The effects of proximal and distal goals on performance on a moderately complex task

The effect of a proximal plus a distal goal was investigated relative to se tting only a distal goal or urging participants to do their best. Young adu lts (N = 39) were paid on a piece rate basis to make toys. An analysis of v ariance revealed that the amount of money earned by the participants who we re urged to 'do your best' was significantly greater than the amount of mon ey earned by the participants who were assigned a distal goal. However, the amount of money earned by the participants who were assigned proximal goal s, in addition to a distal goal, was significantly greater than the amount of money earned by the participants in the 'do your best' condition. The co rrelation between perceived self-efficacy and the amount of money earned wa s 0.45 (p < 0.01). Perceived self-efficacy significantly increased only for those participants in the proximal plus distal goal condition. Proximal go als, through self-efficacy and performance feedback, appear to have focused attention on task appropriate strategies. The results suggest an informati onal explanation of proximal goals as opposed to a motivational one through goal commitment. Implications of these findings for mentoring and training are discussed. Copyright (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.