This blog shows how a new psychological technology, which analyzes a student's needs and motives, was used in the case of David, a 13 year-old Illinois boy with learning disabilities. David was evaluated as part of a mandatory re-evaluation. David was a smart boy, with an I.Q. of 110, but his grades were mostly B's and C's. The parents and teachers wanted to learn why David's grades were below his abilities. In the past they had been told that it is because he has a learning disability in written expression, but they weren't sure that this was true. The school psychologist administered a battery of psychological scales including the Reiss School Motivation Profile (RSMP).
Some students underachieve because they lack achievement motivation, but this was not true in David's case. On the RSMP, David scored a full standard deviation above the norm on the motive of power. This result implied above-average achievement motivation and explained David's interest in leadership roles -- indeed, David was a leader in student government. So David's academic underachievement is not motivated by a general lack of achievement motivation since he achieves in areas other than academics.
Some students underachieve because they are disorganized. Teachers mark them down for being sloppy and for having too many balls in the air at any moment in time. On the RSMP, David scored a little less than a full standard deviation above average on the need for order. This result is consistent with his teachers' and parents' perceptions that David is an organized student. David's underachievement was not caused by sloppiness or disorganization.
Some students underachieve because they are afraid of failure. People who anticipate failure hold back effort because failure hurts less when we do not try. On the RSMP, David scored average on need for acceptance, indicating that his sensitivity to failure was in the average range. This result was consistent with teachers' and parents' perceptions that David is self-confident.
On the RSMP David scored high on the need for status. This implies that he is motivated by prestige, expensive things, and popularity. The result was consistent with observations that David likes to wear designer clothes.
David also had a high RSMP score for physical activity, which is consistent with his interest in athletics.
So what motivated his underachievement? On the RSMP David scored more than a full standard deviation below the norm for curiosity. This means he hates to think. His parents and teachers reported that he hated to read. When he did his homework and other assignments, he didn't seem to think about what he was doing.
The school psychologist concluded that David's underachievement was motivational and not related to a learning disability. His only problem was that he doesn't like academics because he doesn't like to think things through. David's underachievement is specific to academic tasks and should disappear after he graduates from school and enters the business or athletic world. If his grades deteriorate further, David should respond to incentives because of high need for status.
(The interpretations in this blog were included in David's RSMP plain-language, computer generated psychological report. The parents understood and appreciated the report.)
