Handbook of Competence and Motivation: Theory and Application

Now completely revised (over 90% new), this handbook established the concept of competence as an organizing framework for the field of achievement motivation. With an increased focus on connecting theory to application, the second edition incorporates diverse perspectives on why and how individuals are motivated to work toward competence in school, work, sports, and other settings. Leading authorities present cutting-edge findings on the psychological, sociocultural, and biological processes that shape competence motivation across development, analyzing the role of intelligence, self-regulated learning, emotions, creativity, gender and racial stereotypes, self-perceptions, achievement values, parenting practices, teacher behaviors, workplace environments, and many other factors. As a special bonus, purchasers of the second edition can download a supplemental e-book featuring several notable, highly cited chapters from the first edition.

New to This Edition
*Most chapters are new, reflecting over a decade of theoretical and methodological developments.
*Each chapter now has an applied as well as conceptual focus, showcasing advances in intervention research.
*Additional topics: self-regulation in early childhood, self-determination theory, challenge and threat appraisals, performance incentives, achievement emotions, job burnout, gene-environment interactions, class-based models of competence, and the impact of social group membership.
*Supplemental e-book featuring selected chapters from the prior edition.

Andrew J. Elliot, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at the University of Rochester. He has been a visiting professor at Cambridge University and Oxford University, United Kingdom; King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia; and the University of Munich, Germany, and a Visiting Fellow at Churchill College (Cambridge) and Jesus College (Oxford). Dr. Elliot’s research focuses on achievement motivation and approach-avoidance motivation. He is editor of Advances in Motivation Science and author of approximately 200 scholarly publications. The recipient of multiple awards for his teaching and research contributions to educational and social/personality psychology, he has given keynote or university addresses in more than 20 countries, and his lab regularly hosts professors, postdocs, and graduate students from around the globe.

Carol S. Dweck, PhD, is the Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology at Stanford University. Her research focuses on the critical role of mindsets in students’ achievement and has led to successful intervention to foster student learning. Dr. Dweck is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, and is the recipient of nine different lifetime achievement awards for her research. She addressed the United Nations on the eve of its new global development agenda and has advised governments on educational and economic policies. Dr. Dweck's bestselling book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success brought her research to the wider public.

David S. Yeager, PhD, is Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Yeager’s research focuses on motivation and adolescent development and on the use of behavioral science to make improvements toward pressing social issues. Dr. Yeager is co-chair of the Mindset Scholars Network, an interdisciplinary network devoted to improving the science of learning mindsets and expanding educational opportunity. He holds appointments at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, the Population Research Center and the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin, and the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, and he is the recipient of more than 15 awards in social, developmental, and educational psychology.