Experiment No.

Effect of music on Auditory Memory Span for Digits

Introduction
 Memory span is defined as the number of discrete elements grasped in a given

moment of attention and organized in a unity for purposes of immediate reproduction or

immediate use, is determined in various ways.

Memory span is the longest list of items that a person can repeat back in correct order

immediately after presentation on 50% of all trials. Items may include words, numbers, or

letters. The task is known as digit span when numbers are used. Memory span is a common

measure of short-term memory. It is also a component of cognitive ability tests.

Functionally, memory span is used to measure the number of discrete units over

which the individual can successively distribute their attention and still organize them into a

working unit. To generalize, it refers to the ability of an individual to reproduce immediately,

after one presentation, a series of discrete stimuli in their original order.

Humpstone (1919) broadened this definition when he described memory span as the

ability to grasp a number of discrete units in a single moment of attention and to reproduce

them immediately.

Hunter (1929) shows that attention span and memory span are alike in involving only

one presentation of the stimulus, but that they differ in temporal duration of the stimulus. If

the stimulus is presented for one-fiftieth of a second, the experiment is classified as one on

attention, whereas with longer exposure times, the behavior is classified as memory.

The speed with which the stimuli are presented has an effect on the memory span

score attained. Peatman and Locke (1934) experimentally showed that the best rate of

presentation for digits by either the audio-vocal or visual method was one digit per two-thirds

of a second to one digit per second.

 It has already been noted that presenting the units in the series of stimuli by any

method of grouping or rhythm will enable the subject to secure a higher memory span than

they would otherwise have. Often the subjects themselves are entirely responsible for

grouping the units, and may thus increase their apparent memory span. According to Martin

and Fernberger (1929) it was noted that any memory span over 5 was secured through

subjective grouping of the units.

In the nineteenth century, Ebbinghaus (1850–1909; 1885/1964 as cited in Richardson,

2007) was the first cognitive scientist to show how span could be used as an experimental

paradigm to investigate memory and learning.

The Digit Sequencing or Digit Span test is one of the main tools developed to

measure one’s verbal working memory. The test was originally designed to test working

memory and attention, as part of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale. Usually, the examiner reads

a list of numbers, and the participant repeats them until an incorrect answer is given

(Blackburn, 1957). Sometimes the participant is asked to repeat the sequence of digits

backward. The average score for adults is to recall between eight and ten digits forward and

between seven and nine digits backward (Lezak, 2004).

Initially, the test was designed to test working memory along with attention, as

attention is a crucial aspect of one’s cognitive functioning and everyday life. Researchers

have observed a decline in performance when one’s experiencing stress. Thus, it’s believed

that there’s a link between the two (Lezak, 2004).

Chua etal., (2020) investigated the effect of music on short term memory with use of

digit span. For this 120 college students were selected from which 37 were females and 83

were females. Participants were divided in control or experimental group through

randomization. Both groups underwent digit span test in experimental group background rock
music is provided. Results showed that background music effect the short term memory

because those students who done digit span test in presence of music have score less than

students who had no background music while performing digit span test.

Past literature has suggested that background music, in particular vocal music, can
have a significantly
detrimental effect on working memory performance (Alley and Greene 2008; Salame and
Baddeley 1989).
Past literature has suggested that background music in particular vocal music can have

a significantly detrimental effect on working memory performance (Alley & Greene, 2008;

Salame & Baddeley, 1989).The memory span is affected by the presence of background

music. As evidenced by Waters (2013) in his research on the effect of vocal music on

working memory performance. Digit span test was used for the assessment of working

memory. A 3x1 within subjects-design was conducted, with 36 university undergraduate

students completing three Reading Span Tests. They were provided with three conditions;

without music, with instrumental music and with vocal music. But the prediction of that study

was not met because the significant difference between silent, instrumental and vocal music

was not found. The results showed that there was however a significant difference between

performance in the silent and vocal music conditions. The performance was best in silent

condition.

Musliu et al. (2017) in their research aim to investigate if music can help to memorize

different tests like nonsense syllables, numbers, and rhyming poems. Students participating in

this experiment were from different faculties (N = 74, 75% females) between the ages of 18-

22 years old. Students were divided into three balanced groups. This was done in order to

have three groups with students who showed almost the same prior memory test score. Then,

three other tests were administered. The first group was taking the tests without music at all

and in silence, the second group was taking the tests while listening to lyrical music, and the

third group while listening to relaxing music. All three groups had five minutes to memorize
whatever was required from each of the three different tests. This study concluded that music

affects memory negatively. This means that students who were not listening to any kind of

music were able to memorize and recall more items. This study also concluded that silence

helps to detect and memorize the same nonsense syllables more than while being distracted

with music. When it comes to memorizing better keep the music down.

Method

Objective

To find out the effect of music on auditory memory span for digits.

Hypotheses
  Music significantly affects the auditory memory span for digits.

 Music in the background causes the auditory memory span for digits to decrease.

Material

Speakers, digit span test, pencil, paper, stopwatch.

Research Design

Between group design is used in this experiment. Participants were divided randomly

into two groups i.e., experimental group and control group. In present study, music was our

independent variable and auditory memory span for digits was dependent variable.To comply

this, instructions were provided and informed consent was obtained from all the subjects.

Sample of the Study

Our sample consisted of 20 students of BS 1st semester from Govt. Viqar Un Nisa

Postgraduate College (W), randomly assigned 10 participants in the experimental group and

10 participants in control group.The variables such as age, gender and education of the

subjects were controlled by making constant for all subjects.

Procedure

We investigated whether music effects the auditory memory span for digits of

participants. Between subject design was used.All the conditions given to the participant were

same in all aspects. All extraneous variables like light, noise, instructions were constant.

Participants were seated in a comfortable position. Paper pencil was provided to them.

Music was provided only to the experimental group. Participants of experimental group were

asked to memorize the 4 digits number that was vocalized to them in the presence of music
(national song) and control group without any music. Total 7 pairs of digits were provided to

each student. Scores were noted on each trial.

Results

Table 1

Auditory Memory Span for Digits of control and experimental group.

Sr. No Control Group Experimental Group

1. 7 6

2. 6 5

3. 6 5

4. 5 3

5. 6 4

6. 6 4

7. 5 5

8. 6 3

9. 5 5

10. 7 4

Table 1 shows correct responses given by the participants of the control group and

experimental group in which control group scored high as compared to experimental group.

Table 2
 Mean scores of Control Group and Experimental Group.

Groups Total score Mean value

Control Group 59 5.9

Experimental Group 42 4.4

Table 2 shows the mean of total score of control and experimental group. It suggests

that the experimental group made less correct responses as compared to the control group.

Graph

Mean score comparison among experimental and control groups

Mean comparison of experimental and control group

7

Experimental group Control group

The above chart shows the comparison of mean values of total scores of both groups

i.e. control group and experimental group.

