All Slides for Final FSS PDF

Putting it all together At this point, you have all of the elements. You will submit your rough version on Wed. And the final version the week after. Make sure you fill out the checklist. Let’s go over that ow. Any questions? Lecture 12: Goal-directed behaviour Goal-directed behaviour : 1) is a...

Putting it all together At this point, you have all of the elements. You will submit your rough version on Wed. And the final version the week after. Make sure you fill out the checklist. Let’s go over that ow. Any questions? Lecture 12: Goal-directed behaviour Goal-directed behaviour : 1) is a behaviour driven by an expectation that it is likely to bring about a desired outcome (Dickinson, 1985). Write down four examples of goal-directed behaviour (that you have already observed before you got to class) Write down four examples of goal-directed behaviour (that you have planned but not already done yet today)  Fun facts: 1) goal-directed behaviour emerges in infants between 12 to 18 months. They start reaching and playing with toys. 2) most (if not all) non-human primates (e.g., mice, dogs, monkeys) show goal- directed behaviour. 3) Even cells show signs of goal-directed behaviour. Malik, F., & Marwaha, R. (2023, April 23). Cognitive Development. Nih.gov; StatPearls Publishing. Gremel, C. M., & Costa, R. M. (2013). Premotor cortex is critical for goal-directed actions. Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience, 7. Lyon P. (2015). The cognitive cell: bacterial behavior reconsidered. Frontiers in microbiology, 6, 264. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2015.00264 You all have goals. In coming to the university, you all signed up for a number of goals, the most distant of which is getting the degree (i.e., graduating). That goal is a very, very long way off. There are a number of smaller goals along the way and a number of distractions. What are some of the factors that will make it difficult to attain those goals? Definition of goal-directed behaviour : 2) hinges on the ability to focus on relevant information and ignore distractions, which is known as selective attention and/or interference suppression. 3) the process of goal-directed behavior can be divided into four stages: the establishment stage, the planning stage, the goal-striving stage, and the revision stage. 4) effective goal-directed behavior requires a balance between stability and flexibility (Goschke, 2000) - stable enough to maintain behaviour consistent with the current goal (and not get distracted) but flexible enough to adapt to contextual information that indicates the need to modify the goal.  Goal-directed behaviour : 5) is controlled by the affective or motivational value of the outcome at the time that the action is performed (desire criterion) 6) is also determined by the belief that the reward (e.g., the taste, the buzz, or even who you run into in line) will be worth it (belief criterion). Source: de Wit, S., & Dickinson, A. (2009). Associative theories of goal-directed behaviour: a case for animal-human translational models. Psychological research, 73(4), 463–476.  But … goal-directed behaviour : 7) not reaching a desired goal is the definition of frustration (which can lead to aggression). This is the Frustration-Aggression Hypothesis initially proposed by Dollard & Miller in 1939. This is one of the most dominant and influential theories of aggression, which has been continuously revised since its inception. It explains most instances of aggression among individuals. Source: Breuer, J., & Elson, M. (2017). Frustration-Aggression Theory. In P. Sturmey (Ed.), The Wiley Handbook of Violence and Aggression (pp. 1-12). Chichester: Wiley Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119057574.whbva040  But … goal-directed behaviour : 8) is not the same as (future) planning. Future planning is about meeting goals and needs in the future. Goal-directed behaviour is about immediate needs. And that is one of the major difficulties that we face – immediate versus delayed gratification. Source: Breuer, J., & Elson, M. (2017). Frustration-Aggression Theory. In P. Sturmey (Ed.), The Wiley Handbook of Violence and Aggression (pp. 1-12). Chichester: Wiley Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119057574.whbva040 Goal - Action - Habit - Grit Sequence Step 1: Goal. Step 2: Action plan Step 3: Building a habit Step 4: Building Grit and Persevering Remember: Goal setting is beneficial A large study conducted by Richardson, Abram and Bond (2012) comparing the importance of setting goals showed that “setting an absolute minimal goal” is one the strongest predictors of success. It is better than a number of other factors, including IQ. IQ is only the ninth most important predictor of success. Research has shown that high achievers reported using goal setting more frequently and more consistently than low achievers. 12 The benefits of goal setting A study of almost 3000 students showed that writing down your personal goals and plans regardless of goal type led to an increase in academic performance. Students in the goal setting groups had grades 21% higher than control groups of students. In a real-world study of goal setting, 120 factory employees were asked to set goals. Results showed that even without financial incentives, goal-setting improves worker performance by 12 to 15% compared to the situation where no goals were defined. This holds true for the groups which had to maximize either output quantity or output quality, as well as for the group which was obliged to be as energy efficient as possible. Step 1: What are your goals? Not surprisingly, there are different types of goals. These include: Learning goals (e.g., master the material, outperform others, avoid failure). Career goals (e.g., become a lawyer, social worker, psychologist) Specific daily goals (e.g., make flashcards, a to-do, list, complete readings). A study of almost 3000 students showed that writing down personal goals and plans, regardless of goal type, led to an increase in academic performance. Students in the goal setting groups had grades 21% higher grades than control groups of students.  As we go through these slides, I would like you to write down what your goals are for school. Have they changed since starting school? You will need #1. Learning goals. this for the homework There are four different types of learning goals Mastery goals (learn everything / become an expert) Performance goals (get an A / outperform (all) others) Failure avoidance goals (do what every you can do to avoid failing, looking badly, etc.) Work avoidance goals (do as little as you possibly can do --- and still pass) What is your learning goal? Scale Interpretation Students who have strong mastery goals try to learn as much as they can about a topic. Students with strong mastery goals do not worry about how other students do, and they are not preoccupied with their grades. Mastery Goal Students with a strong mastery goal are learning for the sake of learning and becoming experts in what they are studying. Research has shown that if you are studying something that you would like to master, then you are likely going to have a far easier time doing well in your course. Students who have strong performance goals are motivated to get top grades, no matter what it takes, are more interested in grades than in learning the material and tend to be preoccupied with how well other students are doing in the course. Students who are motivated by performance goals often compare Performance themselves to others and often feel the need, not just to do well, but to do better than everyone else. Goal Research has shown that if your main focus is on getting good grades rather than on learning everything you can, you may experience higher levels of stress than students who are primarily motivated by mastering the material. What is your learning goal? Scale Interpretation Students with strong failure avoidance goals tend to be preoccupied with the possibility of doing badly and tend to be motivated more by trying to avoid failure than trying to do their best. Students who are Failure motivated primarily by trying to avoid failure also tend to be preoccupied with everything that could go Avoidance Goal wrong when starting something new. They are likely to avoid taking any chances and risks and miss out on opportunities to do different things or learn about something that they might actually be good at and enjoy doing. Students who have strong work avoidance goals are motivated to do as little as possible when approaching coursework. Students with strong work avoidance goals can avoid work for a variety of reasons: because they are not interested in the topic; because they are overly worried about how they will do; or because Work Avoidance they believe that they can put off work until the last minute and still get all of the work done. Research has Goal shown that students who have high work avoidance goals tend to underperform in coursework, not because they do not have the ability but because they did put enough work into what they are studying or didn't leave enough time to get everything done. Results: Let’s look at the data from the intro survey. Which ones are related to doing better or doing worse? Which one are you? Which ones are related to doing better or doing worse? Homework: One part of the homework will be to complete the Learning Motivation Questionnaire to work out what type of learning goal you have. There are four different types of learning goals Mastery goals (learn everything / become an expert) Performance goals (get an A / outperform (all) others) Failure avoidance goals (do what every you can do to avoid failing, looking badly, etc.) Work avoidance goals (do as little as you possibly can do --- and still pass) #2 and #3 Career Goals and Daily Goals For homework, you will be asked to undertake a goal-setting exercise inspired by Warren Buffet. This is about deciding which of your goals really matter (and which ones do not). Prioritizing goals (according to Warren Buffett) There is a well know story about Warren Buffett’s giving advice about goal setting to his personal pilot, Mike Flint. The story goes like this: During a conversation with his pilot, Mike Flint, Warren Buffett wondered if Flint had other, greater goals and ambitions than flying Buffet around the country for the rest of his career. When Flint admitted that he had dreams of doing other things, Buffett asked him to take some time and write down 25 career goals (i.e., things he would like to achieve). Once Flint had his list completed, Buffett told him to take a good look at those 25 goals and circle the five goals that mattered the most to him. After the pilot identified his top five goals, Buffett instructed him to take a look at the other 20 goals he didn’t circle. According to the story, Buffett told Flint to avoid at all cost 20 goals he didn't circle because those goals are what will drain his energy and distract him from accomplishing his top five goals. Work: 1. Be an academic at a university My personal 25 goals 2. Be chair of the department 3. Cross appointment in Education 4. Get another research grant. 