts within learning activities (Schunk and Pajares, 2007). An individual’s perceived competence forms the basis of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation orientations, including the preference for challenge, the
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level of interest, and the preference for independent mastery of concepts and their application within future learning activities (Harter, 1981, 1992). For example, “Those students who did not perceive themselves to be very competent felt relatively bad about their performance and appeared to opt for an extrinsic motivational orientation … These extrinsically motivated individuals showed virtually no self-motivation of either form, intrinsic or internalised” (Harter, 1992, p. 104).
Zimmerman (1995) states that the evolution and sustaining of academic competencies is one of the most demanding motivational and cognitive challenges that developing children face (p. 202). Such perceptions of competence are constantly evolving and are usually informed by factors such as feedback from teachers, personal aspirations, intrinsically motivated goals, self-endorsed values, and a self-determined approach to activities through perceived autonomy-orientated causation. All are informed by and internalised through context-specific experiences and self-perceptions (Reeve, 2012). These may act as the causality orientations within learning contexts, and, especially, a student’s predictions regarding a teacher’s verbal and non-verbal responses to the student’s efforts and achievement. From perceived verbal and behavioural indicators of teacher warmth and expectation, each individual student will form their own worldview of a teacher based upon their experience of prior interactions. This colours the student’s perception of the strength of their attachment to each of their teachers, and is likely to influence future responses. The worldview formed is based upon criteria that experience has moulded as a means of interpreting a teacher’s intentions, reliability and trustworthiness (Bretherton, 1987). Harter (1992) argued that a variety of factors have a cumulative influence upon a student’s perceived competence. For example, competence may be defined differently according to the nature of the activity being undertaken and the subjective level of
importance that an individual has assigned to the activity. It could be defined as the need to achieve a desired level of performance within formal assessments (in relation to performance goals), or competence in relation to mastery and understanding of school-driven and
individual curiosity- driven knowledge acquisition (Schunk and Pajares, 2007). Perceived competence is presented as a precursor that informs an individual’s sense of self-efficacy in terms of perceived capability of achieving further competence within a specific domain or context, and self-agency, in the form of motivation to be autonomous and self-determined in working towards further competence. These perceptions, motivational drives and need for competence are at the heart of achievement motivation (Elliot and Dweck, 2007b). The stronger and more positive the direction of competence motivation, the more likely it is that
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an individual’s behaviours will be energised and focused in terms of persistence and resilience within learning activities.
With younger students, the primary motivation may be the desire to please the teacher and to attain good grades, as opposed to seeking challenge, autonomy and independent mastery of concepts for their own sake. That is, as the student progresses through each developmental stage, s/he begins to develop a “... tendency to engage in independent mastery attempts versus a tendency to depend upon the teacher” (Harter, 1992, p. 81). Therefore, over the course of a student’s passage through the developmental stages, there appears to be an increasing impetus created by self-reward, and that there are “… strong relationships between a child’s perceived scholastic competence, affect about school performance, and motivational orientation” (Harter, 1992, p. 108).
An important outcome of perceived competence are an individual’s self-efficacy judgements (Bandura, 1986, 1997). These are based upon personal capability, judgements which take into account past and current achievements which, in turn, inform a student’s perceptions as to the extent to which s/he may achieve success within, for example, specific learning activities (Zimmerman, 1995). Sources of self-efficacy include perceptions that are related to competence, mastery experiences, performance feedback and verbal persuasion by trusted others through social mediation. Of these, competence and mastery perceptions have been posited as the most influential sources of self-efficacy (Usher and Pajares, 2006). Motivation develops through psychosocial dynamics that vary according to the specific nature of a learning activity, specific points in the chronology of an individual’s development within specific learning contexts and with a specific teacher (Ainley et al., 2009).
As discussed above, the influence of self-efficacy upon academic self-concept
depends upon the value that the student places upon the learning activity, which may include the importance they assign to being capable within a given area. These self-attributes are often formed retrospectively and are based upon experience-inferred causal beliefs that have been applied by the individual learner to desired educational outcomes. These may take the form of expectations of self-efficacy which are based upon affect and cognition-informed perceptions (Bandura, 1997). Through the lens of SDT, autonomously–motivated
engagement is partly explained by students’ perceived competence based upon sustained achievement, enjoyment and preference for challenging learning activities as well as the impact of the teacher upon the quality of students’ competence-driven motivation to engage in autonomy-rich learning activities (Eccles and Midgeley, 1989).
