For a paper on motivation-achievement interactions, Tuong-van Vu, our co-authors and I created a list of theories of academic motivation. For reasons explained here it is far from easy to delineate what should count as a motivation theory and what not. However, using the criteria set out there, we came up with the list below. If you know more theories, or if you disagree with one of our entries or summaries, please send us a mail.
Theories of academic motivation
. For each theory one or more seminal references and a
short summary of a distinctive focus are provided.
|
Theory |
Seminal reference |
Focus: what determines
motivation? |
|
Self-efficacy theory |
Bandura (1977) |
Beliefs of efficacy and human agency (i.e. self-efficacy). There are two types of beliefs: 1/
that certain learning behaviors will lead to certain learning outcomes and 2/
that one has the ability to perform the learning behaviors that lead to such
outcomes. Perceived past performance contributes to a feeling of
self-efficacy. |
|
Control theories |
Crandall, Katkovsky, & Preston
(1962), Skinner (1995) |
Internal locus of control (i.e.
the extent that one feels in control of one’s successes and failures). |
|
Self-determination theory |
Ryan & Deci (2000); Ryan & Deci (2020) |
Basic needs for competence, autonomy, and
relatedness (and how why external goals turn into internal goals through
internalization). |
|
Flow theory |
Csikszentmihalyi (1997) |
Immediate subjective experience of flow that occurs
when engaged in an activity. |
|
Individual difference theories of intrinsic
motivation |
Amabile (1983), Gottfried (1990), Nicholls (1984) |
Intrinsic motivation as a trait-like characteristic
(as opposed to intrinsic motivation as a state), most importantly defined by
curiosity and interest. |
|
Interest theories |
Alexander et al. (1995), Hidi & Renninger (2006), Schiefele
(1999) |
Individual interest, which is an evaluative
orientation related to feelings associated with learning and to personal
significance of learning, and situational interest which is an affective
state aroused by the specific characteristics of academic tasks. |
|
Achievement goal and mindset theories |
Ames (1992), Dweck (2000), Pintrich
(2000), Elliot & McGregor (2001), Urdan
& Kaplan (2020) |
Achievement goal orientation (e.g., ego-involved
goals vs. task-involved goals, performance goals vs. mastery or learning
goals, and the approach vs. avoidance dimension). The impact of implicit
beliefs of the malleability of human attributes (e.g.
intelligence) on strategies after failure and achievement. |
|
Attribution theories |
Weiner (2010); Graham (2020) |
An individual’s causal attributions or
interpretation of their achievements. Attributions are classified along three
causal dimensions: locus of control, stability, and controllability. |
|
Modern (situated) expectancy-value theory |
Eccles & Wigfield (2020) |
The value attached to the behavior and its outcomes,
and an assessment of the likelihood of certain outcomes of the behavior
(expectancy). Expectancies and values are influenced by affective memories,
interpretations of previous achievements, socialized behaviors, beliefs,
cultural and historical factors, and perceptions of other people’s
attitudes. |
|
Self-worth theory |
Covington (1984) |
The value of maintaining a sense of self-worth and a
positive self-image. |
|
Social cognitive theories of self-regulation |
Zimmerman (2002), Schunk & DiBenedetto (2020) |
Self-efficacy, causal attributions, and goal setting
that are conducive to accomplishing learning tasks and their mutual
relationships over time. |
|
Process-oriented metacognition
model |
Borkowski et al. (1990) Pintrich (2000) |
Interaction between motivational constructs (i.e. expectancies, values, affect and self-processes such
as goals, possible selves, self-worth), cognitive constructs (e.g., prior
domain-specific knowledge, strategy knowledge, self-regulatory processes) and
learning contexts. |
|
Theories of volition |
Kuhl (1984), Duckworth et al. (2019). |
The strength of the will (or grit) needed to
complete a task which affects the diligence and duration of the
pursuit. |
|
Control-value Theory |
Pekrun (2006) |
Academic emotions (e.g., enjoyment, pride, anxiety,
boredom, etc.) which have an influence on achievement over and above the
effects of general cognitive ability and prior accomplishments. |
References
Alexander, P. A., Kulikowich, J. M., & Jetton, T. L. (1994). The role of
subject-matter knowledge and interest in the processing of linear and nonlinear
texts. Review of Educational Research, 64(2), 201–252.
