"We Motivate One Another": Peer Influences on Undergraduate Students' Motivation in Introductory Biology

• In Event: Fairmont Roundtable Session Three
  In Roundtable Session: Parent and Peer Socialization of Students' Motivational Beliefs (Table 13)

Abstract

Despite research on peer influences on motivation in K-12 settings, the role of peers in postsecondary education is understudied. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively investigate undergraduate students’ beliefs about how peers affect their motivation. Students (N=619) enrolled in introductory biology were asked (a) whether they knew a peer in their course and (b) how, if at all, their peer(s) affected their motivation. Students' motivation in the course was influenced by their peers via help-seeking, student-formed study groups, co-regulation, social connectedness, and comparison. However, a considerable number of the students stated that their motivation was independent of their relationships with others. Future research is needed to understand how peers play a role in students’ beliefs, values, and goals.

Authors

• Utku Caybas, Michigan State University
  Presenting Author

• Jaylene Patterson, University of Kentucky
  Presenting Author

• Mayson Spillman, University of Kentucky
  Non-Presenting Author

• Anastacia Emily Cole, University of Kentucky
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jaeyun Han, University of Illinois at Chicago
  Non-Presenting Author

• Ellen L. Usher, Mayo Clinic
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jennifer Osterhage, University of Kentucky
  Non-Presenting Author