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Self-efficacy is manifested as behaviours such as curiosity verbalised during learning activities, an interest in and an enjoyment of learning, a desire to be independent and to make suggestions as a means of directing his / her own learning, the seeking of challenges, and opportunities to master and understand concepts (Harter, 1992). Teachers may use such behaviours to predict a student’s perceptions of self-efficacy prior to and during learning activities, as perceived competence informs self-concept, and can be specific to the academic domain and, there-in, specific to the individual subject within the curriculum (Marsh and Craven, 1997, 2006; Marsh and O’Mara, 2008; Schunk and Pajares, 2007; Valentine et al., 2004). Self-efficacy beliefs develop from a variety of sources including vicarious
experiences, social evaluations by teachers and peers, and dynamic self-perceptions of current and future competencies. Such beliefs and influences are dependent upon
sociocultural factors, as different contexts, and scenarios and activities therein, will influence the constantly changing dynamics of self-regulatory learning behaviours (Bandura, 1977, 1997). (Self-efficacy differs from attribution theory, in that the former is felt at the individual level whilst the latter is often presented as being applicable at the level of the context
(Graham and Weiner, 1996; Weiner, 1974, 1986)).
A reciprocal relationship has been asserted between perceived competence and self- efficacy (Schunk, 1981, 1984), and between students’ academic self-concept and subsequent achievement (Marsh and Craven, 1997, 2006; Marsh and Martin, 2011; Shavelson et al., 1976). Self-efficacy perceptions and their impact upon sustained engagement are influenced by perceived competence (Schunk, 1984). Self-efficacy has a strength and direction of
certainty, which is based purely upon an individual’s judgement of their capability to perform a particular task successfully. Self-efficacious beliefs are context-dependent and have a predictive influence upon an individual’s level and persistence of engagement behaviours within learning (Bandura, 1997).
Ultimately, self-efficacy consists of outcome expectations based upon “…one’s collective self-perceptions formed through experiences with and interpretations of the environment, and heavily influenced by reinforcements and evaluations by significant other persons” (Schunk and Pajares, 2005, p, 88). Self-directed, self-determined learning and perceived competence enhances an individual’s perceived self-efficacy, their rate of problem- solving and subsequent academic achievement (Zimmerman, 1995). In consequence, self- efficacy becomes the impetus for the exercise of control through self-determinism within a network of sociocultural influences, such as the teacher within the classroom, based upon “people’s beliefs in their capabilities to produce desired effects by their actions” (Badura,
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1997, p. vii). Self-efficacy also influences the rate of performance and the amount of energy expended within learning (Bandura, 1993; Schunk, 1981, 1984. Indeed, higher levels of self- efficacy within a specific learning situation are regarded as indicative of the individual’s willingness to readily undertake tasks that they might previously have regarded as challenging or difficult.
Affective perceptions inform the positive or negative quality of self-efficacy, which, in turn, impact upon self-efficacy as an antecedent and the resulting intensity and persistence of engagement. Therefore, self-efficacy and perceived competence have an influence upon and are influenced by affect. This sense of affect may depend upon how attainment is judges against and in relation to the individualised internalised standards and desired attainment levels. That is, although achievement may be tangible and measurable it may be that the overall attainment is regarded by the individual student as falling short of their internalised perceptions of what they regard as a measure of being competent. Therefore, although a teacher may be satisfied with a student’s achievements, if the student does not regard the attainment as being of a sufficiently competent level this may lead to discontent and feelings of amotivation and disengagement (Bandura, 1997).
An individual’s self-efficacy has been shown as predictive of their motivation to be autonomous, and for the development of self-determined, self-regulating learners who are able to make the most of opportunities to enhance their competence, engagement and social mediation within the classroom (Bandura, 1986, 1997; Connell and Wellborn, 1991; Reeve, 2012; Reeve et al., 2008; Ryan and Deci, 2009). An individual’s need for and satisfaction of autonomy is linked to their cognitive and affective perceptions of their ability to achieve self- determined or externally-regulated goals (Bandura, 1997). Therefore, perceptions of
competence should act as initiators of persistence, autonomy and sustained engagement during learning activities (Roberts et al., 1981).
