The Influence of a Motivational Climate Intervention on Participant Salivary Cortisol and Motivational Responses

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine college students' stress responses, as measured by salivary cortisol, in a caring/task-involving climate compared to an ego-involving climate. In addition, the association between motivational climate and motivational responses (i.e., self-reported enjoyment, effort, anxiety, self-confidence, stress, shame, self-consciousness, and intent and excitement to continue juggling) were examined. Participants (n = 107; Mage =19.89 years) were separated by sex (i.e., male and female) and randomly assigned to either a caring/task- or an ego-involving motivational climate where they spent 30 minutes learning how to juggle. Seven salivary cortisol samples were collected over a 2-hour period. Results indicated that participating in the ego-involving climate elicited a significant salivary cortisol spike, while participating in the caring/task-involving climate led to a significant decrease in salivary cortisol levels. In addition, the ego-involving climate participants reported significantly higher levels of cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, stress, shame, and self-consciousness, whereas the caring/task-involving climate participants reported significantly higher levels of effort, enjoyment, self-confidence, and interest and excitement in juggling in the future. The present study builds on goal perspective research by providing physiological evidence that participating in an ego-involving motivational climate can not only result in maladaptive motivational responses but may also elicit a significant cortisol spike.