Performance (psychology)

In psychology, performance is described as a value created through the expenditure of energy , which comes about through the use of available human abilities, whereby an action goal is achieved with a certain level. There must be an intended action result, which physical or mental abilities were used to achieve. According to this definition, performance is a measure of quality against which the action and the action result are assessed.

If an action goal is achieved with little effort, i.e. without effort, it is psychologically not considered an achievement, although in the physical sense an achievement has been achieved.

This also corresponds to the everyday understanding of most people: An adult picking up a handkerchief from the floor is usually not considered an achievement. Only when a certain degree of difficulty is present (for example: picking up a heavy stone instead of a light and easy-to-grasp handkerchief) or when what has been achieved meets a certain intellectual requirement or meets a certain standard of quality (for example: solving a math problem) is psychological Sense a performance.

In addition, the result achieved must also be intentional and must not be accidental: Hitting the high C on a piano keyboard does not count as an achievement, if actually only a mosquito was hit.

literature

• Helmut E. Lück (Ed.): History of Psychology. A manual in key terms. Urban and Schwarzenberg, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-541-14161-1 .