Why does intrinsic motivation decline following negative feedback? The mediating role of ability self-concept and its moderation by goal orientations

• Students' intrinsic motivation declined after negative performance feedback.
• Ability self-concept mediated the feedback effect on change in intrinsic motivation.
• Change in positive and negative affect did not mediate the feedback effect.
• Decline in intrinsic motivation could thus not only be due to general mood changes.
• The mediation via ability self-concept was not moderated by goal orientations.

This study aimed to identify influencing factors that render students vulnerable to low intrinsic motivation. For this purpose, we investigated whether changes in students' ability self-concept after negative performance feedback affect their intrinsic motivation and whether this effect is moderated by achievement goals. In Experiment 1, 101 university students randomly received either negative or positive performance feedback after they had worked on a numerical test. As predicted, students' intrinsic motivation declined after negative feedback even if influences of actual performance were controlled. This effect was fully mediated by students' ability self-concept. Contrary to our expectations, the feedback effect on students' intrinsic motivation via ability self-concept was not moderated by their goal orientations. Experiment 2 (N = 90) replicated these findings and ruled out alternative explanations for the feedback effect such as general mood changes. Findings are discussed with regard to motivation theory and their implications for educational practice.