5. Partner with the law faculty on this course Personal 6. Offer this course to parents and high school students 33. Get my two kids through university 7. Write a book on mental health and study skills 34. Vacation in the Florida Keys during Spring Break 8. Here is a list of 25 goals (big and small) I am currently Write a book on psychometrics, which I have taught for 20 years working 35. Meet a different group of people socially 9.towards would Publishlike to accomplish in the next few years. 100 papers 36. Join / start a book club 10. Create a measure of workplace mental health 37. Garden more 11. Develop an online magazine the teaches about mental health and study skills. 38. Renovate the house 12. Put it in schools all over North America. 39. Read more for fun 13. Develop a workshop for mental health in the workplace 14. Write up papers on the following topics: 40. Travel more with my partner (e.g., to Scotland & Ireland) 15. - workplace mental health 41. Visit Austria and Paris again 16. - old study on dyadic conflict 42. Spend more time in Grand Bend 17. - mediation study 43. Learn how to speed skate and cycle 18. - catastrophic eating study 44. Learn how to bake sourdough bread 19. - burnout in EAs (three papers) 20. - three papers on violence against teachers 21. - longitudinal impact of adolescent depression on workplace satisfaction 22. - review of measures of social-emotional learning Here are the questions that 23. - meta-analysis of study hours and GPA helped me determine my top 24. - paper on social-emotional learning skills in college students 25. Run a private practice five goals. 26. Start a new research project on habit building. 27. Supervise 2 graduate students Which of these activities 28. Supervise 2 honors students 29. Build a consortium of researchers (students) that are interested in school based mental health matter the most to me? 30. Collaborate more with academics at other universities Which of these goals align the 31. Teach at a foreign university during the summer / winter months 32. Become an expert in MPLUS / R best with my signature strengths? Which goals help me build five pillars of PERMA? The goal hierarchy (according to Angela Duckworth) Angela Duckworth, who we have already learned about, also talks about goal setting, emphasizing the importance of a hierarchy of goals, which is comprised of top-tier goals, mid-level goals, and bottom-tierOwn goals. a restaurant, become an accountant, work as a writer / graphic designer Get fit Complete school or apprentice program Join a spinning class and a yoga class Finish my anthropology elective Write the paper (I am not really interested in) Exercise first thing, every day #2: Career Goals For homework, you will be asked to undertake a goal-setting exercise inspired by Warren Buffet. This is about deciding which of your goals really matter (and which ones do not). Three steps to reaching your goals. One of the most difficult decisions to make will be what goals to pick. Sometimes that can be very difficult. There are three things to consider when choosing goals. How to choose goals Pick goals and actions that align with your top goal (e.g., you may not like statistics at all, but it is a necessary step that gets you close to your top goal. If you focus on stats (for example) you may lose interest. But if you focus on the big goal (finishing the degree) it will be easier. How to choose goals Pick goals and actions that align with the five pillars and with your strengths (which we will study next class). Let’s review the five pillars of PERMA now. Positive emotions Positive emotions is the first pillar of well-being. According to Seligman, experiencing positive emotions, such as happiness, pleasure, warmth or contentment leads to a fulfilled life. Having positive emotions is however not about feeling excitement all the time. Any kind of positive feeling counts - from feeling “excited” to feeling “content.” Are you enjoying school? – Yes | No What you are studying? – Yes | No Engagement Engagement is the second pillar of well-being according to Seligman. Engagement is about being completely absorbed in an activity. It is about doing something that is so engaging that you can keep doing it for what seems like an eternity. It can happen in any activity, e.g., playing a sport, reading a book, talking to a friend, building something. When you are fully engaged in something: a) you are completely absorbed in what you are doing b) it feels like time has stopped c) you become unaware of your “self” (i.e., no doubts, don’t feel self- conscious, don’t worry about what others think about you) Are the aspects of what you are studying that are engaging? – Yes | No Relationships Relationships is the third pillar of well-being. Having meaningful relationships is a basic need. We need people in our lives we can relax with, vent to and count on. Human brains are wired to seek connections with other people, be it friends, family, or romantic partners. According to Naomi Eisenberger, the pain that we feel when we are isolated and alone is very similar to physical pain. Like physical pain, emotional pain urges us to do things differently – to reconnect. Research shows that having more deeper connections with others predicts longer life, better health and improved well-being. Are your relationships with people fulfilling – Yes | No Meaning Meaning is the Fourth Pillar of Seligman’s theory of well-being. Experiencing positive emotions, flow and having positive relationships is important, but they will not enough. Seligman says that you will also need purpose and meaning in your life. One way of maximizing purpose and meaning in your life is to choose activities that align with your natural strengths and core values. For many people meaning and purpose is achieved when they feel they are a part of something bigger than themselves. Having meaningful activities is not about having status. Being a personal assistant or bodyguard can be deeply meaningful. So can a frontline salesperson in retail. At the same time, being a CEO, can be unfulfilling to some people. Is what you are studying meaningful? – Yes | No How to choose goals The third consideration in setting goals is to pick something that can distinguish yourself (from others). Grades (that garner attention) Experiences (that garner attention) Reference letters (that garner attention) In an earlier lecture, we talked about your personal strengths – as well as your signature strengths. These are the qualities (and skills) that set you apart. At some point in your career – whatever that is – you will be asked to distinguish yourself. It can be anything. I had a client, who was in law school. He had two activities that distinguished himself from others. He ran half marathons (not particularly well) and did volunteer workshops for students in grades 8 and 9 about what the law is. Achievement and accomplishment Achievement is fifth pillar of the Good Life. Achievement is not just about getting the top mark, first place or a big promotion. It is also about feeling a sense of accomplishment after finishing your homework or helping a friend. What counts as an accomplishment or an achievement can differ from one person to the next. To notice your achievements, it’s important to take a moment every day and reflect about what you did and what made you feel good about yourselves. Are you experiencing some success at school? – Yes | No How to choose goals Pick goals and actions that align with the five pillars and with your strengths (which we will study next class). Conflicts with Goal-directed behaviour : It is easy for goal-directed behaviour conflicts to occur. We experience it all the time. Approach-avoidance conflicts (e.g., where you pursue one goal but not the others that go along with it). Here are some examples. Students who … (a) attend university but then skip class, (b) come to class and then surf during the lecture, (c) come to class and then walk out. Professors who … (a) teach at the university but avoid classroom teaching, (b) take research jobs (but then don’t get research grants), (c) who are practising clinicians but then don’t want to supervise students. The complete loss of goal-directed behaviour Is it possible to lose your capacity for goal-directed behaviour? Anxiety is characterized colloquially as a “kind of paralysis” (e.g., you want to go out but are afraid to and don’t). One of the symptoms of depression is the loss of motivation and drive (which often arises as the result of pleasurable activities no longer being pleasurable). When habitual behaviour (e.g., binge-watching a show) squeezes out or replaces goal-directed behaviour (e.g., doing your work, helping a friend, going on a trip). When people are motivated only by behaviours that lead to an immediate (and easy) reward. Can you name any activities that are like this? Goal-directed behaviour may be the hallmark of mental. health Although not part of the formal definition of mental health, I would like to suggest that goal-directed behaviour – having something that organizes and drives your behaviour each and every day, is a necessary condition to achieve wellbeing. Homework: The homework for today includes a number of activities, including constructing a goal hierarchy and goal activity pruning. The goal of the homework is to increase your awareness about how you are spending your time and how you might better align your goal- directed behaviour with the goals that matter most.  Lecture 13: Action plan, habit building and GRIT Goals & Action Plans Every day, most people start their day with a goal in mind. We are goal-directed beings. Everything about who we are as a species is about goals. In fact, most of our behaviour is goal directed. Get up. Get some food. Talk to your friends. Go to work. Ask people for something. Ask them to go out (with you). It is all a goal. Goals can be hard to reach. Especially, if the behaviour needed to get there is hard, boring, or unfulfilling. You could give up. 3 Goal setting predicts success A large study conducted by Richardson, Abram and Bond (2012) comparing the importance of setting goals showed that “setting an absolute minimal goal” is one the strongest predictors of success. It is better than a number of other factors, including IQ. IQ is only the ninth most important predictor of success. Research has shown that high achievers reported using goal setting more frequently and more consistently than low achievers. 