Achievement goals, attitudes toward help seeking, and help-seeking behavior in the classroom

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine how achievement goals and attitudes toward help seeking were related to students' self-reported help-seeking behavior. Eighth- and ninth-grade Japanese students participated in this study. A trichotomous framework was used to classify achievement goals. Mastery goals were related to perceived benefits, which were related to the adaptive help seeking positively and the avoidance of help seeking negatively. The study also found a negative direct relation between mastery goals and the avoidance of help seeking. Performance-approach goals had a direct positive relation with the adaptive help seeking and a negative relation with the avoidance of help seeking. Performance-avoidance goals were related to perceived threats, which were related to the avoidance of help seeking positively and the adaptive help seeking negatively. Different functions of three achievement goals and implications for adaptive help seeking were discussed.