Is it always good to provide positive feedback to students? The moderating effects of culture and regulatory focus

Abstract

To extend the previous research findings by Heine et al. (2001) and Idson and Higgins (2000) to educational setting, two experimental studies were conducted to examine the moderating role of culture (Study 1) and regulatory focus (Study 2) on the motivational consequences of success and failure feedback. College students (N=111 for Study 1 and N=93 for Study 2) received alleged feedback on their performance of a novel task. Results across the two studies replicated the previous findings and showed that success was motivating to students from the Western culture and students with promotion focus whereas failure feedback was motivating to students from the Eastern culture and students with prevention focus. The current studies provide empirical evidence for the replicability of previous research findings in the educational context. They also point to the future directions for the investigation of self-view and motivation.