4  A longitudinal study of some 200 people making New Year’s pledges found that 77% had quit after 1 week and only 19% had last for 2 years. Just setting goals This study also found that 53% of the small successful group experienced at least one slip and is not enough had on average 14 slips over the 2-year period of time. Not surprisingly, just having goals is not going to be enough. It is easy Slips were typically caused by a lack of personal to say that you would like to be a doctor, or own a restaurant, or control, excessive stress, and negative emotion. become a writer. Just saying that you want to be a writer, even wanting it badly, will not guarantee you become a writer. A goal must be accompanied by an effective plan of action. If your goal is to operate a restaurant (or be a lawyer), you will have to break down your goal into concrete, actionable steps and commit to executing them. Schedule each step Once you have defined a specific goal, it is crucial to specify the actions you will take to reach your goal as well as when and where you will do these actions. I will [ACTION] at [TIME] in [LOCATION].  I will practice relaxation breathing for five minutes at 9 a.m. in my room.  I will practice statistics problems for 45 minutes starting at 10 a.m. in my room.  I will do yoga at 5 p.m. in the basement.  I will go for a walk at 1 p.m. with my friend. Write down a goal right now. I will [ACTION] at [TIME] in [LOCATION]. Specifying where and when works A study in the British Journal of Health Psychology found that 91% people who wrote down when and where they would exercise each weekend followed through more often than the group that did not. In the control group, participants just read motivational material During next week I will partake in at least 20 about exercise, but did not plan when and where they would minutes of vigorous exercise on (day or days) exercise. Results showed no increase over time. ______________ _ at ________ _ (time of day) at/or in (place)_______________. In the first experimental group, participants were told about the importance of exercise to reducing the risk for coronary heart disease. They were told how beneficial this was for their health and what would happen if they didn’t exercise. This was the Motivation Group. Despite being motivated, they experienced no improvement. In the second experimental group, participants were given the same information as in the first experimental group but were also required to specify when and where they would exercise. This was the Motivation + Implementation group that produced the best results. “Doing your best” is not a goal. Many people decree their goal and proclaim their intention of doing their best. It sounds like a great thing to aim for ”doing your best”. Unfortunately, focusing on “your best” may be misleading, depending on what you goal is. Two researchers from University of Maryland, Edwin Locke, and a researcher from University of Toronto, Gary Latham, conducted an analysis of decades of scientific research examining the performance outcomes of more than 40,000 people who set and did not set goals. Their research examined goal setting in 100 different industries from laboratory to real-world settings. They concluded that setting “specific, difficult goals consistently [lead] to higher performance than urging people to do their best.” In fact, “the highest or most difficult goals produced the highest levels of effort and performance.” The power of goal-setting Goals serve a directive function. They direct your attention and effort toward goal-relevant activities and away from goal irrelevant activities. Goals have an energizing function. High goals lead to greater effort than low goals. (If you keep in mind that your anthro paper is actually part of your plan to finish school and start your new program, it will be easier to get the paper finished). However, setting goals is just a first step. Breaks and productivity: Data from two production lines, with 3043985 data points. The results showed that productivity improved during the 30 minutes before the start of a break, which mainly resulted from employees’ expectations of the upcoming break. It was also found that productivity declined during the 30 minutes after the end of a break due to the dominating effect of forgetting the recent rest and having a disordered work rhythm in the manufacturing environment. Aiming too low or too high One problem with doing your best is that you may not know if “your best” is going to be enough. Doing your best allows for a wide range of performance levels, which might not be enough depending on what your goal is. A second problem is that, just as you can aim too low, you can also set goals too high (e.g., I need to get all As). In this case, getting all As may not be realistic and come at a cost of other activities, such as seeing your friends, having some free time for yourself or participating in activities that align with your personal strengths. Turning actions in to (lasting) habits The hope and goal of all of this course is that you will learn some skills and then turn them in to habits. That is not easy. But it is really important. Imagine how productive you would be if you could get up and get to a desk, do two hours of work before your first class, each and every day of the week.? How long does it take to build a habit? You may have all read or heard that it takes about 21 days to form a habit. The idea that it takes just 21 days started in the 1950’s, with John Maxwell, a surgeon. He noticed that it took his patients around three weeks to get adjusted to the changes in their body after having a surgery. He wrote about his observation, and soon after, people started talking about needing 21 days to from a habit (which John Maxwell never actually said). That is how “21-day rule” came to be. It’s a total myth that you need 21 days to form a habit. There has never been any data to support this rule. How long does it really take? In 2008, a researcher from the UK named Phillippa Lally, wanted to find out. She asked 96 volunteers to pick one of three activities and do them every day for up to 84 days and report on whether or not they did it at the end of the day. The activities they chose had to be one that (i) they did not already do, (ii) could be performed in response to a salient daily event (cue), and (iii) had a cue that occurred every day and only once a day. Examples of the behaviours chosen were ‘eating a piece of fruit with lunch,’ ‘drinking a bottle of water with lunch’ and ‘running for 15 minutes before dinner’. Participants were asked to try to carry out the behaviour every day for 84 days. Dr. Lally asked participants to fill out an “automaticity questionnaire” at the end of every day to see not only whether or not people did the behaviour, but also how quickly it became easy and automatic for them.  Recommendations: Results 1. If you want to form a new habit, you need a cue or of the study reminder (e.g., right after breakfast or before I watch Here are the results for two participants. The participant television). in the top figure elected to walk for 10 minutes. 2. Pick a very concrete Automaticity was maximized by day 50. activity (e.g., do flashcards right The participant in the bottom figure elected to do 15 after my first class). minutes before dinner. Automaticity was nearing a 3. Do it in the maximum by day 80 but never really reached it. morning, before Across all participants, it took between 18 to 254 days you get tired. for an activity to become a habit. The median number of 4. Keep at it for at days was 66. least 66 days (or longer). 5. Track your progress. 6. Take it day by day (and don’t focus on the number of days).  What are the features of a habit? Researchers who study the formation of habits argue that the defining feature of a habit is not the fact that it is frequent but rather that it is ‘automatic’ and ‘effortless’ and very often, if not always in response to a cue. Habits are actions that are frequently performed because they are initiated automatically (Verplanken & Orbell, 2003). Brushing your teeth in the morning (in the bathroom) is, for most of us, a habit. Taking the elevator when need to go up a few floors is for most of us, a habit. The use of relaxation breathing when you are stressed, is not a habit (yet), because it has not yet reached automaticity. Verplanken, B., & Orbell, S. (2003). Reflections on past behavior: A self-report index of habit strength. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 33, 1313-1330. doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2003.tb01951.x  The four features of automaticity Researchers have identified three features of automaticity. These are the characteristics of an action (e.g., brushing your teeth), that emerge when an action becomes a habit. A habitual behaviour is one that …I do it automatically …I do it without having to consciously remember to do it …I do without thinking …I start doing it before I realize I’m doing it It is important to keep in mind that automaticity does not mean you will always do it, just that it is more likely. Gardner, B., Abraham, C., Lally, P., & Gert-Jan de Bruijn. (2012). Towards parsimony in habit measurement: Testing the convergent and predictive validity of an automaticity subscale of the Self- Report Habit Index. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 9(1), 102–102. https://doi.org/10.1186/1479-5868-9-102 Factors that enhance Recommendations: 1. If you want to form of automaticity a new habit, you need a cue or reminder (e.g., right after breakfast The results of the Phillipa Lally study identified a number of or before I watch factors that will increase the chance that an action or television). behaviour will become automatic. 2. Pick a very concrete activity (e.g., do flashcards right The behaviour should be after my first class). - concrete (e.g., breathing) 3. Do it in the - simple to do (e.g., make flashcards) morning, before - tied to a cue (e.g., 5-item to-do list with coffee in the morning you get tired. - something that you can easily count and track (i.e., breathing, flashcards, to-do lists) 4. Keep at it for at least 66 days (or longer). 