Beginning in the early elementary years children begin to distinguish ability, effort, and external factors in explaining their performance. Children who are high in achievement motivation develop mastery-oriented attributions – they believe their successes are due to ability, a characteristic they can improve through trying hard and can count on when faced with new challenges. However, some children do not fully develop a mastery-oriented style and are at-risk for developing a pessimistic style known as learned helplessness. Children who develop learned helplessness give very discouraging explanations for their performance.

They attribute their failures, not their successes, to ability.  When they succeed, they are likely to conclude that external events, such as luck, are responsible. Also, they hold an entity-view of ability, meaning that they believe it is fixed and cannot be improved by trying hard, or practicing skills. Ways to Foster a Mastery-Oriented Approach to Learning: Four techniques for parents are presented below that are intended to help parents develop mastery experiences with their children. I have also included how to help your child reverse, or retrain, a pessimistic (learned helplessness) style.

The Four Techniques

#1. Mastery Activity Selection:

Parents should select activities that are meaningful and interesting to the wide range of their child’s interests and that are appropriately matched to their current competence level so that the child is challenged, but not overwhelmed. Talk with your child about what he or she likes to do and then ask them if there is anything about those activities they’d like to improve on. Or, just observe what they are doing and then chose one of their favorite activities. Such activities may include: A sport, musical instrument, or school related activities such as writing in cursive, reading a book, or completing a project.

#2. Parental Encouragement&Modeling:

It is important to communicate with warmth your confidence in your child’s abilities. Parents should value the process of achievement by telling your child that you noticed how they did something, not just the outcome of their efforts. It is very important to identify the effort in their success. Parents need to model high effort in overcoming failure. Use optimistic statements about overcoming problems and challenges. It’s ok to realistically acknowledge the challenge being faced, but also identify the realistic solutions to these challenges. Parents who model that the set-backs or defeats in life are Temporary, Situationally Specific, and External to the character of the individual are modeling an optimistic explanatory style. You’re helping your child see that no set-back is permanent, all encompassing, or an internal character flaw. You are empowering your child to continue to strive to find solutions and to see believe that their persistence will produce a positive outcome.

#3. Review the Process:

This is where the child realizes the mastery of their abilities. It is certainly ok and encouraged to identify the positive outcome of their efforts. Statements like, “Wow, you really played great, or you really got a good grade” are highly encouraged. However, if you stop their there is no guarantee that they are having a mastery experience. Ask your child if they recognize how they created such a positive outcome. This is the process. If they can identify it then they are having a mastery experience right in front of your eyes. If not, then you may comment on what you saw them do that lead them to the outcome you praised earlier. Say things such as, “You know, I noticed that you really practiced that skill more than usual and didn’t give up when it was difficult, I think that was how you did it. What do you think?” This will foster communication and the recognition that their efforts produced the result; it wasn’t luck or some other external factor. Parents should make the review private; avoid publicizing success or failures. Stress individual progress and self-improvement.

#4. School Environment:

This can be a tough one, but if parents are on the look-out for ways to improve their child’s school environment, then they will find them. Things to look for are: Small classes with more individuals support for mastery. Cooperative learning and peer tutoring. Accommodate individual and cultural differences in styles of learning. Create an atmosphere that sends a clear message that all students can learn. What do I do if my child is already suffering from a pessimistic style? Retraining of how they explain their experiences is needed. This is often called Attribution Retraining. You may benefit from talking with a professional that can coach you through the process and take into account the individual needs of your child.

This approach is: An approach to intervention that uses adult feedback to modify the attributions of learned-helpless children.

It encourages children to believe that they can overcome failure by exerting more effort.

Techniques 1, 2, and 3 that have already been discussed in this article are adapted to the specific needs of your child.