Conclusion
 The study was conducted to find out the effect of music on auditory memory span for

digits. It was hypothesized that music significantly affects the auditory memory span of

individuals. The participants of the control group scored higher than the participants of the

experimental group. It was concluded that vocal music affects the auditory memory span of

the participants.
 Reference

Alley, T. R., & Greene, M. E. (2008). The Relative and Perceived Impact of Irrelevant

Speech, Vocal Music and Non-vocal Music on Working Memory. Current Psychology,

27(4), 277–289. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-008-9040-z

Blackburn, H. L., & Benton, A. L. (1957). Revised administration and scoring of the Digit

Span Test. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 21(2), 139–143.

https://doi.org/10.1037/h0047235

Blankenship, A. B. (1938). Memory span: a review of the literature. Psychological Bulletin,

35(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0061086

Chua, M., Ngie, G. W., & Nicomedes, C. J. (2020). A Study on the Effect of Music on Short

Term Memory with the Use of Digit Span Task among Students. International Journal

of Advanced Research and Publication, 4(4), 55–58.

https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.32293.65763/1

Humpstone, H. J. (1919). Individual mental testing. Clinical Psychology: Studies in Honor of

Lightner Witmer to Commemorate the Thirty-Fifth Anniversary of the Founding of the

First Psychological Clinic, 134–141. https://doi.org/10.1037/13526-011

Hunter, W. S. (1929). Learning: II. Experimental studies of learning. The Foundations of

Experimental Psychology, 564–627. https://doi.org/10.1037/11018-015

Lezak, M. D., (2004). Neuropsychological Assessment, Fourth Edition. Journal of

Neurology, 252(10), 1290–1291. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-005-0003-0

Musliu, A., Berisha, B., &Latifi, D. (2017). The impact of music in memory. European

Journal of Social Sciences Education and Research, 10(2), 222.

https://doi.org/10.26417/ejser.v10i2.p222-227

Martin, P. R., & Fernberger, S. W. (1929). Improvement in Memory Span. The American

Journal of Psychology, 41(1), 91. https://doi.org/10.2307/1415112

Richardson, J. T. E. (2007). Measures of Short-Term Memory: A Historical Review.

Psychology Medicine Cortex, 43(5), 635–650. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0010-

9452(08)70493-3

Waters, A. J. (2013). The Effects of Vocal Music on Working Memory Performance.

International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Physiology, 6(2), 49–54.

https://doi.org/10.5530/ijcep.2019.6.2.14
 Annexure

Digit span test

 763

 4795

 87236

 983176

 5926317

 73429816

 264980361

Music

National song (Pakistan Zindabad)

 Experiment no. 2

Incidental Learning versus Intentional Learning

 Introduction

Learning is the attainment of knowledge or skills that we gain via experiences, studies

or when we are taught. In the study of learning, intentional learning is seen as more effective

than incidental learning. Intentional learning is characterized by rehearsal whereas incidental

learning is defined as “unplanned learning” which occurs simply due to exposure to stimuli.

The psychology of learning focuses on a range of topics related to how people learn

and interact with their environments. Hulstijn (2003) makes a distinction between intentional

and incidental learning as Intentional learning refers to the learning mode in which

participants are informed, prior to their engagement in a learning task, that they will be tested

afterward on their retention of a particular type of information. Incidental learning refers to

the mode in which participants are not forewarned of an upcoming retention test for a

particular type of information.

Incidental learning refers to any learning that is unplanned or unintended. It develops

while engaging in a task or activity and may also arise as a by-product of planned learning.

Incidental learning or informal learning is learning that takes place without any intent to

learn. In a research study, the participant is not aware that they will be tested for their

memory of the material. Incidental learning is the learning of one stimulus feature while

concentrating on another stimulus feature too. A little more specific connotation of incidental

learning is that it involves the learning of formal aspects through a center of attention on

semantic aspects. Incidental learning can occur in many modes inclusive of observations,

communications with colleagues about tasks or projects, experiencing mistakes, assumptions

and adapting to new situations. A reactive component of incidental learning occurs in the

middle of a task completion action when there is little time to think. Incidental learning has

also been portrayed as implicit when knowledge is acquired independent of conscious

attempts to learn (Eraut, 2004).

 Intentional learning is generally defined as learning that is motivated by intentions

and is goal directed. Intentional learning emphasizes the consciousness of learning. It

addresses the content of learning and it’s an end product, as well as the learning process

itself. Intentional learning is the "persistent, continual process to acquire, understands, and

uses a variety of strategies to improve one's ability to attain and apply knowledge" (American

Accounting Association, 1995). According to Bereiter and Scardamella (1989), intentional

learning refers to "cognitive processes that have learning as a goal rather than an incidental

outcome." Intentional learning is described as the having the intention to learn the material

and to commit it to one’s memory. It explains the study conditions where participants are

forewarned that they will be tested on material to which they are exposed. Participants in an

intentional learning task are told in advance that they will be tested in after the learning

phase; they will try to store the word information that is to be learned in a form perceived as a

transferable to the test situation. And processing instructions during the learning phase in an

incidental learning setting may or may not be conducive to successful transfer to the test

situation (Catherine, 2003).

Although learning in everyday life is both incidental and intentional but intentional

learning instructions produce better recall and recognition performance than incidental

learning instructions. Incidental and intentional learning refers, strictly speaking, only to

absence or presence of an announcement to participants in a psychological experiment as to

whether they will be tested after the experiment task (Catherine, 2003).

There are numerous studies investigating incidental and intentional learning. Few

studies are mentioned here. A study conducted by Ahmed (2017) investigated the knowledge

of intentional learning and incidental learning. Participants were demonstrated and were

asked to learn the 10 non sense syllables in a specific sequence from the colored cards in the

end they were asked to recall the background color of each card instead of non-sense
syllables. Independent variables of the experiment are the colored cards containing non-sense

syllables which are to be memorized by the participant; dependent variables are the number

of correct responses made by the participant. The findings of the experiment concluded that

intentional learning is better than incidental learning.

A study conducted by Ahmad (2012) investigated the distinction between intentional

and incidental vocabulary learning. Two types of tests such as Standard Confirmation Test

and a Contrastive Extempore Test of intentional & incidental types were given to twenty

students at graduate level. Standard confirmation test determined a close homogeneity of all

selected learners. The final test aimed at striking a contrast between the performance levels of

both intentional &incidental vocabulary types. The homogenous learners were divided into

two equal groups. Fifty new words were the same for both groups but framed in two different

styles: intentional and incidental. The findings of the experiment concluded that incidental

type performed significantly better than intentional type.

A study conducted by Yali (2010) investigated the teaching and learning vocabulary

through reading, there are two instructional techniques: incidental learning and intentional

learning. This study explores the role of reading in vocabulary acquisition, and the effect of

different vocabulary instructional techniques on the vocabulary learning of ESL students of

different levels in Chinese universities. The findings of the experiment concluded that

combination of the incidental and intentional learning instruction leads to greater vocabulary

gains and better retention.

Another study conducted by Ricke (1981) investigated the relationship between

recognition and recall memory as a function of intentional and incidental learning. A total of

188 college students participated in the experiment with 47 students in each of four

conditions. The two learning conditions were produced by giving either intentional or

incidental learning instructions while the two memory conditions, either recognition or recall,
were defined on the basis of one of two forms of the retention questionnaire. All subjects

viewed two groups of slides; the first group depicted a wallet snatching incident and the

second group consisted of paired-associate nonsense syllables. The intentional learning group

viewed the wallet snatching slides, which acted as a tiller activity. The incidental learning

group viewed the paired associated nonsense syllable slides, which acted as a filler activity.

·Results indicate that there were no differences found between intentional and incidental

learning, therefore it was concluded that recognition memory produces better quantity and

quality responses to an eyewitness event than recall memory with the type of learning,

intentional or incidental.
 Method

Objectives

This experiment aimed to investigate whether Intentional learning is better retained

than incidental learning.

Hypothesis

Intentional learning is better retained than incidental learning.

Material

List of Non-sense syllables (with different shapes), Pencil, Papers, Stop watch and

Score sheet.

Research Design

Between group design was used to conduct the experiment. Convenient sampling

technique was used to collect sample for the experiment. Independent variables of the

experiment were the cards containing non-sense syllables on different shapes which are to be

memorized by the participant; dependent variables are the number of correct responses made

by the participant. Instructions were provided to the subjects and informed consent was

obtained.

Subjects

Total of 20 students were selected from Govt Viqar Un Nisa Post Graduate College

Rawalpindi. The variables such as age gender and education of the subjects were controlled

by making them constant (similar). Students were selected conveniently and were divided

into two groups randomly. Their age range from 19-20 years and belong to BA part II.
Procedure

For conducting the experiment standardized conditions were maintained and before

the experiment the instructions were given to the subjects of both control and experimental

group. The experiment consisted of two phases.