Given the important role that perceived competence plays in promoting students’ motivated engagement and desire for autonomy, the teacher plays an essential role in
encouraging the student to approach learning activities in an optimistic, self-efficacious way, such that “...self-directed learning is supplemented with instructional social influences that can affect children’s beliefs of their cognitive efficacy” (Bandura, 1997, p. 215). This
includes pedagogical methods that may include the teacher modelling strategies for academic success, including higher-order thinking skills, and performance feedback that enables the student to internalise expected standards as a basis for self-reflecting upon his/her own competencies. The nature and use of timely feedback by the teacher, as children with the
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same levels of cognitive skill have been found to differ in the quality of their academic performance on the basis of differing perceptions of self-efficacy (Bandura, 1997, p. 216). The mediating psychological links between perceived competence, self-efficacy and
autonomy may be regarded as predictive in that the greater the individual’s awareness of their competence, the more motivated that person is likely to be in terms of wishing to exercise their autonomy and to be positively engaged in their learning (Sneddon, 2013, p. 50). Autonomy is, therefore, an outcome of an individual’s academic self-concept, and is primarily informed by the strength and direction of his / her sense of self-efficacy (Bong, 1997; Bong and Skaalvik, 2003).The implication, therefore, is that a positive teacher-student relationship should be based upon the enhancement of children’s self-efficacy within a specific domain, their enhanced belief in their ability to interact prosocially with their teachers, and positive motivational beliefs regarding their autonomy within their learning activities (Harter, 1978; Raider-Roth, 2005; Schunk and Zimmerman, 1998, 2008; Zimmerman and Schunk, 2001a).
Elliot and Dweck (2007b) contend that achievement should be viewed through the lens of competence as the mediator from motivation to engagement. This postulation has been based upon the hypothesis that competence-relevant behaviours appear to be the manifested outcomes of motivational energy for self-regulatory learning influenced by a continuum of perceived competence: an individual may be equally motivated by positive perceptions of competence and demotivated by feelings of incompetence. The need for competence acts as a motivational incentive, directing and energising engagement ((Elliot and Church, 1997, 2002; Elliot and Dweck, 2007ab; Kuyper et al., 2000; NRC, 2004; Pajares, 2008; Zimmerman, 2001).). The likelihood of motivational perceptions being translated into engagement behaviours appears to be enhanced by goals and learning strategies which result in experiences and outcomes that will continue to satisfy the need for competence (Boggiano and Pittman. 1992; Zimmerman and Schunk, 2001). These perceptions of competence are argued to act as the basis of self-efficacy (Bandura, 1997; Elliot and Dweck, 2005). Equally, an avoidance of engagement in learning activities may be based upon negative perceived competence within similar prior learning activities. Such resultant amotivation or avoidance may lead to affect based upon feeling ineffectual, incapable and insufficient, and, in turn, to the manifestation of behaviours indicative of demotivation and disengagement.
The question arises as which is the precursor and / or is the more influential of the two: perceived competence or self-determined motivation within learning activities? This long-standing question was used by Vallerand and Reid (1984) within their study of
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perceived competence. They found that positive performance feedback from the teacher led to students’ self-reported perceptions of enhanced competence, which then led to increased perceptions of intrinsic motivation (Vallerand and Reid, 1984). This suggests that perceived competence may have a mediating effect upon intrinsic motivation, where the student develops the view that learning activities are enjoyable for their own sake (Deci and Ryan, 1980). This view may be based upon the hope and / or anticipation of further competence- based success, especially when one notes that perceived competence explained a 40 % variance in intrinsic motivation while positive performance feedback accounted for less than 8 % of the variance (Vallerand and Reid, 1984, p. 99). However, competence has also been found to be dependent upon the feedback that a student receives from a teacher, as this appears to influence internalised cognitive and affective constructs. Therefore, performance feedback, as a situation-specific sociocultural variable, has an influence upon the internalised, self-attribute of perceived competence which then determines the individual’s involvement in a learning activity through a sense of intrinsic motivation (Vallerand and Reid, 1984).
2.6.2 Promoting students’ engagement with learning through the reciprocal