The combined effects of goal type and cognitive abilityon performance

摘要

We tested the combined effects of goal typeand cognitive ability on task performance using a moder-ately complex task. Business students (N = 105) workedon a 24 min class scheduling task. The results showed thatparticipants with higher cognitive ability benefited morefrom the setting of a performance goal as opposed to alearning goal. The reverse pattern was true for participantswith lower cognitive ability. Performance goals were moreeffective for participants with higher cognitive ability vis-a-vis those with lower cognitive ability. The correlationbetween goal commitment and performance was positiveand significant as was the correlation between cognitiveability and performance.