5. Track your progress. 6. Take it day by day (and don’t focus on the number of days).  Habit stacking Habit stacking is a strategy designed to increase the chance that you follow through with a new behaviour. The method was created by Dr. Brian Fogg at Stanford University, who has studied how people acquire new habits for more than 20 years. The idea behind habit stacking is to attach a new behaviour to something you are already doing each day. For example, go for a 20-minute walk (the new habit) immediately after finishing breakfast (an existing habit). And there is no shortage of existing habits in our day-to-day lives. Wendy Wood, a research psychologist in the Department of Psychology and Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California, asked students to write down hour by hour what they did all day. Habit stacking works the best when the cue has to be very specific. Saying, “I’ll go for a walk during my lunch She and her colleagues were able to show that between 33% and break.” is too vague. It is much better to say, “As soon as 50% of what students did every day could be classified as “habit” – finish eating my lunch, I’ll go for a walk along Echo canal things they did almost every day and even in the same location. for 20 minutes.” These were mundane behaviours related to things like schoolwork, entertainment, social interaction, or eating and drinking.  Two types of habits: A longitudinal study of some 200 people making New Year’s pledges found that 77% had quit after 1 week and only 19% had last for 2 years. This study also found that 53% of the small successful group experienced at least one slip and had on average 14 slips over the 2-year period of time. Slips were typically caused by a lack of personal control, excessive stress, and negative emotion Habitual routine is an activity that you do regularly that is resilient against slips (e.g., going to the gym, or library after class). A Cued-Habit is something that you do automatically, like make a to-do list with coffee. Tracking your progress Self-monitoring is one of the most effective interventions for a variety of behaviours, ranging from smoking cessation to study habits. A meta-analysis of 138 studies showed the progress monitoring (i.e., tracking your progress) was effective in improving the frequency of desired behaviours and the likelihood of reaching a goal. Progress monitoring has a robust effect on goal attainment and constitutes a key component of effective self-regulation. Examples: 1. Daily to-do list. Cross off what you get done. But also the fact that you made the to-so list 2. Weekly schedule. Check off the blocks of time in which you studied Recap: In todays class, we have learned about: a) How goal setting predicts success b) The importance of prioritizing goals c) The hierarchy of goals d) The importance of a plan of action (Action, Time, Location) e) Barriers to starting and reaching your goals (procrastination, boredom, perfectionism) f) Tips and strategies on how to curb your procrastination g) Features of automaticity h) The importance of cues and habit stacking C14: Please scan and record your attendance and answer a few questions about how you are doing / Veuillez scanner et enregistrer votre présence et répondre à quelques questions sur votre état de santé. Your instructor is / Votre instructeur est: SANTOR  SANTOR Lecture 14: Grit Goal Action Plan Habit GRIT Who am I? I have missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I have lost almost 300 games. On 26 occasions, I have been entrusted to take the game winning shot, and missed. I was cut from my high school basketball team. But I never gave up. Hint: I became one of the greatest basketball players of all time Answer: Michael Jordan Who am I? I was rejected from the University of Southern California School of Theater, Film and Television two times. I eventually was accepted to California State University only to drop out to become a director. Some, 33 years later at age 55, I finally received a bachelor degree in film and electronic arts from California State University at Long Beach. I am now a famous director. Hint: My best films had a shark and an extraterrestrial in it. Answer: Steven Spielberg Who am I? My famous secret chicken recipe was rejected 1,009 times before a restaurant accepted it. I am pretty certain that everyone has tried my chicken. Hint: I am also known as “the colonel,” and I coined the phrase “finger licking good.” Answer: “Colonel” Harland David Sanders What do all of these people have in common? They had a goal they were passionate about. They were not deterred by repeated setbacks. They had incredible work ethic. Overview: The goal of today’s class is to learn about: a) Angela Duckworth’s definition of grit b) The reason why talented people fail to succeed c) Benefits of grit d) Two components of grit e) How to acquire frit f) Importance of habits Angela Duckworth Angela Duckworth is known around the world for her research on grit. She is an author and research psychologist at the University of Pennsylvania, where she studies grit in a wide range of groups and settings, including students, employees, soldiers, and the elderly. Angel Duckworth studied neurobiology as an undergraduate and faced a number of challenges. In the spring semester of her first year of college, she was failing a course in neurobiology and was urged by her teaching assistant to drop the course. She refused, buckled down and worked hard. She did receive a BA in Neurobiology from Harvard in 1992. But according to Duckworth, was "very unhappy" and not certain about which career to pursue. Angela Duckworth But that didn’t last too long. After five years of teaching, Duckworth was again dissatisfied and started her Ph.D. in psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. At that time, she was 32 and certain she finally found career she was passionate about. She decided to keep going and completed a Master’s in Neuroscience at Oxford in 1996. But remained dissatisfied. Still searching for the right career path, she joined McKinsey, a well-respected global management consultant firm. She excelled and earned a huge salary, travelling around the globe assisting companies. However, Duckworth didn’t find her management job particularly rewarding. She eventually decided that she had enough and decided to pursue a teaching career. At age 27, she started teaching math to seventh and eighth graders in public schools in New York and later in San Francisco. Talent vs persistence Duckworth’s main research interest is centered around the question why some highly talented people fail to live up to their full potential, while other far less talented people go on to achieve great success. According to Duckworth the most important reason is grit, which she defines as “passion and perseverance for long-term and meaningful goals.” Grit is about, "having stamina […] and sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality. Grit is living life like it's a marathon, not a sprint." In other words, grit is the ability to persist at something that is important to you and keep going when you face obstacles. Grit is also about direction and commitment. It allows you to stay committed to a task even when it becomes difficult or boring. Unlike talent, grit can be acquired. West Point To find out why some talented people fail to live up to their potential while other far less talented people go on to achieve great success, Duckworth conducted a study looking into the reasons for the high dropout rates of the cadets in West Point USA Military Academy. Each year, more than 14,000 young men and women across the USA apply to West Point. All of them have top SAT and ACT scores, outstanding grades, and exceptional scores in fitness and athletics, which include running, push-ups, and sit-ups. Nearly all of the applicants to West Point are varsity athletes, and most of them are also team captains. In addition to all of this, they must all secure a nomination from a member of Congress, senator or vice president of the USA. It is one of the most difficult, if not the most difficult program to enter in the country. The ‘Beast’ program Of approximately 14,000 applicants who apply, about 4,000 receive the required endorsements, and 2500 meet the rigorous academic and fitness standards. At the end of the process, only 1200 candidates (from an initial 14000) are accepted. Candidates are then ranked on the basis of the Whole Candidate Score, which is an average of SAT and ACT scores, expert references of leadership potential and physical fitness. The Whole Candidate Score could be described as a best guess of how much talent applicants have for the diverse challenges of the program and how easily a cadet will master the skills required of them. Once admitted, cadets begin seven weeks of basic training, which is known as is known as “the Beast.” Cadets describe it as incredibly intensive, challenging them “in every developmental area – mentally, physically, militarily, and socially.” As one cadet put it, “the system was designed to find your weaknesses – which is the point. West Point toughens you.” Although all admitted candidates have exceptional grades, are gifted athletes and skilled leaders, one in five of them will drop out before graduating, and many leave in the first two months during basic training. A 20% dropout rate is disastrous. “Stayers” & “leavers” Duckworth was intrigued. All of the applicants are exceptional. But what was it that distinguishes the individuals who successfully get through Beast training from those who did not? In July of 2004, on the second day of Beast training, Duckworth asked 1218 cadets to take the Grit Scale. She found that cadets’ Grit Scores had nothing to do with their Whole Candidate Scores (which was the average of cadets, SAT and ACT scores, expert references of leadership potential and physical fitness). In other words, talent and grit were not related at all. But it was the Grit score (and not the talent score) that turned out to be a better predictor of who made it through training. As Duckworth noted, stayers and leavers had the same Whole Score. What distinguished them was Grit. Benefits of GRIT The benefits of Grit are far-reaching. One of the largest studies on Grit, conducted by Duckworth and her colleagues, examined the benefit of GRIT in a number of very diverse groups of people, including army trainees, sales employees, high school students, and married men. Results showed that: Soldiers with high GRIT were 28% more likely to complete an Army Special Operations Forces (ARSOF) selection course Sales employees with high GRIT were 38% more likely to keep their jobs Students with high GRIT were 48% more likely to graduate from high school. (Keep in mind that the graduation rate in Ontario is still just 87%. 