The authors developed and tested new theoretical relations between approach and avoidance motivational traits and deviant work behaviors. Approach motivation was divided into 3 traits: personal mastery (i.e., desire to achieve), competitive excellence (i.e., desire to perform better than others), and behavioral activation system (BAS) sensitivity…

The authors propose a theoretical model linking achievement goals and achievement emotions to academic performance. This model was tested in a prospective study with undergraduates (N = 213), using exam-specific assessments of both goals and emotions as predictors of exam performance in an introductory-level psychology course. The findings were…

This study furthers research in three crucial related areas: (1) comparing various online glossing and vocabulary learning tools; (2) language teaching and learning using a more natural bilingualized approach to developing online reading skills in a second or foreign language; and (3) comparing the relative level of enjoyment and effectiveness…

Service is increasingly being viewed as an integral part of education nationwide. Service-based courses and programs are growing in popularity as opportunities for students to learn and experience their discipline. Widespread adoption of learning-through-service (LTS) in engineering is stymied by a lack of a body of rigorous research supporting…

We investigated motivation for taking low stakes tests. Based on expectancy-value theory, we expected that the effect of student perceptions of three task values (interest, usefulness, and importance) on low stakes test performance would be mediated by the student's reported effort. We hypothesized that all three task value components would play a…

Researchers suggest that business cases should profile businesses or products familiar to students to enhance the learning experience. However, no empirical evidence has validated these claims. In this article, the authors discuss the implication of content relevance in teaching and provide an account of a Canadian university's efforts to…

Previous research (Richardson, 1994) held to the myth that older or nontraditional students are at a disadvantage when returning to a university. However, Hoskins and Newstead, (1997) reported that non-traditional students have a slight advantage over traditional students and are reported to obtain better degrees on the average than younger…

Assessment is a prominent issue in education today. However, assessment of learning often occurs only at the end of the semester to satisfy accreditation agencies. An alternative is to conduct assessments during the course, not only to assess if learning goals are being met but also to assess student learning during the course. Assessment for…

Parenting styles have consistently been shown to relate to various outcomes such as youth psychopathology, behavior problems, and academic performance. Building on the research in the parenting style literature, along with examining components of self-determination theory, the present study examined the relations among authoritative parenting…

The present study examined the capacity of 2 different theoretical models of motivation to explain why an externally provided rationale often supports students' motivation, engagement, and learning during relatively uninteresting learning activities. One hundred thirty-six undergraduates (108 women, 28 men) worked on an uninteresting 20-min lesson…

There are many educational interventions being implemented to address workforce issues in the field of nanotechnology. However, there is no instrument to assess the impact of these interventions on student awareness of, exposure to, and motivation for nanotechnology. To address this need, the "Nanotechnology Awareness Instrument" was…

Research has established that individual student interest has a positive effect on learning and academic achievement. However, little is known about the impact of a blended learning approach on individual student interest and whether combinations of online and face-to-face learning activities significantly enhance student interest. This paper…

The relationships among instrumentality, task value, and intrinsic orientation were investigated among undergraduate students. The sample comprised 207 undergraduates who were participating in a lower-division human development course. Results confirm that endogenous instrumentality is an independent construct, which--although related to task…

Undergraduate engineering institutions are currently seeking to improve recruiting practices and to retain engineering majors particularly by addressing what many studies document as a major challenge of poor instruction. There is an undisputed need for instructional practices that motivate students in addition to facilitating the transfer of…

Portfolios are popular in language teaching, both as a learning tool and a process-oriented assessment instrument. They require the compilation of student projects, performances, and other assignments over a semester or school year to record the growth of learning. When portfolios are used for evaluation, they are called an alternative assessment…