Luc G. Pelletier

The Academic Motivation Scale: A Measure of Intrinsic, Extrinsic, and Amotivation in Education

A new measure of motivation toward education has been developed in French, namely the Echelle de Motivation en Education (EME). The EME is based on the tenets of self-determination theory and is composed of 28 items subdivided into seven sub-scales assessing three types of intrinsic motivation (intrinsic motivation to know, to accomplish things, and to experience stimulation), three types of extrinsic motivation (external, introjected, and identified regulation), and a motivation. The purpose of this investigation was to cross-culturally validate in English the EME. The EME was translated in English through appropriate methodological procedures and completed by university students. Results revealed that the English version of the scale renamed the Academic Motivation Scale (AMS), has satisfactory levels of internal consistency (mean alpha value = .81) and temporal stability over a one-month period (mean test-retest correlation = .79). In addition, results of a confirmatory factor analysis (LISREL) confirmed the seven-factor structure of the AMS. Finally, gender differences obtained with the EME were basically replicated with the AMS. In sum, the present findings provide adequate support for the factorial validity and reliability of the AMS and support its use in educational research on motivation.

Pressure from Above and Pressure from Below as Determinants of Teachers' Motivation and Teaching Behaviors.

When teachers are more supportive of autonomy and less controlling, students demonstrate higher levels of intrinsic motivation and self-determination. The purpose of this study was to examine socialcontextual conditions that led teachers (N 254) who taught classes from Grades 1 to 12 to be more autonomy supportive versus controlling with their students. Using structural equation modeling, the authors observed that the more teachers perceive pressure from above (they have to comply with a curriculum, with colleagues, and with performance standards) and pressure from below (they perceived their students to be nonself-determined), the less they are self-determined toward teaching. In turn, the less they are self-determined toward teaching, the more they become controlling with students.

Perceptions of Teachers’ Communicative Style and Students’ Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation

This study considers how students’ perceptions of their teachers’ communicative style, particularly the extent to which teachers are perceived to support students’ autonomy and to provide useful feedback about students’ learning progress, are related to students’ extrinsic and intrinsic motivational orientations. It also examines the link between these variables and various language learning outcomes, including effort, anxiety, and language competence. Students registered in a summer French immersion course (N = 78) completed a questionnaire that was used to assess the constructs described above. Correlational analyses determined that stronger feelings of intrinsic motivation were related to positive language learning outcomes, including greater motivational intensity, greater self-evaluations of competence, and a reduction in anxiety. Moreover, perceptions of the teacher’s communicative style were related to intrinsic motivation, such that the more controlling and the less informative students perceived the teacher to be, the lower students’ intrinsic motivation was. The implications of perceptions of teacher communicative style for motivation and language learning outcomes are discussed.

Why Do High School Students Lack Motivation in the Classroom? Toward an Understanding of Academic Amotivation and the Role of Social Support.

The present series of studies sought to develop and conceptually validate a taxonomy of reasons that give rise to academic amotivation and to investigate its social antecedents and academic consequences. In Study 1 (N = 351), an exploratory factor analysis offered preliminary support for an academic amotivation taxonomy comprising four dimensions: ability beliefs, effort beliefs, characteristics of the task, and value placed on the task. In Study 2 (N = 349), the proposed taxonomy was further corroborated through 1st- and 2nd-order confirmatory factor analyses, and its discriminant validity and construct validity were documented. Study 3 (N = 741) offered evidence for a model of the relationships among social support (from parents, teachers, and friends), amotivation, and academic outcomes (e.g., achievement, academic self-esteem, intention to drop out). Results are considered in terms of an increased conceptual understanding of academic amotivation, and implications for curricula and interventions are discussed.

Latent Motivational Change in an Academic Setting: A 3-Year Longitudinal Study.

This research examined changes in intrinsic and extrinsic motivation during the transition from junior to senior high school as well as the impact of motivational changes on various educational consequences (i.e., dropout intentions, absenteeism, homework frequency, and educational aspirations). A total of 646 participants completed a questionnaire in 8th, 9th, and 10th grade.Using the true intraindividual change modeling technique (R.Steyer, I.Partchev, & M.J.Shanahan, 2000), the authors reached results revealing that students’ intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation decreased gradually from 8th to 10th grade.Furthermore, less educational adjustment was observed for students experiencing a decline in external regulation during the transitional year and students experiencing a decline in intrinsic motivation and identified regulation during the year after the transition.

