Honors Thesis Archive

Author	Jami A. Unger
Title	Examining the Effects of Achievement Events on Children's Positive and Negative Affect
Department	Psychology
Advisor	Stephanie A. Little
Year	2007
Honors	Departmental Honors
Full Text	View Thesis (117 KB)
Abstract	The current study examined the effects of achievement orientation and events (positive and negative) on positive and negative affect in 71 fifth and sixth graders. Participants completed self-report and drawing measures of affect before (T1) and after (T2) playing Connect Four, as well as a measure of achievement orientation (T1). Level of achievement orientation interacted with the outcome (win/lose) to predict T2 proud affect and movement of drawings from T1 to T2. Children with higher levels of achievement orientation reported more proud affect after winning than did children with lower levels of achievement orientation. Moreover, among winners, high achievement orientation participants' drawings moved more to the right at T2 than did participants with low levels of achievement orientation, indicating greater left hemisphere activation.