The Importance of Students' Goals in Their Emotional Experience of Academic Failure: Investigating the Precursors and Consequences of Shame

Abstract

This article uses the emotion of shame as an example for exploring relations of students' goals and emotions. Using the framework of self-regulation and motivation, the article discusses the precursors and consequences of this potentially devastating emotion. The research suggests that motivational and goal-related processes may be associated with triggering a shame reaction, but that they also can contribute to shame resiliency. Specifically, the article argues that having clear, important future goals-for which the course grade or course information is instrumentally connected-particularly facilitates students' recovery from a shame reaction. The article concludes, however, that having future goals that supply motivating power for students to engage in learning activities is not sufficient to bring about shame recovery. For students to obtain their future academic goals, they must have a repertoire of study strategies and volitional strategies as well as self-monitoring strategies, metacognitive strategies, and self-regulation that will facilitate the acquisition of immediate learning goals.