(Post last updated 20 December 2024)
Review panel summary
The 3x2 Achievement Goal Questionnaire (3x2 AGQ) is a set of 18 items on a 7-point scale and was developed to assess the types of goals students possess in the classroom. This instrument differs from the 2x2 AGQ [1] as it was developed based on the 3x2 model of goal orientations which suggest that there are three types of goals that can be focused towards the self, others, or the task at hand. Furthermore, the three goals can each be bifurcated based on how a student displays their goals as either approaching or avoiding a goal. In the first study, 445 undergraduate psychology students in Germany and the United States were administered the instrument in German and English, respectively. The second study occurred in the United States and they surveyed 1596 students taking general chemistry I and II.
The results were mixed for the evidence of the internal structure of the data, two studies provided moderate support for the 6-factor structure and one study (with a substantially larger population of chemistry students) suggesting that a 3-factor model fit the data better [2, 3]. The single administration reliability was acceptable for each subscale in the 6-factor and each subscale in the 3-factor models [2, 3]. The goal orientations were related to other variables, such as temperament which acted as predictors of goal orientations [2]. The 3-factor goal orientations were related to exam performance when accounting for SAT Math score [3]. Support for strict invariance between the German and American populations was found, which indicates that the two populations could be compared based on their responses to the 3x2 AGQ [2].
Recommendations for use
As the factor structure of the data was inconsistent across the studies, additional work is needed to produce sufficient internal structure evidence to support the use of the 6-factor or the 3-factor models with future populations. Currently no evidence based on response process has been published.
Details from panel review
Some evidence based on test content in an unpublished pilot study laid the groundwork for the instrument development [2]. The instrument was translated and back-translated from German to English [2]. The authors suggest that the subscales can be used independently of each other; they provided the results from a correlated model confirmatory factor analysis, which estimates error terms, factor loadings, and correlations based on the complete set of items [2]. However, to support the use of these subscales independently, a factor analysis on the desired subscales would be required to determine if the items function as a unidimensional set, providing further evidence of the internal structure in support of their claim [2]. The second study was conducted within a course utilizing a peer-led team learning (PLTL) pedagogy, and they discuss the possible effects PLTL had in reinforcing task-based goals [3].
References
[1] Elliot, A.J., & McGregor, H. A. (2001). A 2x2 Achievement Goal Framework. J. of Pers. and Soc. Psych., 80(3), 501-519.
[2] Elliot, A. J., Murayama, K., & Pekrun, R. (2011). A 3 × 2 achievement goal model. J. of Educ. Psych., 103(3), 632–648.
[3] Lewis, S. E. (2018). Goal orientations of general chemistry students via the achievement goal framework. Chem. Educ. Res. and Pract., 19, 199–212.