Guided by an affective theoretical process, we surveyed college students (N = 397) to examine the effect of college instructors' lecture misbehaviors on students' emotional interest directly, and indirectly through affect toward the course content, among students who varied in their desire to master the course material (i.e., first- and…

Chemistry is often daunting for college students, contributing to high attrition rates in STEM majors. This study explored students' perceptions of the challenges in studying chemistry, including task effort and emotional costs. We examined how these perceptions, along with goal approaches, impact academic performance and retention in general…

Students' perception of teachers' mindset beliefs (TMB) is associated with their school engagement (SSE). Based on SSE's contextual-personal interplay, perceived classroom goal structures (CGS) and students' mindset beliefs (SMB) were considered. Data from 1071 high school students were analyzed. The results show that CGS significantly mediated…

Background: Mastery and performance goals are typically measured as trait-like abstract goals. However, in their daily academic pursuits, students pursue more concrete goals. The pursuit of these goals is replete with obstacles that can lead to an action crisis. Aims: We examined how mastery and performance goals affect progress, effort and…

Achievement goals are associated with varied students' outcomes, such as academic achievement and well-being. Exploring factors shaping adolescents' achievement goals, such as perceptions of significant others' goals, may benefit efforts to advance positive student outcomes. Prior research focuses on perceived teacher goals and considerably less…

The undergraduate college years are a critical time when students are beginning to think seriously about their career interests, and it is critical that students have a positive outlook for their mathematical learning if they are going to pursue math-related STEM majors. The current research with 748 undergraduate math students found that the more…

The present study examined how information about different grading systems affects students' course expectations, particularly in ways that may have downstream consequences for learning and other academic outcomes. In an online experiment using a preregistered design, we prompted two samples of current and recent college students (N = 547) with a…

Collaborative argumentation has been recognized as a powerful means to facilitate conceptual change of scientific concepts for which students have robust misconceptions. However, eliciting and maintaining collaborative argumentation that yields such productive outcomes is known to be difficult. Specifically, social-motivational antecedents have…

Background: Goal setting has been established in the literature as a critical component of self-regulated learning and for effective problem-solving. Yet, surprisingly little attention has been focused on goal-directed behaviour in digital game-based learning environments (GBLEs) despite their expanding use in educational contexts. Objectives: The…

Many studies have assessed students' motivation through surveys, but only a few studies systematically investigated through students' own words the reasons and aims of their achievement striving. In the present study, we rely on the Goal Complex Perspective (Sommet and Elliot in J Educ Psychol 109(8):1141--1162, 2017.…

The primary objective was to investigate the relations between college students' achievement goals and their engagement in self-regulated learning using a person-centered approach. College students (N = 364) completed surveys that assessed mindset, self-efficacy, anxiety, achievement goals, and self-regulated learning. Latent profile analyses…

Peer relationships play important roles in middle-school students' individual development. Peer support is indispensable in computer-supported learning contexts. This study is designed to explore the connection between perceived peer support and deeper learning, while examining the mediating role of computer self-efficacy and perceived classroom…

Often pre-service early childhood and elementary teachers, many who are female, feel they are not good at math and appear uncomfortable at the prospect of teaching math. Given the influence pre-service teachers' attitudes toward math might have on their learning, as well as that of their future students, examining the precursors of mathematical…

Recent changes in college student populations suggest potential value in assessing current students in terms of what they desire from their professors. A list of professor behaviors was examined, drawing from previous literature. Six hundred and sixty undergraduate business students across three universities rated their desires for various…

Social comparison is prevalent, even within classrooms, yet limited research explores its impact on academic outcomes. The current study adopted social comparison theory and achievement goal theory and tested a structural equation model that explained the pathways among two types of social comparison (i.e. ability-based and opinion-based),…