Cognitive Evaluation Theory was developed by Deci & Ryan, (1985) to explain factors that affect intrinsic motivation. This study was done to test this theory by having volunteers engage in direct and indirect competition while working on a simple task in a time-pressured environment. Specifically, it was predicted that task performance would be adversely affected in competition because participants would be focused on the outcome (winning versus losing), while being faced with a deadline for task completion. In addition, a reduction in intrinsic motivation toward the activity was expected. While these hypotheses were not supported, a proposal was made that certain environments may result in people becoming accustomed to competition and/or pressure, which would explain why this outcome occurred. In addition, females performed better and reported higher levels of intrinsic motivation, which is inconsistent with previous research.
","abstract_html":"<p>Cognitive Evaluation Theory was developed by Deci & Ryan, (1985) to explain factors that affect intrinsic motivation. This study was done to test this theory by having volunteers engage in direct and indirect competition while working on a simple task in a time-pressured environment. Specifically, it was predicted that task performance would be adversely affected in competition because participants would be focused on the outcome (winning versus losing), while being faced with a deadline for task completion. In addition, a reduction in intrinsic motivation toward the activity was expected. While these hypotheses were not supported, a proposal was made that certain environments may result in people becoming accustomed to competition and/or pressure, which would explain why this outcome occurred. In addition, females performed better and reported higher levels of intrinsic motivation, which is inconsistent with previous research.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Adkins, Tanya R."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science in Human Factors & Systems","degree_level":"Thesis - Open Access","degree_discipline":"Human Factors and Systems","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Christina M. Frederick","Shawn Michael Doherty","Geoff Kain"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2004,"date_issued":"2004-04-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2004-04-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:25:29Z","subjects":["competition","pressure","visual scanning","cognitive evaluation","Cognition and Perception","Cognitive Psychology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.erau.edu/db-theses/2","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Christina M. Frederick","Shawn Michael Doherty","Geoff Kain"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Adkins, Tanya R."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Human Factors and Systems"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis - Open Access"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science in Human Factors & Systems"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["competition","pressure","visual scanning","cognitive evaluation","Cognition and Perception","Cognitive Psychology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.erau.edu/db-theses/2"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Cognitive Evaluation Theory was developed by Deci & Ryan, (1985) to explain factors that affect intrinsic motivation. This study was done to test this theory by having volunteers engage in direct and indirect competition while working on a simple task in a time-pressured environment. Specifically, it was predicted that task performance would be adversely affected in competition because participants would be focused on the outcome (winning versus losing), while being faced with a deadline for task completion. In addition, a reduction in intrinsic motivation toward the activity was expected. While these hypotheses were not supported, a proposal was made that certain environments may result in people becoming accustomed to competition and/or pressure, which would explain why this outcome occurred. In addition, females performed better and reported higher levels of intrinsic motivation, which is inconsistent with previous research.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Effects of Competition and Perceived Pressure on Performance of a Visual Scanning Task: A Test of Cognitive Evaluation Theory"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Christina M. Frederick","Shawn Michael Doherty","Geoff Kain"],"dc:creator":["Adkins, Tanya R."],"dc:description.abstract":["Cognitive Evaluation Theory was developed by Deci & Ryan, (1985) to explain factors that affect intrinsic motivation. This study was done to test this theory by having volunteers engage in direct and indirect competition while working on a simple task in a time-pressured environment. Specifically, it was predicted that task performance would be adversely affected in competition because participants would be focused on the outcome (winning versus losing), while being faced with a deadline for task completion. In addition, a reduction in intrinsic motivation toward the activity was expected. While these hypotheses were not supported, a proposal was made that certain environments may result in people becoming accustomed to competition and/or pressure, which would explain why this outcome occurred. In addition, females performed better and reported higher levels of intrinsic motivation, which is inconsistent with previous research.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.erau.edu/db-theses/2"],"dc:subject":["competition","pressure","visual scanning","cognitive evaluation","Cognition and Perception","Cognitive Psychology"],"dc:title":["The Effects of Competition and Perceived Pressure on Performance of a Visual Scanning Task: A Test of Cognitive Evaluation Theory"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Human Factors and Systems"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis - Open Access"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science in Human Factors & Systems"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:25:29Z"}