Students who found their own way up the wall felt more driven

The study

1. 01

   Who took part

   240 university students in climbing classes in Chengdu, China, split into two groups of 120. Fewer were counted at the end, but the paper doesn't say how many left.

2. 02

   What they did

   One group got climbing problems to solve their own way, and the teacher helped them try different routes. The other group watched the teacher show each move and then copied it in repeated drills. Both groups had the same teaching time over several weeks.

3. 03

   What happened

   At the end, the group who solved problems said they liked climbing more for its own sake. They also scored somewhat higher on climbing tests. There was no measure at the start, and several of the paper's numbers don't match, so we can't give sizes.

What the study found

1. HelpedMotivation

   Students who found their own ways up the wall liked climbing more for its own sake than drilled students.

   Trial of 240 university students in climbing classes in China · vs students who copied the teacher's moves in drills · they rated themselves · ⚠ numbers unreliable; many people dropped out; summary claims more than the results show

2. HelpedGoals

   Students who found their own ways up the wall also scored somewhat higher on climbing tests than drilled students.

   Trial of 240 university students in climbing classes in China · vs students who copied the teacher's moves in drills · they rated themselves · ⚠ numbers unreliable; many people dropped out; summary claims more than the results show

Source