13% don’t graduate within 5 years.) GRIT and mental health There are other important markers of Grit. In 1940, long before Duckworth’s first grit experiments, researchers at Harvard tried to establish what characteristics make some people happier and more successful. In a study of 130 second-year students, participants were asked to run on a treadmill for five minutes. The speed of the treadmill was intentionally set so high that an average person could last for only four minutes. Some participants managed to do it for only a minute and a half. The Treadmill test was designed to be physically and mentally exhausting. Researchers knew that running hard was not just function of lung capacity and muscle strength but also would point which individual would be “willing to push himself or has a tendency to quit before the punishment becomes sever.” Four decades later, George Vaillant, a psychiatrist, contacted the same cohort of men, now in their sixties. He found out that the length of time these men spent on a treadmill was “a surprisingly reliable predictor of psychological adjustment throughout adulthood.” GRIT in the news Two sides of Grit: Perseverance and consistency There are two elements to GRIT - perseverance of effort and consistency of interest. Perseverance (of effort) is about continuing to keep going even when the task is boring or becomes difficult. Perseverance of effort contributes to achieving goals despite setbacks and failure. Consistency (of interest) is about remaining focused on a task you find meaningful and engaging over a long period of time. Duckworth calls it “sustained devotion.” Having consistency of interest doesn’t mean that you have to stick to one goal your entire life. Take Angela Duckworth’s example. She is a very gritty person, but her interest has drastically shifted throughout her career. She has been a neurobiology graduate (1), a management consultant (2), and an elementary school teacher (3), and is now a researcher on Grit (5). Both facets of grit are fundamental ingredients of success since perseverance of effort contributes to the achievement of mastery despite failure, and consistency of interest is essential in engaging in deliberate practice to reach mastery (Credé et al., 2016). GRIT is grind But new research now shows that the academic performance is best predicted by the perseverance aspect of GRIT. This is an important finding because it demonstrates that sheer determination and ability to persevere at a task is one of the best predictors of how well you will do in a course, an assignment, or at work. This means that even if you are not passionate about your course, or the entire semester does not seem to fit into your grand plan, you can still do exceptionally well just by persevering and pushing through boredom. What may seem like a grind, is actually an important skill associated with academic success. High school: Consistency of interest and GPA : r = 0.21 Perseverance of effort and GPA : r = 0.36 College & University: Consistency of interest and GPA : r = 0.04 Perseverance of effort and GPA : r = 0.21 Studying will. eventually, become boring and monotonous Research on boredom shows that feeling bored is very common in students : 58 % of university students in England reported that more than half of their lectures were boring. 26–41 % of undergraduate students in Canada report being bored in class 50 % of students in China reported being bored in class at some point Building GRIT: Learning to tolerate (mental) pain. Building GRIT: Can you increase it? Research says that some people will have more GRIT than others and that GRIT is fairly stable over 12 months. In fact, the relation over twelve months is 0.68, which is fairly high. This means people who have GRIT will tend to have GRIT throughout their lives. But people are not born gritty. Everyone aquires it. What matters is whether or not you want to work on increaseing your GRIT. According to Angela Duckworth, on average, older people have more GRIT than younger people. Acquiring GRIT Angela Duckworth’s research has identified a number of guidelines to increase your GRIT, and they all have a lot to do with PERMA and your SIGNATURE STRENGTHS. 1. Pursue your interests. You’re going to have a hard time sticking to goals that don’t interest you or align with your signature strengths. So, to grow your GRIT, engage as much as possible in activities you find interesting or you are good at, 2. Learn to push through the pain. Many tasks will be boring. Even the most interesting ones can become tedious from time to time. Remember, grit is what you need to get through the last 110m of a 5KM race. You are dead tired and pain. But you are almost there. In 100 steps you are done. Most people who make it are in pain and exhausted. But when they look back on it, they are amazed they were able to push through the (mental) pain. 3. Connect to a higher purpose. Angela Duckworth’s research found that people who can tap in tor a higher purpose are able to stick it out longer. Remind yourself that a boring class is about getting the degree you need for that next step, whether it is a job, another degree, or a new career path. Acquiring GRIT (cont’d) 5. Remind your self you are in control. If you want to reach your goals, you need to believe that you can do it. Remember, the top 7 predictors of success at university are all things that you can learn to do (e.g., set goals, keep a schedule, reduce test anxiety). You can control all of them. Remain focused on just getting the next step done. If you wake up and think about everything that you need to do by the end of term, you will get demoralized. But if you focus on what you need to do today (and just today), it will be doable. 6. Surround yourself with others who have GRIT. As we have learned, people around you have a huge influence on your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. When you spend enough time with a particular group of people, the way, they do things become the way you do things. As mentioned before, research shows that students’ GPA increased if their roommate was in the highest 25th GPA percentile. Think of studying like you are training for a sport. No one, absolutely no one, tries to run a half marathon when you first start out. It would hurt too much and there is no way you will make it. The first time you are in a gym, you may do one set of just a few reps. That’s a one, absolutely no one, tries to run a half marathon when you first start out. It would hurt too much, and there is no way you will make it. Homework: You will be asked to (a) complete a questionnaire that assesses two different elements of GRIT, namely consistency and persistence and (b) start working on your plant to increase your GRIT. You can download the worksheet on Brightspace. C14: Nov 6 Please scan and record your attendance and answer a few questions about how you are doing / Veuillez scanner et enregistrer votre présence et répondre à quelques questions sur votre état de santé. Your instructor is / Votre instructeur est: SANTOR Thinking strategically about school The final topic in goal setting is about being strategic. Whether this is your first year or your last year, taking a strategic approach to school can improve your grades, lower your stress and increase the chance of getting to where you would like to go. There are 16 key strategies that you need to be aware of. We’re going to go through them now so that you know about them. Skill vs. strategy A skill is not the same as a strategy. Skills like active recall, scheduling and relaxation breathing are what you need to master the material in a course. A strategy is different. Your strategy is the approach you will take to your courses, program of study and school in general. It is comprised of a number of different elements and determines what you study, when you study, how many courses you take, when to drop a course, when to switch your program and whether you will ask for an accommodation. Let’s go through the strategies. You may not need any of them right now, but you need to know what they are. #1. Clarify your goal(s) if you can. Whether or not you show up with a clear goal in mind, part of university is about finding out what you are going to enjoy doing and also be good at. As a result, your first goal when arriving at university and college may be very modest. i.e., just settle into the routine of learning and survive the semester, find out if you like studying (at all) and enjoy what it is you are studying. In later years, your goal may be to turn your degree into a job, go to graduate school, finish the degree with distinction, or just finish the degree. All of these are good goals. Tip: Not sure what you are doing. Don’t panic. Remember Angela Duckworth. You can change directions. In fact, this happens a lot about 1 in 4 students change degrees after arriving. #2. Focus on what is worth the most. In most programs, you will have to write a paper or complete a project, which is usually worth as much as 30% of your grade. Despite that, most students don’t allocate most of their time or nearly enough time to the paper. If you have a class with 3 hours of lectures, you should be spending between 4 and 6 hours a week on the course, depending on how well you want to do. That means about two hours should be devoted to the paper. In a 12-week course that is 24 hours. That doesn’t sound like a lot. And it isn’t. Some students will think that they can do a paper done in a weekend. While it is true that you can write a paper in a weekend, it is usually not that good and not nearly as good as it needs to be to get top grades. #3. Make good use of a grade calculator. A grade calculator is designed to help you decide how well a course is going or can be expected to go. Grade calculators let you type in a goal (e.g., 75%), enter what you already have so that you know what you need to get on the remainder of the course to reach your goal. Warning: This can be very disheartening or very motivating or both. Here is one. Let's try it out. https://www.gigacalculator.com/calculators/gr ade-calculator.php #4. Know what you need (to get to the next level). Getting top grades in all of your courses, all the time, would be a wonderful thing. It is not always