“You Will Screw It Up Sometimes”: Using Motivation Theories to Analyze Discourse From Commencement Speeches (Poster 16)

• In Event: Thursday Poster Session 9:00 am
  In Poster Session: Motivational Beliefs, Context, and Consequences

Abstract

We analyzed popular commencement speeches at U.S. colleges over the last two decades to identify the motivational messages that both students might receive as they graduate. Using content and discourse analysis methods, we integrated across multiple motivational theories to explore the most salient themes contained in these well-known orations, shedding light on how motivational principles are understood and expressed to graduating students and reflected in society’s lay understanding of motivation. We found that speeches highlighted the importance of 1) Responding to Failure; 2) Narrative of Situational Interest; 3) Prioritizing Prosocial Goals; 4) Emphasizing Mastery Goals and Intrinsic; 5) Choosing Your Path (Autonomy); 6) Building Self-Efficacy. Implications for both scholarly and lay understandings of motivation are discussed.

Authors

• Carlton J. Fong, Texas State University

• Semilore F. Adelugba, Texas State University

• Blanca Estevez Posadas, Texas State University

• Zohreh Fathi, Texas State University

• Giovanna Lorenzi Pinto, Texas State University

• Stephen Oluwaseyi Maku, Texas State University

• Danielle McEwen, Texas State University

• Maisha Farzana Mumu, University of Oklahoma

• Lihua Shang, Texas State University

• Meg Z. Taylor, Texas State University

• Pedram Zarei, Texas State Unniversity

• Ali Dezhkameh Bejoshin, Texas State University

• Sajjad Mahdavivand Fard, Texas State University