Trajectories of Autonomous Motivation Over the First Semester of College: Links to Shifts in Self-Efficacy and Belonging

• In Event: Bridging the Divide: Applications of Mixed Methods to Advance Motivation Studies

Abstract

The current study examined changes in autonomous (i.e., self-determined) motivation across the first semester of college – a time of immense change across multiple domains of functioning. 178 students reported on their autonomous motivation, self-efficacy, and belonging at orientation, week 2, and week 14. There was a significant overall decline in autonomous motivation over this time period, but profile-centered analyses revealed four distinct subgroups representing different trajectories of autonomous motivation, only two of which followed the pattern of motivational loss that characterized the full sample. Both quantitative and qualitative methods indicated that self-efficacy was a significant predictor of motivational trajectories. The first semester of college appears to be a time of meaningful motivational change for many but not all students.

Authors

• Jennifer Henderlong Corpus, Reed College

• Madeline Appelbaum, Reed College

• Sidney Buttrill, Reed College