Directly-communicated utility value increases beliefs about the usefulness of regression, unmoderated by baseline confidence or interest¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · causal r? · q3 · i2 medium
Currency · newest study 2025 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i2 The directly-communicated utility value manipulation increased reported beliefs about the usefulness of regression by over .4 standard deviations (d = 0.41, p < .001), with no significant interactions with baseline confidence or interest. → Asher 2025

Evidence¶

Asher 2025¶

Asher, M. W., & Harackiewicz, J. M. (2025). Using Choice and Utility Value to Promote Interest: Stimulating Situational Interest in a Lesson and Fostering the Development of Interest in Statistics. Journal of Educational Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000921

q3 · i2 · causal · r?

Meta-regression across Studies 1–7 of the D-UV contrast on utility value perceptions. The manipulation "increasing reported beliefs by over .4 standard deviations relative to control, d = 0.41, p < .001"; interactions with baseline confidence and interest were non-significant (ps ≥ .474).

"the directly-communicated utility value manipulation had a strong, positive effect on participants’ beliefs about the usefulness of regression, increasing reported beliefs by over .4 standard deviations relative to control, d = 0.41, p < .001. This overall effect was unmoderated"

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Interest — moderator: an instructional effect differs with it

Related Claims¶

• Effects on maintained situational interest and resource requests are mediated by perceived utility value (utility value manipulation) and perceived autonomy and triggered interest (choice manipulation) — related
• Neither choice nor utility value manipulations improve end-of-session regression test performance, and the two manipulations do not interact — related
• Utility value manipulation, but not choice, increases voluntary requests for statistics resources, a behavioral indicator of emerging individual interest — related
• Both choice and utility value manipulations increase maintained situational interest in regression by similar small amounts — related
• Learners invest more effort in tasks they perceive as interesting, personally important, or useful to their future goals. — a broader claim this one bears on
• Labelling mushrooms as poisonous versus edible successfully raised the perceived utility value of distinguishing, interest, and perceived authenticity in Experiment 1 — related