possible. The average grade in first-year courses at most universities will be about 65 to 70%. Although a number of students will get top marks, most won’t. For most (but not all programs) you will not need a cumulative average that is calculated over all four years. In some (but not all) cases just the last two years. Find out what you actually need. You can find this out by looking at entrance requirements for different programs. #5. Get hard courses done first. If you know that you are going to have some mandatory courses that are going to be really hard, then you can consider doing them in the second year of a four-year program. Again, if your plan is to apply for some other program (e.g., teacher’s college, law school, graduate school, medicine), you will need good marks. Some of these programs will only look at the most recent two years of coursework. Although this is not always the case, if it is, it means that you can get a hard course done in the first two years and save other courses that might be a bit easier or a bit more interesting for later on. #5. Balance hard courses against easy courses. If you have a number of really hard courses that you have to take in a year, it is often worthwhile to spread the really hard courses out over the year. That means two in the fall semester and two in the winter semester. #6. Take a summer course. If it is possible, you may even be able to spread things out and complete one of your courses during the summer. Summer courses are very compressed, usually lasting just four weeks. But a summer course will allow you to focus on doing just one thing (rather than trying to juggle five); it also means that you can take fewer courses during the year. This gives you room to drop down to just four courses. Sometimes, they are a bit easier. Tip: Before taking a summer course, talk to an academic advisor to make sure that you can (i.e., your program, bursary or loan allows it) and that the course will be available and recognized. #6. Balance hard courses against easy courses. If you have a number of really hard courses that you have to take in a year, it is often worthwhile to spread the really hard courses out over the year. That means two in the fall semester and two in the winter semester. #7. Take a summer course. If it is possible, you may even be able to spread things out and complete one of your courses during the summer. Summer courses are very compressed, usually lasting just four weeks. But a summer course will allow you to focus on doing just one thing (rather than trying to juggle five); it also means that you can take fewer courses during the year. This gives you room to drop down to just four courses. Sometimes, they are a bit easier. Tip: Before taking a summer course, talk to an academic advisor to make sure that you can (i.e., your program, bursary or loan allows it) and that the course will be available and recognized. #8. Do some research on the course and the prof before enrolling. For many courses, there will be multiple sections taught by a number of different professors. Although the courses are supposed to be equitable (i.e., equally demanding and graded equally), there will be differences. You should do a bit of research on who teaches the course at the university (i.e., check forums, Facebook, and social media, and online ratings of your Ratemyprofessor.com) to see what people are saying. If you are able to avoid difficult profs, then you stand a better chance of enjoying the course and doing well. #9. Know when and when not to skip class. Many students will start to skip classes when they start falling behind, thinking that they can better use the time spent in class working on a paper or assignment. As a strategy, this only works well when missing a class really costs you nothing. However, it is also true that there may be very little to be gained by missing one or two classes. After all, that is just a few hours in the day. If you are hoping that those few additional hours are going to free up enough time, then you will likely be mistaken. Being in class (and asking questions) may also be one way of distinguishing yourself. #10. Convert a course to PASS – FAIL At some colleges and universities, you can convert a course from a letter or numerical grade to a ‘pass- fail’ grade. This is not always possible, but when available, it can be an effective strategy to boost your average, hide a poor grade and not have to retake a class. In a pass-fail grading system, the 59%, for example, will appear as just “PASS” on your transcript. No one will ever know what you actually got. Tip: Some pass-fail courses require that you inform the university or college by a certain date that you would like to take the course as a ‘pass- fail.’ Ordinarily, you cannot complete the course and then decide that you would like the course to be pass-fail. #11. Know when to drop a course. Sometimes courses do not go well for a variety of reasons. The course might be extremely difficult or require that you put in a lot of time to do well. Or the prof might be awful or just not the material in a way that makes learning it easy. Or, you might have other difficulties in your life that are getting in the way of your learning. For whatever reason, you are not getting the grades that you need or believe that you can get. Tip: You don’t need to have a reason to drop a course. If you don’t find the prof interesting, or the time or location of your class is inconvenient, you can drop the course. But just make sure it is not going to cost you in forthcoming years. #12. Take an online course. One way of managing your workload is to see if you can take one (or more) of your courses online. If you can take the course online (and you don’t have to be in class), this will give you a lot of flexibility in terms of when you get the work done. Although very convenient, online courses require a high level of discipline to ensure that you stay on top of the work and do not let it pile up. Tip: You don’t need to have a reason to drop a course. If you don’t find the prof interesting, or the time or location of your class is inconvenient, you can drop the course. But just make sure it is not going to cost you in forthcoming years. #13. Take a course at a different university. One other way of managing your workload is to see if you can take a course at a different university and then have the course transferred to your university. This is not always possible, and it may only apply to certain courses, so you should talk to your academic advisor first. But, if it is possible, taking a course (online or in person) can give you more flexibility in completing courses and, in some instances, may even be easier. #14. Pick your best time of day for classes. Research supports the claim that there are “early birds” and “night owls” – those of us who are better in the morning than at night. If you are really not able to tackle 8:30 classes, then see if you can take your courses at later times of the day. Even if you can move one of those 8:30 classes, it might help. Move your work schedule. Many students have to work, sometimes a lot. Working all day and then doing school can be draining. Find out if it is possible to start work a bit later in the day, so that you can get a few hour of school in when you are fresh. #15. Change your program of study. National research studies have shown that some 30% of students will change their programs and elect to study something different. Some 10% of students will change two or more times. These are not easy decisions to make, but they can yield important benefits, including improved performance, better mental health, and a greater sense of fulfillment. C14: Nov 6 Please scan and record your attendance and answer a few questions about how you are doing / Veuillez scanner et enregistrer votre présence et répondre à quelques questions sur votre état de santé. Your instructor is / Votre instructeur est: SANTOR #16: Interrupt your studies when you need to. At some point, and in some instances, it may be a benefit for you to interrupt your studies — for a period of time. There are lots of good reasons to take a break, including mental health difficulties, wasn’t really ready to do the work as seriously as you need to, cannot afford to both study and work a full-time job at the same time. #17. Think of school as a team sport. One of the most important strategies is to approach university and college as a team sport. You do not have and are not expected to do it all on your own. You do have to write your papers and take your own tests, but you are allowed any and all amount of help up to that point. Tutors, academic coaches and advisors are all there to help you learn how to do well at school. Universities and colleges invest hundreds of millions of dollars in supporting students, helping them acquire the skills they need, and assisting them in completing their coursework and degrees. Unfortunately, too many students wait too long to ask for help or don’t ask at all. #18: Ask for an accommodation Students who have any kind of mental or physical condition that prevents them from studying to their full potential may be entitled to an accommodation. This might include being allowed to take fewer courses and being provided more time to complete assignments or write exams in a quiet room. Accommodations are designed to level the playing field for students with additional changes. Universities and colleges will encourage all students who believe they are entitled to an accommodation to apply. It is currently estimated that some 10-5% of students at colleges and universities all over North America benefit from accommodations while at school. Keep in mind: It is much, much harder to put an accommodation in place after the fact. Even if you are not sure if you need an accommodation or might not end up using it, it is better and easier to put it in place n Ask if you can get a retroactive accommodation if that is possible. #19: Defer an evaluation Find out if you can defer an evaluation. If, for whatever reason, you can postpone a test, paper or an exam, it might buy you some time. This is a short-term fix that might spread out your workload. Very often, you don’t need a doctor’s note or even a reason. But you should find out about how it works, now before you need it. #20: Distinguish yourself. The final strategy is to distinguish yourself. Grades are important but they are not everything and in some instances not enough. Distinguishing yourself is about doing something that gets you noticed and sets you apart. This could be volunteering, joining