Phase I

To check the intentional learning of subject firstly, for control group the participants

were shown 10 cards of different shapes and unique non-sense syllable. Each of which is

shown for 10 seconds and then the participants were asked to learn it in same sequence and

then write it on paper and recall them in same sequence shown and responses were recorded

on the score sheet. Secondly, for experimental group, the participants were shown cards for

same period of time (10 seconds) and then the subjects were asked to recall them and write

them on paper in the in the sequence provided to them. After this the responses were recorded

on the score sheet.

Phase II

Once all the words are memorized by the participants, the next is to check the

incidental learning. For control group the cards were shown again for 10 seconds to learn and

memorize the shape of cards of the nonsense syllable and then asked to draw or even write it

in front the syllable and also focus on the sequence of syllable shapes. For experimental

group, the treatment is given with a twist. The participants were shown the non-sense syllable

written on a blank paper with the previous sequence and were asked to recall the shape of

each syllable of the cards and write them in the exact same sequence.
 Results

Table 1

Correct and incorrect responses of experimental group of incidental learning.

Subjects Correct responses Incorrect responses

1 3 7

2 5 6

3 3 7

4 2 8

5 3 7

6 5 5

7 6 4

8 6 7

9 5 6

10 3 7

Total 39 64

Table 1 shows the correct and incorrect responses of incidental learning in which

subjects scored total 36 correct responses and total 64 incorrect responses.

Table 2

Correct and incorrect responses of control group of intentional learning.

Subjects Correct responses Incorrect responses

 1 7 3

2 9 1

3 9 1

4 8 2

5 6 4

6 9 1

7 7 3

8 7 1

9 5 5

10 4 6

Total 71 27

Table 2 shows correct and incorrect responses of intentional learning obtained by

control group, from total score 73 correct responses and 27 incorrect responses were

obtained.

Table 3

Mean of correct responses of control and experimental group

Groups Mean Score

Experimental group 3.9

Control group 7.1

 Table.3 shows the mean of correct responses of control and experimental group. It

suggests that the experimental group made less correct responses as compared to control

group.

Graph

Mean scores of control and experimental group on incidental and intentional learning
 Mean comparison of experimental and control group
8

Experimental group Control group

The above chart shows the comparison of mean responses of both groups i.e.

experimental and control group on incidental learning and intentional learning.

Conclusion

It was concluded from the experiment that the intentional learning is better retained

than incidental learning. Hence our hypothesis Intentional learning is better than incidental

learning was accepted.

References
American Accounting Association (1995). Intentional Learning: A Process for Learning to

Learn in the Accounting Curriculum. Sarasota.

https://aaahq.org/AECC/intent/index.htm

Ahmad, J. (2012). International Association of Research in Foreign Language Education and

Applied Linguistics. ELT Research Journal 1(1), 71-79.

http://ae.fl.kpi.ua/article/view/202436

Ahmed, S. (2017). Intentional Learning vs. Incidental Learning. Journal of Psychology &

Clinical Psychiatry, 7(2). https://doi.org/10.15406/jpcpy.2017.07.00426

Bereiter, C. & Scardamella, M. (1989). Intentional learning as a goal of instruction. (pp. 361-

392). Hillsdale. http://ikit.org/fulltext/1989intentional.pdf

Catherine, J. D. (2003). Incidental and Intentional Learning .The Handbook of Second

Language Acquisition, Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Cherry, K. (2020). Types of learning in psychology.

https://www.verywellmind.com/learning-theories-in-psychology-an-overview-

2795082.

Doughty, C., & Long, M. H. (2003). Incidental and Intentional learning. In The Handbook of

Second language Acquisition (pp. 349–381). Blackwell.

http://www.blackwellpublishing.com.

Eraut, M. (2004). The practice of reflection. Learning in Health and Social Care. 3(2), 47-52.

http://www. udead.org.tr/journal.

Hulstijn, J. H. (2003). Incidental and Intentional Learning. The Handbook of Second

Language Acquisition, 349–381.

 https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470756492

Ricke, J. L. (1981). Recognition and recall memory as a function of intentional and incidental

learning of an eyewitness account. Master's Theses. Paper 872.

http://scholarship.richmond.edu/masters-theses

Yali, G. (1970). L2 Vocabulary Acquisition through Reading -Incidental Learning and

Intentional Learning. Semantic Scholar. https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/L2-

Vocabulary-Acquisition-Through-Reading-Learning
 Experiment No. 3

Effect of Using Mnemonic Acronyms on Learning

 Introduction

Mnemonic, a word derived from the Greek word mnemonics (of memory), is a technique

used to assist memory dating back to 477 BCE (Yates, 1966). Mnemonics refers to the art or

practice of improving or of aiding the memory, and to a system of rules to aid the memory. A

mnemonic can be classified by its form (e.g., an acronym based on initial letters of the target

material) and by its function (e.g., recalling a fact versus recalling a process). Mnemonics, or

mnemonic devices, are encoding strategies used to organize and/or chunk to-be-learned material,

in order to make it more meaningful and easier to remember. In the field of cognitive

psychology, mnemonic techniques are considered to be strategies for encoding new information

in memory in such a way that they can be more easily retrieved. Among the most studied

techniques are those involving imagery or verbal mnemonics (Cook, 1989), such as using the

first letters of a set of words to form an acronym or phrase.

At a conceptual level, mnemonics bolster memory due to at least three factors (Bellezza,

1996). First, they typically involve deliberate, or effortful, learning, the focused attention the

learner pays to the material while using and/or creating mnemonics supports encoding to long-

term memory. Second, they connect new knowledge with established schemas in long-term

memory, a process also called elaboration, which enhances encoding and supports successful

retrieval. Third, many mnemonic devices require the integration of two or more information

codes (e.g., verbal, visual) which, consistent with Paivio’s, (1986) dual-coding theory, enhances

memory by providing multiple routes to retrieval

 The materials typically used in controlled laboratory experiments are lists of words. It has

long been known that memory performance is best when information is encoded in a meaningful

or organized manner (Craik & Lockhart, 1972), for example, by connecting it to pre-existing

knowledge structures. Some mnemonic techniques take advantage of the benefits of meaningful

and organized encoding and supplement them by setting up an organized retrieval structure in

which each retrieval cue is stored with a specific piece of information to be remembered.

Principles of Mnemonic

There are five principles of using mnemonic (Higbee, 1977). They are meaningfulness,

organization, association, visualization and attention and interest.

Meaningfulness

Mnemonic can make material meaningful by using rhymes, patterns, and associations.

The most powerful example is the phonetic system that gives meaning from the most abstract,

meaningless and kinds of material number, So that the phonetic system will be easier to learn.

Organization

Mnemonic involves organizing material. The material can be systematically recorded and

retrieved by the mnemonic. An example of finding a library book shows the advantage of

organization.

Association

Association is a basic principle to all mnemonic. In associating items to each other, the

link system is fits to this strategy. The loci, peg and phonetic system are easily remembered
material as filling system. The use of filling system is by associating the new material that is

wanted to learn with material that has been previously memorized.

Visualization

Visualization plays a central role in the mnemonic it is because the associations are made

visually. Visualization is probably the most unusual aspect of mnemonic and is also probably the

most misunderstood. Not all mnemonic involve visual imagery. For example, to associate the

words “cats” and “rats” the teacher could either from a mental picture of cats eating rats as a

visual mediator, or the teacher could from a sentence, “Cats like to eat rats” as a verbal mediator.

Attention and Interest

Mnemonic forces the students to concentrate on the material to form pictures and

associate them. They tend to be interesting. It is because they make the material meaningful and

involve visual imagery.

