I have been investigating the individual (e.g., academic and social goals, beliefs, perfectionistic traits) and contextual factors (e.g., peer climate, classroom goal structures, teacher motivation) that promote adolescents’ academic adjustment and psychological well-being. My key contribution is to highlight that an individual’s achievement or performance is not solely a function of work-related motivation; social factors (individual’s motivation and the social climate of the environment) also matter significantly. In particular, I have conducted extensive work guided by social achievement goal theory, which emphasizes different orientations toward social competence that people bring to social situations. For example, some focus on self-improvement and growth, while others may care more about external validation or acquiring social status or concealing their ineptness. A new measure of social achievement goals that my graduate advisor, Dr. Allison Ryan, and I developed and validated is now available in nine different languages. I have published numerous studies on social achievement goals and am considered a leading expert in this topic area. I was invited to serve as an external expert for Ph.D. dissertations related to social achievement goals at McGill University (Canada) and the National Institute of Education (Singapore). Theoretically contribution of my work is to enhance our understanding of the processes in which social achievement goals affect educationally important outcomes (i.e., why and how). Practical implication of my work is to underscore the importance of adopting a more comprehensive approach when supporting academically struggling students, taking into account both academic and social aspects simultaneously.