a research lab, doing a workshop, training course, or internship in a different university, city or even country. It doesn’t have to be grand. It doesn’t have to be grand, very long, or hard – just something that you can add to your CV that makes you stand out so that when you apply for a job or grad school, etc., you have something that sets you apart. Where to find it when you need it Again, you may not need any of them right now, but you need to know what they are. These and all of the topics we have discussed are located on the learning and well- being website. www.learningandwellbeing.ca/thinking-strategically- about-school/ C15: Please scan and record your attendance and answer a few questions about how you are doing / Veuillez scanner et enregistrer votre présence et répondre à quelques questions sur votre état de santé. Your instructor is / Votre instructeur est: SANTOR  Lecture 15: Staying motivated Oveview: The goal of today’s class is to learn about: a) Procrastination b) Motivation c) Habit building  Motivation What are the reasons for being at the university? To learn as much as you can Procrastination To get a specific job Putting off the activities that Goal Because mom and dad want you to. you need to do to reach your To avoid failure. goal. Socialize vs study. Do the easy work vs hard work. Clean versus study. Work out vs learn. Sleep in vs come to class. Hurdles and threats What will get in your way? External threats. Internal threats Procrastination Procrastination According to Tim Pychyl , one of the leading experts on procrastination, procrastination is part of human nature. Everyone of us has postponed, avoided or put things off at some point this past week, or even today. Tim Pychyl’s technical definition of procrastination is “the voluntary delay of an intended action, despite knowing that we’re going to be Procrastination takes up more than a worse off for delaying.” quarter of most people’s workday. Research has shown that: Women procrastinate less than men. Hundreds of studies have documented that procrastination can be harmful to your physical and mental health. Procrastination has been consistently related to low grades in Procrastination is moderately stable courses, exams, projects, and assignments. over 10 years. 95% of procrastinators say procrastination has had a negative effect on their happiness and they would prefer to About 20 percent of people procrastinate less. procrastinate to the point where procrastination has negative impacts on work, relationships, and how they thrive in life. Types of procrastination Active procrastination Research has identified different types of procrastination. can be misleading. It may feel like you are being Active procrastination: Putting things off but still getting productive (e.g., you got the them done in the last minute. paper submitted in time). But, it is never ever your best work. Passive procrastination: Putting things off and not getting it done in the last minute. You will be asked to Both are problematic. Why? complete a quiz for the homework that assesses Pure Procrastination versus Susceptibility to the degree of pure Temptation. Pure procrastination is the tendency to put things off, and the other is Susceptibility to Temptation (i.e., procrastination versus your tendency to get sidetracked with more enjoyable Susceptibility to activities). Temptation. DO you know which one you are? The Marshmallow Experiment – can you delay your gratification? In the 1960s and 1970s, Walter Mischel, a psychologist, conducted the now famous marshmallow test. He gave each of some 600 children ages 4 to 6 a single marshmallow in a private room. He told the children they could eat the marshmallow right away, or they could wait 15 minutes. If they could wait 15 minutes, they would be rewarded with a second marshmallow. What would you do? Only about 1/3 of the kids waited long enough to earn a second marshmallow. Mischel re-tested the kids several years later and discovered that children who were able to wait for the reward had higher SAT scores and fewer behavioral problems. Let’s apply the elements of goal theory to your own goals. What are the main challenges that you will face in setting and reaching your goals? Here are a few: 1) There will be many, many competing goals. Which ones really matter? 2) Not meeting your goal will be (by definition) frustrating. 3) Not every goal will be immediately rewarding. 4) You may (will) need a lot of contingency plans.  As we go through these slides, I would like you to Reasons why we write down the reasons for which you procrastinate. You will need this for the homework procrastinate Procrastination is an outcome that can arise for many, many reasons. Dealing with procrastination will depend on the reasons, for which you procrastinate. If you know the reasons, there is a better chance that you can overcome it. The goal of this lecture (and homework) is for you to identify the reasons. Here are a few. #1 Difficulty dealing with anxiety invoking tasks. Academic tasks are often anxiety provoking, and, as a result, more likely to lead to procrastination. When faced with a tedious or difficult task, some people have hard time dealing with discomfort they feel and try to distract themselves with activities which provide temporary feel-good rewards. #2 Underestimating how long it takes to finish tasks, even simple ones. Research has shown that people underestimate the time it takes to do most things by 50%. That means if you think it will take 2 days to do something, it will actually take four. As your time starts running out, the discomfort goes up and so does the tendency to distract your self with more pleasurable activities. Reasons we procrastinate (cont’d) #3 Fear of failure. Those who procrastinate are often afraid that they will do badly at their task and disappoint others. By delaying the completion of the task, they try to avoid feeling that they did not meet expectations of others. They rather blame their failure on their lack of trying, as opposed to their lack of ability. #4. Boredom is another reason we procrastinate. Boredom is a familiar experience among all genders, ages, and cultures, We get bored at work, in school, home and even with friends. According to one survey, 91 percept of young people in North America experience boredom and 51 percent report being bored easily. While some studies suggest that boredom may promote creativity (by forcing you to be creative), it is well known Most people deal with boredom by quitting or disengaging that boredom negatively affects academic success. from the activity they find boring. Boredom may hint that an activity is not in line with our personal strengths or A meta-analysis of 29 studies, involving 19,052 students, desires, but it does not necessarily mean that the activity is showed that the relationship between boredom and not important. academic success was −.24, which means that as your boredom goes up your academic performance goes down. Reasons we procrastinate (cont’d) #5. Perfectionism: Believe it or not, a large number of students end up not completing work (even avoiding ) work out of a desire or perceived need to be perfect. Perfectionists who are afraid of making mistakes often find themselves postponing their work. When writing a paper, they struggle putting a few words on paper, tend to go over and over a few sentences they wrote, and often run risk of not completing their work. A large study involving more than 8900 students showed that the perfectionism strivings (i.e., striving to do better and better) were positively related to academic performance. Perfectionists with this kind of attitude did not delay their academic work, managed their time efficiently and did not compromise the quality of their work. In contrast, perfectionism concerns (i.e., fears about making mistakes and the negative consequences that mistakes may have) were negatively related to academic performance. Not surprisingly, In contrast, perfectionism concerns (i.e., fears about making mistakes and the negative consequences that mistakes may have) are the main hurdle to maximizing your academic performance. Madigan, D. (2019). A Meta-Analysis of Perfectionism and Academic Achievement. Educational Psychology Review, 31, 967– 989. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-019-09484-2 As we go through these slides, I would like you to write down what strategies you will use to curb your procrastination. How to curb your procrastination Strategies to deal with procrastination Here are some tips on dealing with procrastination: #1. Start right away. If you have something that you know is due in less than 6 weeks, start now. Consider the thought, “I still have time” as a procrastination RED FLAG. #2. Set small, precise but frequent goals. Researchers have found small, regular goals reduce procrastination and increase productivity. That means, follow the WHAT WHEN WHERE scheduling rule and pencil in a lot of brief activities related to the task you are trying to avoid (e.g., from 10 to 10:30 survey the existing research on my topic at my desk; in my room, from 1 to 1;30pm, underline main points in two articles I found). #3. Keep in mind boring tasks are less boring once we start them. Research shows that people regularly underestimate how interesting the task ahead is going to be. If you ignore the feeling that an activity will be boring, and start it, you will soon discover that activity is actually not as boring or painful as you initially thought. More tips on curbing procrastination #4. Fact-check & rethink your worries, doubts and what-if’s if your hurdle is fear of failure or worry about how you will do. #5. Make a short to-do list at the beginning of each day (or the night before). Many procrastinators either never make a to-do list or spend far too long making and revising a list. Give yourself just five minutes to write down three things you need to do that day. Remember the research on scheduling. Making a plan on when and where to get your work done leads to better performance and reduced stress and worry. More tips on curbing procrastination (cont’d) #6. Spend time with non-procrastinators. Recent studies have demonstrated the positive influence that friends can have on academic outcomes. In this study of first year students, researchers examined the transmission of academic achievements through online networks for both friendship networks as well as university study networks. They found out that achievements spread well within friendship networks. For example, students’ GPA increased if their