Culture ofCompetition

By Jamie Ann Huffer

Mastery / Winning

Olympic Gold Medal

Oscars

Miss America Beauty Pageant

StanleyCup

Nobel Prize PresidentialCampaign

American Idol

Summoner’s Cup

Is Competition Good for Children?

Alfie Kohn is an author and speaker whose views on the negative aspects of competition are widely followed in the field of parenting.

Kohn states that, “…evidence overwhelmingly suggests that competition is destructive, particularly, but not exclusively, for children... it is toxic.“

He believes “rough-and-tumble” competition can trigger anxiety, damage self-esteem and performance, which leads to disengagement.

Educational Competition

If individual meritocracy is too heavily emphasized, then students may be unable to share thoughts and cooperate with others. Encourages one to form hostility toward others Others are seen as obstacles to personal success Results in less empathy

Prizes may distract from the learning process by focusing motivation on the reward instead of subject mastery.

According to Alfie Kohn’s Research…

Alternate Perspectives

Many scholars agree that competition is necessary, ingrained and essential.

An analysis looked at hundreds of research papers on the subject of competition and performance and finds no clear connection between the two.

Sometimes, it seems, competition enhances performance, but equally often, it does not.

Studies have shown that under certain conditions, competition can improve performance and happiness.

It helps if the stakes are very low and the motivation is not just to win, but to achieve mastery.

Idealism - Realism

Researchers highlight the “zero-sum” nature of some forms of competition and acknowledge that competition is a part of life. Zero-Sum: A situation in which a gain for one side entails a

corresponding loss for the other side. Ex: only one candidate wins the Presidential Election.

Alfie Kohn admits it is hard to reconcile his views with the competitive realities of life.

Dr. John Tauer is a psychology professor who states that, “…not everybody gets to be a doctor. You don’t get away from competition unless you go to a system where everybody gets to do what they want whenever they want.”

It would still seem necessary for adults to prepare for the reality of scarce resources and rewards.

Competition Experiment @ CGCC

Method:

Using 3 series of short tests, I took a random sample of 6 CGCC students (3 males and 3 females) ranging in age from 19 to 24.Participants took part in a bean bag toss competition under the following circumstances:

1) Head-to-Head Competition: Each player was pitted directly against another at least once.

2) Cooperation: 3 groups of 2 players each worked together to get the highest combined score.

3) Combined Competition & Cooperation: 2 groups of 3 players each joined forces to try to score more than the other team.

Purpose: Determine which competitive condition results in the greatest sense of personal well-being with respect to individual and/or team performance.

Rules of the Game

Toss bean bags at a 15 foot distance from the wooden target box.

1) Competition: 1P VS 1P (x9)The first player to get the best out of 3 points wins. In order to get a point, each player took turns trying to get the bean bag in the hole.You must win by a 1 point lead, with no ties allowed.

2) Cooperation: 2P V 2P (x3)The pair with the highest combined score in 5 minutes wins.In order to get a point, each player took turns trying to get the bean bag in the hole. Competing players started at the same time, alternated, and keep the rotation consistent. No ties allowed.

3) Team Competition & Cooperation: 3P V 3P (x2)The team of 3 with the highest combined score in 5 minutes wins.Players were encouraged to move quickly to get more points and had to keep the rotation consistent. No ties allowed.

Results

The combination of team competition and cooperation resulted in greater satisfaction and often in higher scores as well.

Cooperation: 3 Teams of 2 PlayersTeam M Score F Score Total Score

M1 / F1 5 4 9M2/ F2 4 3 7M3 / F3 3 4 7

Competition & Cooperation: 2 Teams with 3 PlayersTeam Player 1 Player 2 Player 3 Total Score

M1/F3/F2 5 4 3 12

M2/M3/F1 6 4 4 14

Competition: Head-to-Head

Game Player Score Player Score Winner

1 M1 3 F1 2 M1

2 M2 3 F2 1 M2

3 M3 3 F3 2 M3

4 M1 4 F2 3 M1

5 M2 3 F3 2 M2

6 M3 2 F1 3 F1

7 M1 3 F3 1 M1

8 M2 3 F1 4 F1

9 M3 3 F2 2 M3

10 M1 4 M2 3 M1

11 F1 4 F2 3 F1

12 M2 3 M3 1 M2

13 F2 3 F3 2 F2

14 M1 3 M3 2 M1

15 F1 2 F3 3 F3

Head-to-Head Winner

M1 M2 M3 F1 F2 F31 1 1 1 1 11 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

5 3 2 3 1 1

Survey & Interview Results

(-)Negative“Playing head-to-head made me anxious for my turn in line. I was afraid of embarrassing myself” – F2

“Going alone made me realize I have worse aim than I thought” – F3

( ) Neutral“Being in a pair made me not want to disappoint my partner so I tried my best… but was worried I might fail” – M2

(+) Positive“My favorite was playing on 2 teams we were all having more fun since we took it less seriously” – M1

“I think everyone enjoyed the last game, it was pretty obvious” – F1

Problem-Solving & Encouragement

Competing develops problem-solving skills that are carried into all aspects of one’s life, which doesn’t diminish one’s self-esteem upon failure or heighten one’s sense of self upon winning.

David Johnson has done work on the conditions that make competition enjoyable and enhance performance, suggested one way to change the culture around winning is to encourage others.

Urging others to recognize excellence and effort in others and to give shout-outs when one sees them fosters a spirit of cooperation even in the midst of competition.

The creativity, innovation, and quality of outcomes all increase as you nurture talents and performance of others especially in a culture that often does not.

Encouraging Shout Outs

Case Study: Pearl Chan Pui-yee

"I want her to go to a boarding school in America or Canada, but the competition these days is so huge," says Selina Lam Sai-yan, Pearl's mother.

“She likes playing instruments more than playing with toys. We can't ban her from learning if she has talent, can we?”

Pearl Chan Pui-yee's is the story of a typical Chinese child prodigy.

At 3, she started to learn Latin and ballroom dancing.

At 4, she became the youngest person in Hong Kong to pass 11 international dance exams in one day.

At 5, she has become the youngest person in the city to earn a gold, a silver and a bronze medal from the International Dance Teachers Association.

Not only outstanding in dancing, she has won awards in singing, piano, harp and even golf.

"Would you be happy if you didn't win awards?" asks her mother.

"No," Pearl smiles, shaking her head. "Would you be happy if you didn't dance?" asks her mother.

“No,” Pearl says.