Academic locus of control and motivational persistence: structural equation modeling

Abstract

The aim of this study is the examination of the relationship between academic locus of control and motivational persistence. For the first time to my knowledge, the relations between academic locus of control and motivational persistence were investigated. The participants of the study consisted of adolescents who have attended from different public high schools. Overall, 413 students contributed to this study. Academic Locus of Control Scale and The Motivational Persistence Scale were used for data collection. In the research, whether there is a casual relationship between academic locus of control and motivational persistence in adolescents was tested through path analysis in the context of structural equation model. According to the results, there is a causative relationship between academic locus of control and motivational persistence in adolescents. The findings were discussed in relation to previous research

Keywords

• Academic locus of control, Motivation, Perseverance, Structural equation model

Akademik kontrol odağı ve motivasyonel kararlılık: Yapısal eşitlik modellemesi

Abstract

“Motivasyon” eğitim psikolojisi alanında sıklıkla tartışılan ve teorik olarak incelenen kavramlardan biridir. Birçok kuramcı için motivasyon, özellikle öğrenme için gerekli görülürken; motivasyon da kararlılık başarının anahtarı sayılmaktadır. Keller’e (2006) göre motivasyon, davranışın yönünü ve büyüklüğünü belirlemektedir. Motivasyon, insanların seçeceği amaçlar doğrultusunda gayret sarf etmesi için yaklaşım ya da kaçınmalarıdır. Motivasyon üç varsayım üzerine dayandırılmaktadır: 1-İnsanlar dışsal olaylardan etkilenerek motive olurlar. 2-Sonlanan ya da sonlanmayan anlamında performansla ilişkilidir. 3- Sistematik dizayn ve uygulama sayesinde ölçülebilen motivasyon açıklanabilir. Motivasyonun özellikle planlama, organizasyon, karar verme, öğrenme ve değerlendirme gibi bilişsel davranışlar üzerinde katkıları vardır (Pintrich & Schunk, 1996). İnsanlar motive ya da konsantre olurlarsa muhtemelen amaçlarını da ulaşabileceklerdir. Benzer şekilde yeterince motivasyona sahip olurlarsa öğrenmede başarı sağlayacaklardır (Dweck, 1986). Bu düşüncelerden hareketle motivasyonun başarının tetikleyicisi olduğu söylenebilir (Elliot, 1999; Ushioda, 2015). Hardré ve Reeve (2003) ile Wlodkowski (1999) yaptıkları çalışmalarda benzer şartlar, durumlar ve fırsatlar verilen yüksek motivasyona sahip öğrencilerin diğer öğrencilere göre daha iyi performans sergiledikleri görülmüştür. Diğer taraftan motive olamamış ya da az konsantrasyona sahip öğrencilerin uzun süreli hedeflere ulaşma konusunda sıkıntılar yaşadığı tespit edilmiştir (Elliot & Dweck, 1988; Elliot & Harackiewicz, 1996). Constantin, Holman ve Hojbotă (2012) motivasyonun, motivasyonel kararlılık için gerekli olduğunu iddia etmişlerdir.

Keywords

• Akademik kontrol odağı, Motivasyon, Kararlılık, Yapısal eşitlik

References

1. Akın, A., (2010). Achievement goals and academic locus of control: Structural Equation Modeling. Eurasian Journal of Educational Research, 38, 1-18.
2. Allen, J. & Lester, D. (1994). Belief in paranormal phenomena and external locus of control. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 79, 226.
3. Anderson, A., Hattiea, J. & Hamilton, R. J. (2005). Locus of control, self‐efficacy, and motivation in different schools: Is moderation the key to success? Educational Psychology: An International Journal of Experimental Educational Psychology, 25 (5), 517- 535.
4. Arslan, C., Dilmaç, B. & Hamarta, E. (2009). Coping with stress and trait anxiety in terms of locus of control: A study with Turkish university students. Social Behavior and Personality, 37(6), 791-800.
5. Bal, B. S., Singh, B. S. & Singh, O. (2010). Achievement motivation and locus of control of university level individual and team sport players- A prognostic study. Journal of Physical Education and Sports management, 1(3), 33-36.
6. Hardré, P. L. & Reeve, J. M. (2003). A motivational model of rural students’ intentions to persist in, versus drop out of, high school. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95 (2), 347- 356.
7. Harter, S. (1981). A new self-report scale of intrinsic versus extrinsic orientation in the classroom: Motivational and informational components. Developmental Psychology, 7 (3), 300-312.
8. Hoyle, R. (1995). Structural Equation Modeling: Concepts, Issues, and Applications. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