roommate was in the highest 25th GPA percentile. “Lower-achieving students were more likely to be influenced by their peers, the diffusion of academic performance is stronger among women than men and is stronger from close peers such as friends.” While the influence by friends resulted in faster and easier behavior adoption, online networks and relationships were not successful in channeling the performance transmission. More tips on curbing procrastination (cont’d) #7. Be honest with yourself. It is easy to come of with reasons to avoid getting things done. What reasons do you use? It will be easier and go faster if I am in a better frame of mind. Self-care is really important. I need to exercise and socialize too. I still have more than enough time to get it done. These are all potential red flags that your procrastination is starting to get in the way. What other red flags have you heard about or told yourself? Motivation What motivates you? There are many ways of motivating yourself and many factors that will motivate you do things, including the nature of the activity. The rewards that you get (or avoid losing) The types of goals you have (e.g., master the content vs avoiding failure). As we go through these slides, I would like you to write down what is it that motivates you, personally? Intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation Intrinsic motivation is about doing things because they are enjoyable and interesting to you. o Studying psychology because you are interested in it. o Going to the gym to work out because you enjoy working your body. o Going out not because you want to fit in but because you just like spending time with people. Extrinsic motivation is about doing things because they reward you in some way (e.g., praise, status, money) or because you avoid a painful consequence (e.g., lose praise, get criticized, look foolish)> o You are praised by your friends, parents, teacher or coach) o You earn a reward (e.g., promotion, scholarship, get As, a degree) o You avoid embarrassment, criticism o You avoid failure, being fired, being expelled. As we go through these slides, write down what activities (e.g., what course, etc.) you do that are intrinsically motivation and what ones are extrinsically motivated. Rewards The importance of rewards to enhance learning in education is controversial. In children, research shows that the most important motivator is praise from adults. The same can be for college students. Rewarding yourself is a little bit different. You can reward yourself in a number of ways, including giving yourself a necessary break, or scheduling a pleasurable activity after tackling a task. After studying for an hour or so, reward yourself with a call with your friend. After a long day of studying, you could take a few hours off and have some fun. The reward gives you something to focus on and work towards when it gets tough. Examples: 4PM on Friday Parental expectations – the good Although parental expectations can be problematic when you are in college, there is good evidence to show that parental expectations can be beneficial. Students whose parents hold high expectations receive higher grades, achieve higher scores on standardized tests, and persist longer in school than do those whose parents hold relatively low expectations (Davis-Kean 2005; Pearce 2006; Vartanian et al. 2007). Parental Girls Boys B B Internalizing Symptoms expectations – the bad Mom Achievement Dad Achievement Parental Criticism 0.15 -0.02 0.36* -0.14 0.19† 0.13 Externalizing Symptoms However, the effects of parental expectations when they are Mom Achievement 0.06 0.06 accompanied with criticism can be extremely harmful. Dad Achievement 0.07 0.07 Parental Criticism 0.33* 0.33* Self-esteem One study shows that when parents emphasized academic Mom Achievement 0.15* 0.15* Dad Achievement -0.17* -0.17* achievement, there was some benefit for self-esteem but Parental Criticism -0.35* -0.35* nothing else. GPA Mom Achievement -0.05 -0.05 However, this study also showed the detrimental impact of Dad Achievement 0.02 0.02 parental criticism on every outcome measure studied. Parental Criticism -0.21* -0.21* Acting Out Mom Achievement 0.08 0.08 Parental criticism was related to: Dad Achievement -0.01 -0.01 Parental Criticism 0.13† 0.13† Lower self-esteem’ Learning Problems Higher internalizing symptoms (e.g., depression and Mom Achievement 0.06 0.06 anxiety) Dad Achievement -0.02 -0.02 Parental Criticism 0.20* 0.20* Higher externalizing symptoms (e.g., aggression, frustration) Low GPA Note. Mom and Dad Achievement Emphases variables were based on children's reports on each individual parent's values. High learning problems. Parental academic expectations This study, conducted at the University of Ottawa, validated new measures of parental academic expectations, praise, involvement, and stress, and examined the impact of the parenting behaviours on various measures of academic and emotional well-being in 338 university-aged students. Three types of parenting styles: Permissive parental academic expectations (e.g., “My parents don’t really care about how I am doing in school”). Authoritative parental academic expectations (e.g., “My parents have high academic expectations of me but are willing to adjust their expectations according to my interests and wishes”). Authoritarian parental academic expectations (e.g., “My parents still expect more from me, even after doing my best”).  Loss of interest At this point in the school year, you may be losing interest in your studies, your program or maybe university Academic disengagement Academic disengagement is both a process and a state. Students who report feeling disengaged indicate that they are: Academic disengagement Academic disengagement is both a process and a state. Students who report feeling disengaged indicate that they are: Less interested in schoolwork (emotion) Less involved in school and schoolwork (behaviour) Less likely to finish the degree. Elements of Academic disengagement [no drive] I could not keep up with the amount of work I needed to do. I got so far behind I was unable to catch up. I was too tired to do what needed to be done I didn’t have the drive to keep working at it day after day after day. [long-term disengagement] I plan to finish school and graduate. [no interest] I would like to take a break from school. I felt like all of my efforts wouldn’t pay off. I am thinking about quitting school. I felt like I was not learning anything important or useful at school. I would like to quit school for good I felt like it was no longer worth it. I felt like I was wasting my time in school. [short-term disengagement] I didn’t see the point in continuing. I skipped classes I lost my interest in going to school. I avoided doing homework and studying I lost interest in learning. [defeated] I felt completely defeated. I felt helpless. I feel stuck and trapped, with no way out. Elements of Academic disengagement R=0.54 Loss of interest Short term Loss of drive disengagement R=0.60 Defeat R=0.47 Elements of Academic disengagement R=0.54 Loss of interest Short term disengagement R=0.60 Loss of drive R=0.44 R=0.54 R=0.47 R=0.31 Defeat Long term disengagement R=0.30  Managing academic disengagement The key to managing academic disengagement is to Increase your intrinsic motivation Align (more) activities and goals with PERMA Align (more) activities and goals with your Signature Strengths Align your activities and goals with a different goal or strengths (e.g., make the work about the people you meet) Increase your focus on the extrinsic rewards (short-term). Figure out how to reduce your stress as load and your stress as worry. Change your mindset. C15: Nov 8 Please scan and record your attendance and answer a few questions about how you are doing / Veuillez scanner et enregistrer votre présence et répondre à quelques questions sur votre état de santé. Your instructor is / Votre instructeur est: SANTOR Recap: In todays class, we have learned about: a) How goal setting predicts success b) The importance of prioritizing goals c) The hierarchy of goals d) The importance of a plan of action (Action, Time, Location) e) Barriers to starting and reaching your goals (procrastination, boredom, perfectionism) f) Tips and strategies on how to curb your procrastination g) Features of automaticity h) The importance of cues and habit stacking  Lecture 16: Social Assets: Making and keeping friends Five domains of social emotional skills There are five basic domains of social emotional learning. These are:  Relationship skills Relationship skills: The ability to establish and maintain healthy and supportive relationships and to effectively navigate settings with diverse individuals and groups. This includes the capacities to communicate clearly, listen actively, cooperate, work collaboratively to problem solve and negotiate conflict constructively, navigate settings with differing social and cultural demands and opportunities, provide leadership, and seek or offer help when needed. Strong social relationships decrease your likelihood of death. A large meta-analyses of some 148 studies involving more than 300,000 people showed a 50% increased likelihood of survival for participants with stronger social relationships. You may recall from an earlier lecture that loneliness was a greater risk factor for mortality than smoking. Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., & Layton, J. B. (2010). Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Review. PLOS Medicine, 7(7), Social isolation Only recently have sociologists been tracking changes in the size of our social networks. Recent studies have shown that the size of our social circles have declined dramatically in the past 25 years. “Discussion networks are smaller in 2004 than in 1985. The number of people saying there is no one with whom they discuss important matters nearly tripled. The mean network size decreases by about a third (one confidant), from 2.94 in 1985 to 2.08 in 2004. The modal participants now reports having no confidant; the modal respondent in 1985 had three confidants. Both kin and non-kin confidants were lost in the past two decades, but the greater decrease of non-kin ties leads to more confidant networks centered on spouses and parents, with fewer contacts through voluntary associations and neighborhoods. The prevalence of loneliness In their recent ‘Loneliness in the Workplace’ Report, Cigna (2020) found that loneliness has reached epidemic levels. As many as 80% of Americans under 18 years-old and 40% of adults over 65 years-o