The effects of test performance feedback (contingent, noncontingent, control) and teacher expressiveness (low, high) on student achievement in a simulated college classroom were investigated. Subjects (N=75) wrote an analogies test which provided either contingent or noncontingent performance feedback, after which they viewed a videotaped lecture…

To merge the reinforcement and competition approaches and to test the relative efficacy of reward structures, group vs individual rewarding was paired with three amounts of monetary reward for performance. The math performance of college females was consistent with the differential rewarding hypotheses, whereas males were consistent with a…

In organizational settings, research has shown the relationship of task characteristics to attitudes and motivation. This study examines the external validity of the task characteristic-outcome relationship in an educational setting. Subjects were 206 undergraduate psychology students. They were given an inventory of seven task characteristics…

The relative effectiveness of alternative reward structures in strengthening group performance on a cooperative math task was investigated by operationalizing four reward structure treatments--one non-contingent pay treatment and three differential pay allocation treatments including two levels of inter-group competition and a group piece-rate pay…

A fading procedure to maintain student pacing in personalized instruction courses in two settings--a small educational psychology course at a public university and a large psychology course at a private university--was investigated. Students in both courses were divided into two groups. The first group had gradually lengthened unit completion…

In a longitudinal field experiment, 42 groups were assembled on the factors of individual ability and attitude similarity resulting in a 2 x 2 crossed ANOVA design. These groups then worked on six projects which spanned a three-month time period. For each project, measures of group performance and group cohesion were taken. Analyses showed that…

This report describes the third study in a program of research dealing with the relationships between the characteristics of human tasks and the abilities required for task performance. The goal of the program is to generate principles which can be used to identify ability requirements from knowledge of the characteristics of a task and of…

Focusing on feedback as a necessary condition for goals to affect performance, it was predicted that feedback and goals would be interactively related to performance. This prediction complements findings by Locke and his colleagues that knowledge alone is not sufficient condition for effective performance. Also, it was suggested that the…

Competency based education is a model which can be utilized for training and evaluating alcohol and drug abuse personnel. An identification and assessment process is described relating to the development and implementation of a competency based bachelor's degree program for students majoring in alcohol and drug abuse related areas. (Author/BEF)

In an overview of a very comprehensive and current trend in personnel training, that of a "competency-based" format, it is apparent that there exists certain and specific aspects of what perhaps constitutes a "total" program in competency-based methodology. These aspects are competency identification, competency organization, competency analysis,…

The data collected in a 1978-79 study of 742 students enrolled in cooperative education (co-op) programs in forty-seven participating colleges and universities describes by sex what students in various fields of study do on their job, what they perceive their work conditions and responsibilities to be, how they view their abilities, and how their…

Concludes that complex sentences and sentences imbedded within sentences require more eye-movements. (RB)