Dr. John Tauer
Associate Professor of Psychology
Assistant Men's Basketball Coach
Dr. Tauer joined the St. Thomas in 2000. His research focuses on how factors such as competition, cooperation, and goal-setting affect intrinsic motivation. Tauer earned a PhD in social psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is currently working on a book that focuses on youth sports, parents, and motivation. He also runs the offense for the Men’s Basketball Program at St. Thomas. His personal website is www.johnnytauerbasketball.com
Dr. Tauer also writes a regular blog for Psychology Today titled “Goal Posts”. His blog focuses on issues surrounding sport, competition, cooperation, and motivation.
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/goal-posts
Academic History
PhD., Social Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2000
M.S., Social Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1996
B.A., Psychology, University of St. Thomas, 1995
Expertise
Intrinsic Motivation
Social Psychology
Competition, Cooperation, and Goal-Setting
Parental Behavioral and Youth Sports
Representative Publications
Tauer, J.M., Guenther, C.L., & Rozek, C. (2009). The Home Choke Revisited.
Journal of Applied Sport Psychlogy, 21, 148-162.
Durik, A., Linnenbrink, L., Barron, K., Tauer, J., & Harackiewicz, J. (in press) Measuring
situational interest in academic domains. To be published in Educational and
Psychological Measurement.
Kingsbury, J.H., & Tauer, J.M. (2009). The ESPN Effect: How Slam Dunks Affect
Individualism, Competitiveness, and Optimism. International Journal of Sport
Communication, 2, 21-35.
Harackiewicz, J.M., Durik, A.M., Barron, K.E., Linnenbrink-Garcia, L., & Tauer, J.M.
(2008). The role of achievement goals in the development of interest: Reciprocal relations
between achievement goals, interest, and performance. Journal of Educational Psychology,
100, 105-122.
Winter, M., & Tauer, J.M. (2007). Virtue theory and social psychology. Journal of Value
Inquiry, 40, 73-82.
Tauer, J.M. (2007). The scarcity principle. In R. Baumeister & K. Vohs (Eds.), Encyclopedia
of Social Psychology. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Harackiewicz, J.M., & Tauer, J.M. (2006). Racing through 100 years of competition research:
Individual differences, multiple goals, and multiple indicators of success. In P.A.M. Van
Lange (Ed.), Bridging social psychology: The benefits of transdisciplinary approaches.
(pp. 239-244). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Tauer, J.M. (2005). Motivation. Essay for the Encyclopedia of Human Development.
Tauer, J.M., & Harackiewicz, J.M. (2004). The effects of cooperation and competition
on intrinsic motivation and performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,
86, 849-861.
Harackiewicz, J. M., Barron, K. E., Tauer, J. M., & Elliot, A. J. (2002). Predicting success in
college: A longitudinal study of achievement goals and ability measures as predictors of interest
and performance from freshman year through graduation. Journal of Educational Psychology,
94, 562-575.
Tauer, J.M., & Harackiewicz, J.M. (2001). Evaluation and intrinsic motivation: The double-edged
sword. In S.G. Harkins (Ed.), Multiple perspective on the effects of evaluation on performance:
Toward an integration (pp. 77 98). Boston: Kluwer.
Durik, A.M., Tauer, J.M., & Harackiewicz, J.M. (2001). Just do it: Remaining task focused
when performance outcomes loom large. In S.G. Harkins (Ed.), Multiple perspective on the effects
of evaluation on performance: Toward an integration (pp. 189 206). Boston: Kluwer.
Harackiewicz, J. M., Barron, K. E., Tauer, J. M., Carter, S. M., & Elliot, A. J. (2000). Short-term
and long-term consequences of achievement goals in college: Predicting continued interest and
performance over time. Journal of Educational Psychology, 92, 316-330.
Devine, P. G., Tauer, J. M., Barron, K. E., Elliot, A. J., & Vance, K. M. (1999). Moving beyond
attitude change in the study of dissonance-related processes. In E. Harmon-Jones & J. Mills (Eds.),
Cognitive Dissonance: Progress on a Pivotal Theory in Social Psychology (pp. 297-323).
Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Tauer, J.M., & Harackiewicz, J.M. (1999). Winning isn’t Everything: Competition, Achievement
Orientation, and Intrinsic Motivation. Special issue on intrinsic motivation of the
Journal of Experimental Social Psychology (Special Issue), 35, 209-238.
Selected Conference Presentations with Students
Tauer, J.M., Laumakis, S.J., Kingsbury, J.H., & Padley, S.E. (2009). The Effects of
Inquiry-Based Learning and Achievement Goals on Student Motivation and Performance.
Poster presented at the Twentieth Annual Meeting of the Association for Psychological
Science, San Francisco, CA.
Padley, S.E., & Tauer, J.M. (2008). The role of parenting styles in young athletes’ goals,
sportspersonship, and motivation. Poster presented at the Twentieth Annual Meeting
of the Association for Psychological Science, Chicago, IL.
Tauer, J.M., & Kingsbury, J.H. (2007). The ESPN effect: How slam-dunks affect individualism,
competitiveness, and optimism in athletes. Poster presented at the Nineteenth Annual Meeting
of the Association for Psychological Science, Washington, DC.
Guenther, C.L., Rozek, C.R., & Tauer, J.M. (2007). The home choke revisited. Poster presented
at the Nineteenth Annual Meeting of the Association for Psychological Science, Washington, DC.
Sweeney, S.J., & Tauer, J.M. (2006). Must succeed, try to succeed, or try to avoid failing:
The effects of goal orientation, competition, and cooperation on motivation. Poster presented
at the Annual Midwest Sociological Society Conference. Omaha, NE.
Tauer, J.M., & Guenther, C.L. (2004). The Effects of Expected and Unexpected
Performance-Contingent Rewards on Task Enjoyment. Poster presented at the Seventy-Sixth
Annual Meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago, IL.
Tauer, J.M., & Muntifering, C.J. (2003). Stereotype Threat and Achievement Goals: Avoiding
Failure vs. Approaching Success. Paper presented at the Seventy-Fifth Annual Meeting of the
Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago, IL.
Tauer, J.M., & Mueller, K.A. (2002). The effects of frequency and valence of feedback on task
enjoyment. Poster presented at the Seventy-Fourth Annual Meeting of the Midwestern
Psychological Association, Chicago, IL.
Professional Memberships
American Psychological Association
Association for Psychological Science