There are different types of mnemonics including first-letter mnemonics (e.g., acronyms,

acrostics), keyword mnemonics, peg word and method of loci mnemonics. Among the first-letter

mnemonics, the most common type is acronyms. An acronym is a word that is developed from

the first letter of words that are to be remembered (Bakken & Simpson, 2011). Acronyms are

created by combining the first letters of to-be-learned words into a new word (or word-like) unit,

such as using the mnemonic DABDA for the five stages of death and dying (Carney et al., 1994).

In an investigation of the usefulness of one specific acronym mnemonic, Lakin et al.

(2007) reported that, in an introductory research methods course, frequency of using HOMER as

an acronym for steps of the scientific method predicted memory for, and elaboration of, the
steps. In addition, students responded positively to the mnemonic, rating it as enjoyable and

useful, and recommending it for future courses.

Radović and Manzey, (2019) examined the potential impact of a mnemonic acronym on

the learning. 33 participants were provided with the acronym “WORTKLAU” as a mnemonic to

support the learning and execution of the task and the other 32 participants had to learn and

execute the task without such support. Results suggested that the mnemonic acronym enhanced

learning of the task sequence, and provide some evidence for a hierarchical mental representation

of the task, resulting in faster resumption times at certain steps of the procedure after an

interruption. Their results provided evidence for beneficial effects of mnemonic acronym

particularly for the learning of a sequential procedural task.

 Method

Objectives

Present experiment aims to investigate the effect of using mnemonic acronyms on

learning.

Hypotheses

Use of acronym lists will improve recall ability.

Materials

Paper, Pen, Stopwatch, Chairs, Tables and Words list.

Research Design

The independent measure group design also known as between subject group design was

used in the experiment. Subjects were selected by convenient sampling technique. Experimental

group and control group were randomly assigned. Independent variable was manipulated by

providing list of mnemonic acronyms to the participants and effect of using mnemonic acronyms

on dependent variable i.e. learning was measures and observed. To comply this, instructions

were provided and informed consent was obtained from all the subjects.

Sample

Present experiment included 10 randomly assigned participants, students of BS-English

from Govt Viqar-un-Nisa Post Graduate College Rawalpindi. 5 participants were separated into

control group and other 5 participants into experimental group. Their age was ranged from 17-
18. The variables such as age, gender and education of the subjects were controlled by making

constant for all subjects.

Procedure

First of all, informed consent was taken from randomly assigned participants. Instructions

were given to both experimental and control group. Participants were seated in comfortable

position and peaceful environment. Words list was provided to both experimental and control

group while acronyms list was provided to experimental group only. Both experimental and

control group were given instructions to learn the words list in given time. Only experimental

group was instructed to use the acronyms list for learning. After learning, they was instructed to

recall and write all words in the same sequence as in the original words list and should complete

the task in given time. Participants were given 10 minutes to learn the words list, time was noted

with the help of stopwatch. After learning they were given blank pages to recall and write the

words list. Every participant’s recall time was noted separately through stopwatch. After

completing the whole experiment participants were kind heartedly thanked for their cooperation

and participation in the task. Finally results were calculated to test the hypotheses. The whole

experiment was conducted in a highly controlled environment by keeping light and noise

conditions constant.
 Results

Table 1

Responses of Experimental Group and Control Group

Experimental Group Control Group

Participants Errors Time(Sec) Errors Time(Sec)

1 4 240 11 590

2 6 140 9 380

3 5 270 10 920

4 4 196 12 890

5 6 320 13 990

Total 25 1166 115 3770

Table 1 shows the responses of experimental and control group on recalling of words list

which shows total errors and time (sec) of experimental group is 25 and 1166 (sec) respectively

and for control group is 115 and 3770 (sec) respectively.

Table 2

Comparison between Mean Results of Experimental Group and Control Group

Experimental Group Control Group

Mean Errors 5 23

Mean Time (sec) 233.2 754

Table 2 shows the mean errors and mean time (sec) of experimental and control group. It

shows the experimental group made less errors and time in recall of the acronyms as compared to

control group.
Graph

Mean scores comparison of experimental and control group

Mean
25

20

15

10

0
Recall with mnemonics Recall without
mnemonics

Mean

The above chart shows the comparison among groups recalling list with and without

acronym.

Conclusion

After analyzing the results, it was concluded that there is significant effect of mnemonic

acronyms on learning of individuals. As learning could be enhanced through the use of acronyms

and task could be learned efficiently as compared to without aid of acronyms.

 References

Bakken, J.P., & Simpson, C. G. (2011). Mnemonic strategies: Success for the young-adult

learner. The Journal of Human Resource and Adult Learning, 17(2), 79-85.

Bellezza, F. (1996). Mnemonic methods to enhance storage and retrieval. In E. L. Bjork & R. A.

Bjork (Eds.), Memory: Handbook of perception and cognition (pp. 345-380).

https://10.1016/B978-012102570-0/50012-4

Carney, R., Levin, J., & Levin, M. (1994). Enhancing the psychology of memory by enhancing

memory of psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 21, 171-174.

https://10.1207/s15328023top2103_12

Cook, N. M. (1989), “The Applicability of Verbal Mnemonics for Different Populations: A

Review,” Applied Cognitive Psychology, 3(1), 3–22.

Craik, F. I. M., & Lockhart, R. S. (1972). Levels of processing: A framework for memory

research. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 11, 671-684.

https://10.1016/S0022-5371(72)80001-X

Higbee, K. L. (1988). Your memory: How it works and how to improve it (2nd ed.) Prentice Hall.

Lakin, J. L., Giesler, R. B., Morris, K. A., & Vosmik, J. R. (2007), “HOMER as an Acronym for

the Scientific Method,” Teaching of Psychology, 34(2), 94–96.

Paivio, A. (1986). Mental representations: A dual coding approach. Oxford Science Publication.

https://10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195066661.001.0001
Radović, T., & Manzey, D. (2019). The Impact of a Mnemonic Acronym on Learning and

Performing a Procedural Task and Its Resilience toward Interruptions. Frontiers in

Psychology, 10, 22. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02522.

Yates, F. A. (1966). The Art of Memory, Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

 Experiment No # 4

Level of Aspiration and Achievement

 Introduction

Education is a process and kind of activity in relation to human beings.

It is a continuous effort to develop all capacities of the students to control

their neighboring environment and to fulfill their needs. Though education is

a part of human life, it cannot help the pursuers unless they have the

required amount of educational aspirations. Individuals will have aspirations,

in all stages of life and people try for their self-enhancement. The aspiration

during student’s period influences their behavior.

Aspiration of the students is a term used frequently in education. Early

research helped us to understand that aspiration as an expression of the will

to achieve and improve.

Aspiration can be operationally defined as the student’s ability to identify

and set goals for the future, while breathing in the present to work toward

those goals.

This is viewed that the aspiration of students is the only one that

combines the components of their motivation (inspiration) in the future

(ambitions). An individual’s aspiration level represents not only as they are

at any particular moment, but also as they would like to be at same problem

in the future.
 The aspiration level of an individual’s is an important motivating factor in

their career. Level of aspiration is usually influenced by two types of factors.

These are:

1. Environmental factors

2. Personal factors

Environmental factors include determinants like parental ambitions, social

expectations, peer pressure, social value, competition, group cohesiveness

etc. On the other hand, personal factors play dominant role in determining

their level of aspiration as the child grows older and become more aware of

their abilities and interests. These personal factors include determinants

such as wishes, personality, past experiences, values, interests, sex, and

socio-economic background (Eccles et al., 2005).

Aspiration

Aspiration is an expression of the desire to achieve and improve. It is a

level of motivation that overcomes task complexity with perpetual efforts

and push one’s to work toward those goals.

Level of Aspiration

A conceptual approach, to group and individual performance, which

assumes that one’s initial goals and ambitions influence their particular

performances and their emotional, motivational and behavioral

consequences (Senthilselvam & Subramonian, 2015).