Ajzen and Fishbein's theory of reasoned action as applied to moral behavior : a confirmatory analysis

A confirmatory test of Ajzen and Fishbeins (1980) theory of reasoned action as applied to the realm of moral behavior using structural equation modeling was conducted. Ss were 1056 male and female athletes ranging in age from 10 to 18 years (M=14.5). Ss completed a questionnaire that contained 2 hypothetical situations related to moral behavior in sports. For each situation, Ss completed scales assessing all components of the model. A modified version of the theory provided a significant improvement over the Ajzen and Fishbein model.

Why Do You Regulate What You Eat? Relationships Between Forms of Regulation, Eating Behaviors, Sustained Dietary Behavior Change, and Psychological Adjustment

In 3 studies, the authors examined how autonomous and controlled forms of motivation for the regulation of eating behaviors were related to self-reported eating behaviors, and sustained dietary behavior change. Studies 1 and 2 supported the factorial structure and the psychometric properties of a scale designed to measure different forms of regulation as defined by Self-Determination Theory. A motivational model of the regulation of eating behaviors suggested that an autonomous regulation was positively associated with healthy eating behaviors whereas a controlled regulation was positively associated with dysfunctional eating behaviors and negatively associated with healthy eating behaviors. In Study 3, long-term adherence to healthier dietary behaviors in a population at risk for coronary artery disease was examined over a 26-week period. A general measure of self-determined motivation assessed at week 1 was found to be a reliable predictor of the level of self-determination for eating behaviors 13 weeks later. In turn, self-determination for eating behaviors was a significant predictor of dietary behavior changes at 26 weeks. Finally, the dietary behavior measures were related to improvements in weight and blood lipid parameters (LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides). Results are discussed in terms of their implication for the integration and maintenance of a successful healthy regulation.

Autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and goal progress.

Although the self-concordance of goals has been repeatedly shown to predict better goal progress, recent research suggests potential problems with aggregating autonomous and controlled motivations to form a summary index of self-concordance (Judge, Bono, Erez, & Locke, 2005). The purpose of the present investigation was to further examine the relations among autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and goal progress to determine the relative importance of autonomous motivation and controlled motivation in the pursuit of personal goals. The results of three studies and a meta-analysis indicated that autonomous motivation was substantially related to goal progress whereas controlled motivation was not. Additionally, the relation of autonomous motivation to goal progress was shown to involve implementation planning. Together, the three studies highlight the importance for goal setters of having autonomous motivation and developing implementation plans, especially ones formulated in terms of approach strategies rather than avoidance strategies. The present research suggests that individuals pursuing goals should focus relatively greater attention on enhancing their autonomous motivation rather than reducing their controlled motivation.

The Impact of Behavioural Difficulty on the Saliency of the Association Between Self-Determined Motivation and Environmental Behaviours

The goal of the study is to evaluate the impact of the perceived level of difficulty of environmental behaviours on the magnitude of the relationship between environmental self-determination and the occurrence of environmental behaviours. The participants (n = 444) completed the Motivation Toward the Environment Scale, along with self-report measures of environmental behaviours and perceived difficulty of environmental behaviours. Three types of environmental behaviours are examined: Recycling, purchasing environmentally-friendly products, and educating oneself as to what can be done for the environment. It is hypothesized that the level of self-determination of environmental motivation predicts the occurrence of environmental behaviours significantly. Moreover, the magnitude of the relationship between self-determination and environmental behaviours is expected to increase with the level of perceived difficulty of the behaviours. Data are subjected to structural equation modeling analyzes (EQS). Results support the proposed hypotheses. Self-determination displays a significant relationship with environmental behaviours, and the magnitude of this relationship increases with the difficulty of the environmental behaviour. Current environmental research trends and applied intervention strategies are discussed on the basis of this finding. Strategies for the promotion of environmental behaviours are proposed.

On the Investigation of Primed and Chronic Autonomous and Heteronomous Motivational Orientations

Four studies examined primed and chronic autonomous and heteronomous motivations. Study 1 showed that autonomy and heteronomy can be primed and influence perceptions and behavior in a way consistent with consciously regulated motives. In Study 2, a measure of chronic motivation was developed and its construct validity and reliability were assessed. In Study 3, the chronicity measure predicted behavior while consciously regulated motives predicted intention but not behavior. Results of Study 4 replicated results of the priming manipulation in Study 1. However, this effect was moderated by level of motivational chronicity. The priming effect was found to be stronger for non-chronics than for chronics. Overall, the findings suggest that autonomous and heteronomous motivations can be regulated automatically as well as consciously.