9. Hox, J. J. & Bechger, T. M. (1998). An introduction to structural equation modeling. Family Science Review, 11, 354-373.
10. Hrb{ckov{a, K., Hladíkb, J. & V{vrov{, S. (2012). The relationship between locus of control, metacognition, and academic success. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 69, 1805- 1811.
11. Hu, L. & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1-55.
12. Iskender, M. & Akin, A. (2010). Social self-efficacy, academic locus of control, and internet addiction. Computers and Education, 544, 1101-1106.
13. Keller, J. M. (2006). Motivation and performance. In Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology. (Edt: R. A. Reiser & J. V. Dempsey). 2nd Edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill/Prentice Hall.
14. Landine, J. & Stewart, J. (1998). Relationship between metacognition, motivation, locus of control, self-efficacy, and academic achievement. Canadian Journal of Counselling/Revu e canadienn e de counseling, 32(3), 200-212.
15. Lee, C. Y. (2000). Student motivation in the online learning environment. Journal of Educational Media & Library Sciences, 37(4), 367-375.
16. Lefcourt, H. M. (1966). Internal versus external control of reinforcement: A review. Psychological Bulletin, 65(4), 206-220.
17. McCauley, E., Burke, P., Mitchell, J. R. & Moss, S. (1988). Cognitive attributes of depression in children and adolescents. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56(6), 903- 908.
18. Mooney, S. P., Sherman, M. F. & LoPresto, C. T. (1991). Academic locus of control, selfesteem, and perceived distance from home as predictors of college adjustment. Journal of Counseling and Development, 69, 445-448.
19. Nelson, E. S. & Mathias, K. E. (1995). The relationships among college students locus of control, learning styles and selfprediction of grades. Education Research and Perspectives, 22 (2), 110-117.
20. Newby, T. J., Stepich, D. A., Lehman, J. D., & Russell, J. D. (2006). Instructional technology for teaching and learning: Designing instruction, integrating computers, and using media (3rd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
21. Nowicki, S. & Schneewind, K. (1982). Relation of family climate variables to locus of control in German and American students. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 141, 277-286.
22. Nowicki, Jr. S. & Segal, W. (1974). Perceived parental characteristics, locus of control orientation, and behavioral correlates of locus of control. Developmental Psychology, 10 (1), 33-37.
23. Nowicki & Strickland (1973). A locus of control scale for children. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 40 (1), 148-154.
24. Österman, K., Björkqvist, K., Lagerspetz, K. M. J., Charpentier, S., Caprara, G. V. & Pastorelli, C. (1999). Locus of control and three types of aggression. Aggressive Behavior, 25, 61– 65.
25. Pintrich, P. R. & Schunk, D. H. (2002). Motivation in education: Theory, research, and applications. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall.
26. Rotter, J. B. (1990). Internal Versus External Control of Reinforcement. American Psychologist, 45(4), 489-493.
27. Ryan, R. M. & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55, 68-78.
28. Sing, K. (2011). Study of achievement motivation in relation to academic achievement of students. International Journal of Educational Planning & Administration, 1 (2), 161-171.
29. Sarıçam, H., Akın, A., Akın, U. & İlbay, A. B. (2014). Motivasyonel Kararlılık Ölçeğinin Türkçe Formu: Geçerlik ve güvenirlik çalışması. Turkish Journal of Education (TURJE), 3(1), 60-69.
30. Sarıçam, H. (2014). Psychometric Properties of the Academic Locus of Control Scale Adolescent Form. Elementary Education Online, 13(4), 1135-1144.
31. Schumacker, R. E. & Lomax, R. G. (1996). A Beginner’s Guide to Structural Equation Modeling. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.
32. Schunk, D. H., Pintrich, P. R. & Meece, J. L. (2008). Motivation in education: Theory, research, and applications. (3rd edition). New Jersey: Pearson Education.
33. Spence, J. T. & Helmreich, R. L. (1983). Achievement-related motives and behaviors. In Achievement and achievement motives: Psychological and sociological approaches. (Edt: J. T. Spence). San Francisco: W. H. Freeman & Co. pp. 7-74.
34. Sun, J. (2005). Assessing goodnes of fit in confirmatory factor analysis. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 37, 240-256.
35. Ushioda, E. (2015). Context and complex dynamic systems theory. In Motivational Dynamics in Language Learning. (Edt: Z. Dörnyei, P. D. MacIntyre, A. Henry). Bristol: Multilingual Matters. pp. 47-54.
36. Weiner, B. & Kukla, A. (1970). An attributional analysis of achievement motivation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 15, 1-20.
37. Wiersma, U. J. (1992). The effects of extrinsic rewards in intrinsic motivation: A metaanalysis. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 65, 101-114.
38. Wlodkowski, R. J. (1999). Enhancing adult motivation to learn: A comprehensive guide for teaching all adults (Rev. Ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.