 Hurlock (1967) defined it as a longing for what is above one’s achieved

level with advancement on it as its end. The dimensions of aspiration are

career aspiration, social aspiration, economical aspiration, personal

aspiration, and educational aspiration.

In the Standards for test construction (APA, 1999), achievement is

viewed as the competence a person have in an area of content. This

competence is the result of many intellectual and nonintellectual variables.

Achievement goals and emotions are crucial determinants of students’

learning processes and have an impact on academic outcomes (Hulleman et

al., 2011;Goetz &Hall,2013). The interplay between achievement goals and

affect in academic settings has been a part of achievement goal theory since

its beginnings (Dweck& Leggett, 1988).

In relation to achievement goals, achievement emotions are of special

interest (Pekrun, 2006). Achievement emotions reflect the temporary

affective state of a learner when performing a learning-related task in a

school, college or university setting. Learning-related emotions appear in

different academic settings, such as attending class, studying and taking

exams. Emotions can vary across these settings.

At the experimental level, achievement is referred as acquisition,

learning, or knowledge representation, sometimes. Achievement is the word

preferred in the educational or psychometrics fields, being sometimes

characterized by the degree of inference required on the part of the student

to give a response, and by the type of reference to a cognitive process made

explicit in the measurement tool.

Educationally, achievement may be defined (Niemi & Vainiomäk, 1999)

as the mastering of major concepts and principles, important facts and

propositions, skills, strategic knowledge and integration of knowledge. More

systematically, achievement is sometimes fractionated into knowledge

components (Ruiz-Primo, 1998), like declarative, procedural and strategic.

In summary, achievement is the competence of a person in relation to

a domain of knowledge. Achievement is strongly related to attitudes towards

school and school subjects.

Khattab (2015) conducted a study to examine how aspiration and

achievement can influence students’ future educational behavior. The study

showed that students with either high aspirations or high expectations have

higher school achievement than those with low aspirations or low

expectations.

Another study was conducted by Abu-Hilal (2000) to determine the

relationship between attitudes, level of aspiration and achievement in high

school students. It was found that level of aspiration had direct significant

effect on achievement and attitudes to school.

Another study was conducted by Chauhan (2017) that investigated the

level of aspiration in predicting the academic achievement among secondary

school students. Findings suggested that a high level of aspiration for a good

education would normally make the individual to not only put forth their

sustained efforts in getting education but it would also make them achieve at

a high level throughout the course of their education. Thus a positive

significant relationship was found between level of aspiration and student’s

academic achievement.

Method

Objective

To investigate the causal relationship between level of aspiration and

achievement
Hypothesis

Higher level of aspiration causes more chances of achievement.

Material

Achievement Test, Table, Pen and

Register

Research Design

In the present study, within subject group design i.e. pre and post

testing was used. In this study, level of aspiration was our independent

variable and achievement was our dependent variable. To comply this,

instructions were provided and informed consent was obtained from all the

subjects.

Subject

Subjects were 20 female students of FA from Govt Viqar-un-Nisa Post

Graduate College Rawalpindi. Their age range was 18-20 years. Participants

were purposively selected from the targeted population. The variables such

as age, gender and education of the subjects were controlled by making

constant for all subjects. All the conditions given to the participant were

same in all aspects. All extraneous variables like light, noise, instructions

given and the environment given to all participants were standard.

Procedure

In this experiment, we measured student’s level of aspiration as

independent and achievement as dependent variable. It was investigated,

that the target of performing a particular task or goal plays role in future

predictions of that event. It was done by using within subject design (pre and

posttest performance) i.e., single subject was, measured twice under the

same conditions given and were scored.

We selected 20 students from 1st year class. They were informed one

day earlier about the test, so they could prepare for it. The experiment was

performed in the classroom environment. On the day of experiment, they

were asked to attempt an objective type achievement test, which was made

up from their course content. They were given the time of 30 minutes to

attempt the achievement test. After the first attempt, their tests were scored

and they were asked to estimate their aspired score. Then after 15 minutes,

they were given another test with slightly high level of difficulty. After it,

participants were thanked for their time and contribution. The test was also

scored and means were calculated.

 Results

Table I

Table Showing Pretest Score, Aspired Score and Posttest Score

Participants Pretest Score Aspired Posttest Score/Achieved

Score Score

1 24 26 21

2 16 24 25

3 20 21 22

4 27 24 24

5 21 30 19

6 20 25 26

7 22 23 25

8 21 22 19

9 29 26 22

10 17 24 25

11 27 23 28

12 28 25 22

13 24 23 27
 14 20 24 28

15 19 19 19

16 25 25 24

17 21 20 17

18 20 24 21

19 25 29 27

20 22 25 24

Total 450 482

466

This table shows that the students have shown higher aspired scores

resulting in higher achievement.

Table II

Table showing Mean Score Comparison of Pretest, Aspired and Posttest Score

Scores Total Scores Mean Score (M)

Pretest Score 450 22.5

Aspired Score 482 24.1

Posttest Score 466 23.3

The table provides a comparison of mean scores obtained on pretest,

posttest and aspired score obtained by subjects. Higher mean values of

aspired score and posttest scores show that -students who aspired more

have achieved higher in posttest.

Graph 1

Graph showing Mean Score Comparison of Pretest, Aspired and Posttest

Score

24.5

24

23.5

Pre-test
23
Aspired
Posttest
22.5

22

21.5
Mean Score

The graph provides a comparison of mean scores obtained on pretest,

posttest and aspired score obtained by subjects.

Conclusion

The objective of the current study was to determine the level of

aspiration and achievement in college students. According to hypothesis of

current study, higher level of aspiration causes higher chances of

achievement. Within subject group, design was used to conduct the

experiment. The study was conducted to demonstrate student’s competence

based on their estimation. It was found that student’s aspiration to achieve

certain goals increases the chances to achieve the set target.

References

Abu-Hilal, M., M. (2000). A structural model of attitudes towards school

subjects, academic aspiration and achievement. Educational

Psychology, 20 (1), 75-84. https://doi.org/10.1080/014434100110399

approach(Stanford University, CA:

School of Education)
Chauhan, S. (2017). A study of level of aspiration in predicting academic

achievement among secondary school students. International Journal

of Advanced Technology in Engineering and Science, 5(2).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2016.11.005

Dweck, C.S., & Leggett, E. L. (1988) A Social-Cognitive Approach to

Motivation and Personality. Psychological Review, (95) 256-273.

https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.95.2.256

Eccles, J. S., O’Neill, S. A., & Wigfield, A. (2005). Ability self-perceptions and

subjective task-values in adolescents and children. Springer, 237-249.

https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-23823-9_15
Goetz, T., & Hall N. C. (2013). Emotion and achievement in the classroom,

192–195. Routledge

Hulleman, C., Schrager, S. M., Bodmann, S. M., & Harackiewicz, J., M. (2010).

A meta-analytic review of achievement goal measures: different labels

for the same constructs or different constructs with similar labels?

Psychological Bulletin. (136) 422–449. doi:10.1037/a0018947

Hurlock E. B. (1967). Adolescent Development. McGraw Hill Co. Inc.

Khattab, N. (2015). Students’ aspirations, expectations and school

achievement: What really matters? British Educational Research

Journal, 41(5), 731-748. https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3171

Niemi, P. M., &Vainiomäki, P., T. (1999). Medical students' academic distress,

coping, and achievement strategies during the preclinical

years. Teaching and Learning in Medicine, 11(3), 125–

134. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15328015TL110302

Owlgen. (2020). Define Level of Aspiration. https:// www.owlgen.in/

definelevelof aspiration/#:~:text=Level%20of% 20aspiration%20refers

%20to,of% 20our %20ego%20and%20self

-P
Pekrun, R. (2006). The control-value theory of achievement emotions:

Assumptions, corollaries, and implications for educational research

 and practice. Educational Psychology Review, (18) 315–341.

doi:10.1007/s10648-006-9029-9

RIMO
Ruiz Primo, M., A. (1998). On the use of students’ science journals as an

assessment tool: a scoring approach. Stanford University.

