Why Do You Study? Age and Domain Differences in Students' Open-Ended Goal Responses

• In Event: Poster Session 13
  In Poster Session: Motivation in Education SIG Poster Session 2

Abstract

The primary purpose of this study was to provide answers to existent controversies in achievement goal theory regarding the salience by asking open-ended questions about reasons why students study specific subject domains among different age groups. Students’ spontaneous achievement goals, weighted by themselves according to their own perceived importance, exhibited differences depending on domain-specificity and school-level. Mastery and outcome goals appeared more frequently among domain-specific responses than among domain-general responses. The proportion of mastery goals in domain-specific goal responses, however, differed depending on school level. The higher the school level of the students, the smaller the proportion of mastery goals pursued. In contrast, the proportion of outcome, social status, and social responsibility goals being pursued increased with higher school levels.

Authors

• Sun Kyung Lee, Korea University

• Minhye Lee, bMRI/Korea University

• Mimi Bong, Korea University

• Sung-Il Kim, Korea University