Control‐value theory: Using achievement emotions to improve understanding of motivation, learning, and performance in medical education: AMEE Guide No. 64

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Emotion can be defined as an acute, intense, and typically brief psycho-physiological change that results from a response to a meaningful situation. Achievement emotions are those emotions tied directly to achievement activities or outcomes. Achievement emotions are ever-present in academic and clinical settings; however, these types of emotions have received little attention from medical education researchers. Achievement emotions influence cognitive resources, motivation, use of cognitive and metacognitive learning strategies, and overall learning and performance. In general, positive or pleasant emotions are thought to exert adaptive effects on learning and performance; whereas negative or unpleasant emotions tend to exert non-adaptive effects. Control-value theory is a comprehensive, integrative approach to understanding emotions in education. The theory posits that achievement emotions are determined, in part, by an individual's cognitive appraisal of control and value. Instructors can influence students’ achievement emotions—and subsequent motivation, learning, and performance—by creating learning environments that are sensitive to (and, in some cases, explicitly address) students’ control and value appraisals.

Table 1  A three‐dimensional taxonomy of achievement emotions (adapted from Pekrun & Stephens 2010)

Object	Positive (or pleasant)		Negative (or unpleasant)
focus	Activating	Deactivating	Activating	Deactivating
Activity	Enjoyment	Relaxation	Anxiety	Boredom
			Anger
			Frustration
Outcome	Hope	Relief	Anxiety	Hopelessness
	Joy	Contentment	Anger	Sadness
	Pride		Shame	Disappointment
	Gratitude

Figure 1. A control‐value theory of achievement emotions (adapted from Pekrun 2006).

Figure 2. Four primary routes through which affect (emotions and mood) might influence various performance outcomes.

Table 2  Instructional strategies that can positively influence students’ achievement emotions and subsequent motivation, learning, and performance

Category	Definition	Instructional strategies
Cognitive quality	The structure and clarity of instructional activities and their potential for cognitive stimulation	– Clearly structure activities
		– Ensure task demands match students’ capabilities
Value	The importance, use, and value of instructional activities	– Explicitly link basic science content to its clinical relevance
		– Utilize authentic learning activities that do not overwhelm students’ working memory capacity
Control and confidence	Students’ personal control over and confidence in successfully completing instructional activities	– Help students identify and set challenging, proximal goals
		– Provide students with timely, honest, and explicit feedback
Autonomy support	The extent to which instructional activities support student independence and self‐regulation	– Provide students with choice of instructional activities
		– Seek to understand what motivates students and nurture those inner motivational resources
		– Use non‐controlling language in the classroom and clinic
		– Provide explanatory rationales to reveal why certain course activities or student behaviors are truly worth the effort
		– Display patience and allow time for self‐paced learning to occur
		– Acknowledge, accept, and even welcome students’ expressions of negative affect as it relates to tasks that may, in fact, be boring or difficult
Goal structures	The extent to which school environments, classroom structures, and teacher behaviors encourage mastery‐oriented goals	– Ask students to engage in personally meaningful and challenging tasks with flexible participation structures
		– Give students the opportunity to participate in creating the rules and regulations that affect their academic activities
		– Recognize and value mastery‐goal ideals, such as effort, risk taking, and creativity
		– Group students based on shared interests and for the purposes of facilitating learning and interaction
		– Assess students formatively using grading policies and feedback procedures that evaluate progress and promote mastery of essential knowledge and skills

Pekrun R, Stephens EJ. Achievement emotions: A control‐value approach. Soc Personal Psychol Compass 2010; 4: 238–255

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Pekrun R. The control‐value theory of achievement emotions: Assumptions, corollaries, and implications for educational research and practice. Educ Psychol Rev 2006; 18: 315–341

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