Senthilselvam, S. & Subramonian, G.(2013). Level of aspiration among higher

secondary students of Coimbatore district. Paripex - Indian Journal of

Research, 4 (6).

https://www.worldwidejournals.com/paripex/recent_issues_pdf/2015/Ju

ne/June_2015_1434434695__134.pdf

The American Psychological Association Annual Report, (1999). American

Psychologist, 55(8), 785–816. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0092931

 Experiment #

Effect of Motivation on Problem Solving

 Introduction

Motivation is the word derived from the word “motive” which means needs, desires,

wants or drives within the individuals. Motivation is the process that initiates, guides, and

maintains goal-oriented behaviors. It is what causes you to act, whether it is getting a glass of

water to reduce thirst or reading a book to gain knowledge. Motivation involves the biological,

emotional, social, and cognitive forces that activate behavior. In everyday usage, the term

“motivation” is frequently used to describe why a person does something. It is the driving force

behind human actions.

Motivation describes the wants or needs that direct behavior toward a goal. It is an urge

to behave or act in a way that will satisfy certain conditions, such as wishes, desires, or goals.

Older theories of motivation stated that rational thought and reason were the guiding factors in

human motivation; however, psychologists now believe that motivation may be rooted in basic

impulses to optimize well-being, minimize physical pain, and maximize pleasure.

Motivations are commonly separated into drives and motives. Motive means to move,

drive, energize, direct or govern. Motive is actually “a process of directing and maintaining

physical and psychological activities”. They include factors like praise and approval. Commonly

it is said that motives are causes of behavior. For example, you may be asked, why are you late?

Why are you standing? Why are you reading? Every why has an answer that there must be some

causes or reason. These causes govern our behavior and we name these causes as Motives.

Drives are primarily biological, like thirst, hunger, sleepiness, and the need to reproduce all of
which lead us to seek out and take part in certain activities. Drives are believed to originate

within a person and may not require external stimuli to encourage behavior.

Both drives and motives can be manipulated by stimulation and deprivation. Motivation

can be stimulated by uncomfortable or aversive conditions or events (shocks, loud noise, or

excessive heat or cold can motivate us to seek better conditions) or by attractions to positive or

pleasurable conditions or events (such as food or sex). We also become motivated when we’re

deprived of something that we want or need, like adequate nutrition or social contact.

Motivation process is a cyclic process; it remains active with variable pace but does not

end till death. Motivation can be intrinsic (arising from internal factors) or extrinsic (arising from

external factors).

Intrinsically-motivated behaviors are generated by the sense of personal satisfaction that

they bring. They are driven by an interest or enjoyment in the task itself that comes from the

individual, not society. Intrinsic motivation is a critical element in cognitive, social, and physical

development; those individuals who are intrinsically motivated are likely to perform better and

improve their skills at a given task. Extrinsically-motivated behaviors, in contrast, are performed

in order to receive something from others. They do not come from within the individual, but

from society other people.

William James was an important contributor to early research into motivation, and he is

often referred to as the father of psychology in the United States. James theorized that behavior

was driven by a number of instincts, which aid survival. A mother’s protection of her baby, the
urge to lick sugar, and hunting prey were among the human behaviors proposed as true instincts

during James’s era.

Abraham Maslow proposed a hierarchy of needs that spans the spectrum of motives

ranging from the biological to the individual to the social. These are followed by basic needs for

security and safety, the need to be loved and to have a sense of belonging, and the need to have

self-worth and confidence.

Motivation is the state of the individual which disposes him to certain behavior for

seeking goal (Woodworth).

Motivation is constant, never ending, fluctuating, and complex and that is an almost

universal characteristic particularly every organism state of affairs (Abraham Maslow).

Motivation is a state or condition of internal need, desire, or want that serves to activate

or energize behavior and give it direction (Kelinginna).

Problem solving is the act of defining a problem; determining the cause of the problem;

identifying, prioritizing, and selecting alternatives for a solution; and implementing a solving.

Unique situation is the best strategy for problem solving. Problem is a situation or a stimulus for

which we don’t have readymade response or solution. The ultimate goal of problem-solving is to

overcome obstacles and find a solution that best resolves the issue.

Problem solving is an attempt to find an appropriate way of attaining a goal, when the

goal is not readily available. While solving a problem we want to reach a certain goal, but the
solution is not immediately obvious because important information is missing and obstacles are

blocking our path (Sternberg).

Cognitive processing directed at transforming a given situation into a goal situation when

no obvious method of solution is available to the problem solver (Mayer).

There are also different steps in problem-solving which are: Identifying the problem,

defining the problem, forming a strategy, organizing information, allocating resources,

monitoring progress, evaluating the results.

Problem-solving is a mental process that involves discovering, analyzing and solving

problems. The ultimate goal of problem-solving is to overcome obstacles and find a solution that

best resolves the issue. The best strategy for solving a problem depends largely on the unique

situation. In some cases, people are better off learning everything they can about the issue and

then using factual knowledge to come up with a solution. In other instances, creativity and

insight are the best options.

Problem solving consists of moving from a given initial situation to a desired goal

situation. That is, problem solving is the process of designing and carrying out a set of steps to

reach a goal. People face problems every day usually, multiple problems throughout the day.

Sometimes these problems are straightforward. Sometimes, however, the problems we encounter

are more complex. When you are presented with a problem whether it is a complex mathematical

problem or a broken printer, how do you solve it? Before finding a solution to the problem, the

problem must first be clearly identified. After that, one of many problem solving strategies can

be applied, hopefully resulting in a solution.

 A problem-solving strategy is a plan of action used to find a solution. Different strategies

have different action plans. For example, a well-known strategy is trial and error. The old adage,

“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again” describes trial and error. Another type of strategy is

an algorithm. Algorithms are used frequently in our everyday lives, especially in computer

science. An algorithm is a problem-solving formula that provides you with step-by-step

instructions used to achieve a desired outcome (Kahneman). A heuristic is another type of

problem solving strategy. A “rule of thumb” is an example of a heuristic. While an algorithm

must be followed exactly to produce a correct result, a heuristic is a general problem-solving

framework (Tversky & Kahneman).

Previous researches show the effect of motivation on problem solving.

Sanders et al., (1984) investigated the effects of emotion and motivation upon problem

solving. 60 college students were asked to perform two problem solving tasks from the Wechsler

Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised. Pre and post task self ratings of motivation, emotional state

and perceived performance was obtained from subjects for two types of tasks. To assess the

changes, pre-task scores were subtracted from the post-task scores. The results revealed that

emotions are associated with motivation and task preference. It shows that higher level of

motivation related to the higher level of problem solving. Further, motivational level toward one

kind of problem solving can be used to accurately predict motivational level toward a similar

type of problem solving at a different time.

Likewise, Lisette et al., (2019) examines the role of situation-specific motivational

profiles in the effectiveness of video modeling examples for learning problem-solving. A sample
of 342 secondary school students participated in our study. Latent profile analysis resulted in

four motivational profiles. Findings showed students with good-quality or moderately positive

profiles learned more from the video modeling in terms of problem-solving. It shows that if

motivation profile is higher than it leads to good problem solving. Overall, our results

demonstrated that knowing about students motivational profiles could help explain differences in

how well students learn problem solving.

 Method

Objectives

The present study aims to investigate the effect of motivation on problem solving.

Hypothesis

● Heightened motivation in individual will lead to better problem solving.

Material

Paper, Pen, Stop watch, Jigsaw puzzles, motivational song and Laptops

Research Design

The independent measure group design was used in the experiment. Experimental and

Control groups were selected on the basis of convenient sampling . To comply this, instructions

were provided and informed consent was obtained from all the subjects.

