When goal sharing produces support that is not caring.

Area of Science:

• Social Psychology
• Relationship Science
• Motivation Psychology

Background:

• Personal goals often focus on self-improvement.
• The impact of goals directed towards a partner's success is less understood.
• Understanding relationship dynamics is crucial for effective support.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of "partner-achievement goals" on support provision and recipient achievement.
• To examine how recipient expectations and effort mediate the influence of partner-achievement goals.
• To highlight the behavioral consequences for both individuals in a relationship.

Main Methods:

• Employed experimental and correlational research designs across four studies.
• Investigated support dynamics in contexts such as computer game performance and dieting.
• Measured recipient expectations of success and effort.

Main Results:

• Partner-achievement goals resulted in unhelpful support provision (Study 1).
• These goals predicted poorer achievement outcomes for recipients (Study 2).
• Effects were moderated by recipient expectations and mediated by recipient effort, with low expectations leading to reduced effort and requests for no support (Studies 3 & 4).

Conclusions:

• Partner-achievement goals can have detrimental effects on support quality and recipient performance.
• Recipient's self-efficacy beliefs play a critical role in moderating these effects.
• The findings underscore the complex interpersonal dynamics influenced by partner-focused goals.