Arousal of Flow Experience in a Learning Setting and Its Effects on Exam Performance and Affect

Abstract

Flow experience is associated with learning motivation, performance and positive affect. Therefore it is important to analyze its antecedents. An important antecedent for experiencing flow is the balance between the person’s skill and how challenging the situation is (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). According to Atkinson’s (1957) risk-taking model, only individuals with high hope-of-success prefer situations in which a balance of challenge and skill is given while individuals with high fear-of-failure try to avoid such situations. Integration of these two lines of research leads to the suggestion that the achievement motive might moderate the relationship between the challengeskill balance and flow experience. This notion could be confirmed in two studies with undergraduate students (N = 57/N = 395). Additionally, flow experience was found to be a significant predictor of affect (Study 1 and 2) and exam performance (Study 2). I discuss these findings and their practical implications for academic learning settings.