Subject

Our sample consisted of female students of BS psychology. Their age range was 18 to 20.

The subjects were selected through convenient sampling, and were assigned randomly in two

groups. The variables such as age, gender and education of the subjects were controlled by

making constant for all subjects.

Procedure
 First of all, informed consent was taken from randomly assigned participants. Instructions

was given to both experimental and control group. Objective of the study was to the effect of

motivation on problem solving. For this we had taken two groups, experimental and control

group. In this process students were seated in front of laptops. For measuring motivation, we

used video song to motivate students of experimental group, motivational song (national song)

was played on laptops. They were instructed to solve the puzzles on laptops. Time and errors

were noted for experimental group. After completing the whole experiment control group and

experimental group participants was kindheartedly thanked for their cooperation and

participation in the task. Finally, results were calculated to test the hypotheses. Only

experimental group used to solve jigsaw puzzles. After listening song, they were being instructed

to solve jigsaw puzzles. Both experimental and control group were given instructions.
Results

Table 1

Time and errors on problem solving by experimental and control group.

Experimental Group Control Group

Participants Errors Time Errors Time

(sec) (sec)

1 04 122 09 142

2 03 117 06 120

3 02 115 07 181

4 02 112 09 241

5 08 180 14 420

6 03 117 11 241

7 03 118 04 120

8 04 120 04 118

9 12 360 05 180

10 07 120 12 301
Total 52 1480 83 2064

The table 1 shows that the errors of experimental group are less than control group, and

the errors of control group is greater than experimental group. Average errors score and time

(sec) of experiment group is 52 and 1480(unit sec) and control group’s average errors are 83 and

2058.

Graph

Mean comparison of experimental and control group

0
experimental group

experimental group control group

Table 2

Mean comparison of average time and errors of control and experimental groups.
Groups Errors
Time sec

Experimental Group 5.2 148

Control Group 8.3 206.4

Table 2 shows the mean errors of experimental and control group. It shows the experimental

group made less errors and time in performing as compared to control group.

Graph

Mean comparison of average time and errors of control and experimental groups.

100%

90%

80%

70%

60%

50% Time (sec)

Errors
40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
Experimental Group Control Group

Conclusion
 After analyzing the results, it was concluded that there is significant effect of Motivation

on problem solving. As problem solving could be enhanced through motivation as compared to

without aid of motivation.

 References

Abraham Maslow (1943) .Motivation: Introduction to the theory, concepts, and research. In

Reading achievement and motivation in boys and girls (pp. 1-28). Springer, Cham.

Barret, G. (1998). Problem solving. Introduction to Problem Solving.

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wsu-sandbox/chapter/problem-solving/

Cherry, K. (2020). The Psychology of What Motivates Us. Very well Mind.

https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-motivation-2795378#:%7E:text=Motivation

%20involves%20the%20biological%2C%20emotional,cognitive%20forces%20that%20activate

%20behavior.&text=Psychologists%20have%20proposed%20different%20theories,as

%20Maslow’s%20hierarchy%20of%20needs).

Davidson, J. E. (2003). The psychology of problem solving. The Psychology of Problem

Solving. Published. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511615771

Erikson, E. (2017). Motivation definition classification.

Http://Www.Edugyan.in/2017/03/Motivation-Definition-Classification.Html.

http://www.edugyan.in/2017/03/motivation-definition-classification.html

Hennery, K. (2000). Introduction to Motivation | Boundless Psychology.

Https://Courses.Lumenlearning.Com/Boundless-Psychology/Chapter/Introduction-to-

Motivation/. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-psychology/chapter/introduction-to-

motivation/
Maslow, A. (2016). https://educationposter.blogspot.com/2016/07/maslows-theory-of-

hierarchical-needs.html. Maslow’s Theory of Hierarchy.

https://educationposter.blogspot.com/2016/07/maslows-theory-of-hierarchical-needs.html

Polyp, G. (1995) problem solving. Problem Solving.

https://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~moursund/dave/Article%26Presentations/problem-

solving.htm#:~:text=Problem%20solving%20consists%20of%20moving,how%20to%20reach

%20the%20goal.

Sanders, M., & Matsumoto, D. (1984). The Effects of Motivation and Emotion upon Problem

Solving.

Skinner, B. F. (2013).Theories of motivation. Theories of Motivation.

https://www.pen2print.org/2020/05/theories-of-motivation.html

Wijeya, L. (2021). The role of Motivation in learning problem solving. The Role of Motivation

in Learning Problem Solving.

 Experiment No #

Learned Helplessness: The Effect of Failure on Test-Taking

Introduction

Learned helplessness is a state that occurs after a person has experienced a stressful

situation repeatedly. They come to believe that they are unable to control or change the

situation, so they do not try even when opportunities for change become available. Learned
 helplessness is a mental state in which an organism forced to bear aversive stimuli, or stimuli

that are painful or otherwise unpleasant, becomes unable or unwilling to avoid subsequent

encounters with those stimuli, even if they are escapable, presumably because it has learned

that it cannot control the situation. Learned helplessness basically occurs when someone

repeatedly faces uncontrollable, stressful situations, then does not exercise control when it

becomes available. They have learned that they are helpless in that situation and no longer try

to change it, even when change is possible. Once a person having this experience discovers

that they cannot control events around them, they lose motivation. Even if an opportunity

arises that allows the person to alter their circumstances, they do not take action. Individuals

experiencing learned helplessness are often less able to make decisions.

Learned helplessness was conceptualized and developed by American

psychologist Martin E.P. Seligman in the late 1960s and ’70s. Learned helplessness is a

phenomenon containing three components: contingency cognition, and behavior. Contingency

addresses the uncontrollability of the situation. Cognition refers to the attributions that people

make regarding their situation or surroundings of which they are a part. Behavior allows

individuals to decide whether they will give up or proceed with the obstacle set before them

(Peterson, Maier & Seligman, 1993)

While conducting experimental research on classical conditioning, Seligman

inadvertently discovered that dogs that had received unavoidable electric shocks failed to take

action in subsequent situations even those in which escape or avoidance was in fact possible

whereas dogs that had not received the unavoidable shocks immediately took action in
subsequent situations. The experiment was replicated with human subjects (using loud noise as

opposed to electric shocks), yielding similar results Peterson ,Maier & Seligman, (1993)

Seligman coined the term learned helplessness to describe the expectation that outcomes

are uncontrollable. They had initially observed helpless behavior in dogs that were classically

conditioned to expect an electrical shock after hearing a tone. Later, the dogs were placed in a

shuttle box that contained two chambers separated by a low barrier. The floor was electrified on

one side, and not on the other. The dogs previously subjected to the classical conditioning made

no attempts to escape, even though avoiding the shock simply involved jumping over a small

barrier. They divided the dogs into 3 groups. In first group the dogs were strapped into harnesses

for a period of time and then released. In second group the dogs were placed in the same

harnesses but were subjected to electrical shocks that could be avoided by pressing a panel with

their noses. In third group the dogs received the same shocks as those in group two, except that

those in this group were not able to control the shock.

The dogs were then placed in a shuttle box. Dogs from the first and second group quickly

learned that jumping the barrier eliminated the shock. Those from the third group, however,

made no attempts to get away from the shocks. Due to their previous experience, they had

developed a cognitive expectation that nothing they did would prevent or eliminate the shocks.

Seligman (1975) discovered that when people feel they have no control over their

situation, they tend to give up rather than fight for control.

