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Relationship between goal orientation and the psychiatric diagnosis of persons

Todd K McKee, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

Abstract

This study investigates the relationships between individuals' goal orientation and their level of emotional health. Dweck and Leggett (1988) developed a conceptual framework that described the maladaptive "helpless" pattern and a more adaptive "mastery oriented" pattern. This study was conducted to explore the relationship of performance and mastery orientation to the emotional health of individuals. First, factor analyses were performed to determine if factors representing performance and mastery goal orientations could be found among clinical and non-clinical adults. Second, prevalence rates data were explored to determine the relationship of goal orientation to membership in either a clinical or non-clinical group. Finally, five separate, three factor, analyses of variance were conducted to determine the relationship of performance and mastery orientation to increases or decreases in clinical acuity. The majority of results were congruent with expectations, with one exception. The performance and mastery factor structures demonstrated in the current study with adults, clinical and non-clinical, were similar to those demonstrated by Roedel, Schraw, and Plake (1993). There were significant differences reported between members of clinical and non-clinical groups relative to their performance and mastery orientations. Differences in level of mastery orientation did have significant relationship to the acuity levels of all five clinical variables: depression, hypersensitivity, family problems, lack of ego mastery-conative, and dependency. Also, differences in performance orientation did have significant relationship to the acuity levels of two of the five clinical variables: hypersensitivity and dependency. Finally, no relationship was reported between performance orientation and an increased history of family problems.

Subject Area

Personality|Psychotherapy

Recommended Citation

McKee, Todd K, "Relationship between goal orientation and the psychiatric diagnosis of persons" (1996). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9700098.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9700098

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