Examining the Dimensions of Engagement: A Bifactor Model of Agentic, Behavioral, Cognitive, and Emotional Engagement

• In Event: Poster Session 17
  In Poster Session: Students' Engagement and Motivation

Abstract

Although there is considerable consensus that engagement is a multi-dimensional construct, the dimensions of engagement have typically been found to be moderately to strongly correlated. In the methodological literature there are many discussions of how best to represent highly correlated multi-dimensional constructs. The purpose of this study is to determine which measurement model is most appropriate for the modeling of multi-dimensional engagement with four facets and verify the relationship between the conceptualization of engagement and student performance (e.g., achievement) in an undergraduate communication course. The present study examined three possible models. The best fitting model was a bifactor model suggesting that engagement is neither purely unidimensional nor well represented by only unique dimensions.

Author

• Angela D. Miller, George Mason University