Theories of learned helplessness

 Learned helplessness is behavior exhibited by a subject after enduring repeated aversive

stimuli beyond their control. It was initially thought to be caused from the subject's acceptance of

their powerlessness: discontinuing attempts to escape or avoid the aversive stimulus even when

such alternatives are unambiguously presented. Upon exhibiting such behavior, the subject was

said to have acquired learned helplessness. Over the past few decades, neuroscience has provided

insight into learned helplessness and shown that the original theory actually had it backwards the

brain's default state is to assume that control is not present, and the presence of helpfulness is

what is actually learned (Maier & Steven, 201

In humans, learned helplessness is related to the concept of self-efficacy; the individual's

belief in their innate ability to achieve goals. Learned helplessness theory is the view that clinical

depression and related mental illnesses may result from such real or perceived absence of control

over the outcome of a situation (Seligman, 1975).

Research has found that a human's reaction to feeling a lack of control both between

individuals and between situations, i.e. learned helplessness sometimes remains specific to one

situation but at other times generalizes across situations. Such variations are not explained by the

original theory of learned helplessness, and an influential view is that such variations depend on

an individual's attributional or explanatory style. According to this view, how someone interprets

or explains adverse events affects their likelihood of acquiring learned helplessness and

subsequent depression.

According to Seligman's Theory, Learned helplessness is when people feel helpless to

avoid negative situations because previous experience has shown them that they do not have

control. Further research has shown that the way people view the negative events that happen to
them can have an impact on whether they feel helpless or not. For example, imagine that you just

failed a math test. There are several things that you could say were the reason for that, 'I'm

stupid.' 'I didn't study hard enough.' 'The test was too hard.' Each of those reasons can be seen as

a different type of attribution. An attribution is the factor that a person blames for the outcome of

a situation. Attributions can be made for both positive and negative events. Psychologists have

discovered that there are specific types of attributions that cause learned helplessness. The

attributions most likely to cause learned helplessness are internal, stable, and global. Internal

Attributions gives the cause of an event as something to do with the person, as opposed to

something in the outside world. Another kind of attribution is Stable Attributions which doesn't

change over time or across situations. Then last attribution is finally a Global Attributions which

is the belief that the factors affecting the outcome applies to a large number of situations, not just

one of them. For example, believing you failed the test because you're stupid is a global

attribution because it is true in that class and in many others. However, if you believe that you

failed the test because you're bad at that particular subject, it is specific just because you failed

the math test, doesn't mean that you'd fail an English test.

When people experience learned helplessness, they have a tendency to give up easily or

fail more often at somewhat easier tasks. Learned helplessness is more likely to result from

situations where failure is uncontrollable. For example, Gernigon et al., 2000 conducted a study

on failure in controlled and uncontrolled circumstances. They found that failure was more likely

to occur in uncontrollable circumstances.

Another study, conducted by Pelster, J.S & Schurmann (1989) addressed failure in terms

of blaming the results on internal or external factors and how performance was affected by the

response. They performed two tests on subjects and then rated their performances. The
researchers found that the subject who related the failure to internal causes, such as the task was

intellectually too difficult for them personally, were more inclined to give up than those who

attributed their failures to external causes, such as thinking that the test itself had impossible

questions.

Many factors load into the construct of learned helplessness. For example, the type of

situation may affect the way that people respond to difficult tasks. If a person is forced to

perform in public, factors such as anxiety influence performance. In learned helpless situations,

performance deficits often result from low motivation due to the beliefs that the person is not in

control (Witkowski & Stiensmeier-Pelster, 1998).

Learned helplessness can affect one type of person more than another. A study conducted

by Milich and Okazaki (1991) suggests that ADHD boys become frustrated more easily when

confronted with failure than those without ADHD. Tasks were presented to 23 boys diagnosed

with ADHD and 22 boys comprising a control group. The tasks involved solving word puzzles

where in one condition the tasks were extremely hard and the others were relatively easy. The

researchers found that the boys with ADHD showed an increase in how easily they quit after

they solved one particular puzzle. And also the children diagnosed with ADHD exhibited

responses similar to those of helpless children. They became frustrated more easily, and

subsequently reported feeling increased boredom and anxiety.

Based on the reviewed studies, the present research applies the construct of learned

helplessness to the domain of test taking and a person's perceived intelligence. We were

interested in studying this phenomenon to assess the degree to which students would experience
frustration during test failure, triggering learned helplessness, and to compare the results with a

control group of students in the same situation.

Method

Objective
 The objective of the study was to analyze the impact of repeated failure in acquiring

learned helplessness.

Hypothesis

Repeated failure will produce learned helplessness.

Material

Logical reasoning test, Pencil, Paper

Research Design

Between group design was used in this experiment. Convenient sampling technique was

used in the experiment. Participants were divided randomly into two group’s i.e, experimental

group and control group. Experimental and control groups were selected on the basis of random

assignment of participants. In present study independent variable was manipulated by using

difficult test for experimental group and acquired learned helplessness was dependent variable.

To comply this informed consent was obtained.

Subjects

Female students of BS psychology were taken from Government ViqarunNisa Post

Graduate College. Age of the participants is ranging from 19-20 years. The variables such as age,

gender and education of the subjects were controlled by making constant for all subjects.

Procedure
 In this experiment, we measured participant’s learned helplessness as dependent variable

and failure during test taking as independent variable. We investigate that the difficulty level of

test may effects the performance of participant which cause learned helplessness. We had

conducted this experiment through between group designs by using the test of logical reasoning

based upon 10 questions. Two tests were developed from one test of logical reasoning by

shuffling the order of questions on the basis of difficulty level. We provided experimental group

with the test starting with difficult questions. On the other hand control group was provided the

test starting with easier question. All the extraneous variables like light, noise, instruction given

to the both group were same.

 Results

Table 1

Response of Control Group and Experimental Group Participants.

Participants Control Group Experimental Group

Errors Errors

1 6/10 8

2 4 6
3 4 5
4
3 9
5
6 8
Total
23 36

Table 1 showing the total score and errors of participants of the control group and experimental

group. Total score of errors obtained by control group is 23 and experimental group scored 36.

Table 2

Mean of Control Group and Experimental Group.

Groups Total number of errors Mean value

Control Group 23 0.92

Experimental Group 36 0.43

Table 2 represents the total errors of the control group and experimental group and also showing

the mean values of the total number of errors of each group.

Graph

Graph showing mean score comparison between control group and experimental group.

0.9

0.8

0.7

0.6

0.5

0.4

0.3

0.2

0.1

0
Control Group Exprimental Group

Graph is showing that the errors of the control group are less because in this group

participants easily completed their test. The number of errors in experimental group is higher

because due to difficult test items at start making them even harder to complete test

Because of repeated failure which caused learned helplessness.

Conclusion

The study was conducted to find out the effect of failure during test taking. It was

hypothesized that repeated failure will produce learned helplessness. It is concluded from the
experiment that the subject of experimental group acquired helplessness by repeated failure.

Hence our hypothesis “Repeated failure will produce learned helplessness.” was accepted.

References

Gernigon, C; Fleurance, P., &Reine, B. (2000). Effects of uncontrollability and failure on the

development of learned helplessness in perceptual-motor tasks. Research Quarterly for

Exercise and Sport, 71,44-54.

Kashdan, T.B., Jacob, R., Pelhan, W.E., Lang, A.R., Jennings, R., Gnagy, E.M., & Blumenthal,

J.D. (2000). Parental social anxiety during an experimental parent-child learned

helplessness procedure. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the American

Psychological Association, Washington, D.C.

Milich, R. & Okazaki, M. (1991). An examination of learned helplessness among attention-

deficit hyperactivity disordered boys. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 19, 607-621.

Peterson, C; Maier, S. E., & Seligman, M. (1993). Learned helplessness: A theory for the age of

personal control. New York: Oxford University Press.

Stiens-meier-Pelster, J. &Schurmann, M. (1989). Performance deficits following failure:

Integrating motivational and functional aspects of learned helplessness. Anxiety

Research, 2,211 222.

Witkowski, T. & Pelster J.S (1998). Performance deficits following failure: Learned helplessness

or self-esteem protection. British Journal of Social Psychology, 37, 59-71.