Amabile, T. M., Hill, K. G.,
Hennessey, B. A., & Tighe, E. M. (1994). The work preference inventory:
Assessing intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology, 66(5), 950–967.
Ames, C. (1992). Classrooms:
Goals, structures, and student motivation. Journal of Educational Psychology,
84(3), 261–271.
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy:
The exercise of control. W H Freeman/Times Books/ Henry Holt & Co.
Borkowski, J. G., Carr, M., Rellinger, E., &
Pressley, M. (1990). Self-regulated cognition: Interdependence of
metacognition, attributions, and self-esteem. In Dimensions of thinking and
cognitive instruction (pp. 53–92). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
Covington, M. V. (1984). The
Self-Worth Theory of Achievement Motivation: Findings and Implications. Elementary School Journal, 85, 4-20.
Crandall, V. C., Katkovsky, W., & Crandall, V. J. (1965). Children’s
beliefs in their own control of reinforcements in intellectual-academic
achievement situations. Child Development, 36(1), 91.
https://doi.org/10.2307/1126783
Csikzentmihalyi, M. (1990).
Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. New York: Harper & Row.
Duckworth, A. L., Taxer, J.
L., Eskreis-Winkler, L., Galla,
B. M., & Gross, J. J. (2019). Self-control and academic achievement. Annual
Review of Psychology, 70(1), 373–399. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-010418-103230
Dweck, C. S. (2000). Self-theories:
Their role in motivation, personality and development. Psychology Press.
Eccles, J. S., & Wigfield, A. (2020). From expectancy-value theory to
situated expectancy-value theory: A developmental, social cognitive, and
sociocultural perspective on motivation. Contemporary Educational Psychology,
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Elliot, A., & McGregor, H.
(2001). A 2x2 achievement goal framework. Journal of Personality and Social
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Gottfried, A. E. (1990).
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of Educational Psychology, 82(3), 525–538.
Graham, S. (2020). An
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Hidi, S., & Renninger, K. A. (2006). The Four-Phase Model of Interest
Development. Educational Psychologist, 41(2), 111–127. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep4102_4
Kuhl, J. (1984). Volitional
aspects of achievement motivation and learned helplessness: Toward a
comprehensive theory of action control. In B. A. Maher & W. B. Maher
(Eds.), Progress in Experimental Personality Research (Vol. 13, pp.
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Marsh, H. W. (1994). Sport
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Nicholls, J. G. (1984). Achievement
motivation: Conceptions of ability, subjective experience, task choice, and
performance. Psychological Review, 91(3), 328–346.
Pekrun, R. (2006).
The control-value theory of achievement emotions: Assumptions, corollaries, and
implications for educational research and practice. Educational Psychology
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Pintrich, P. R. (2000).
An achievement goal theory perspective on issues in motivation terminology,
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https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1999.1017
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L.
(2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new
directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 54–67.
https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1999.1020
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L.
(2020). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation from a self-determination theory
perspective: Definitions, theory, practices, and future directions. Contemporary
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https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2020.101860
Schiefele, U. (1999).
Interest and Learning From Text. Scientific Studies
of Reading, 3(3), 257–279.
https://doi.org/10.1207/s1532799xssr0303_4
Schunk, D. H., & DiBenedetto,
M. K. (2020). Motivation and social cognitive theory. Contemporary Educational
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Skinner, E. (1995). Perceived
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Urdan, T., &
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Weiner, B. (2010). The
development of an attribution-based theory of motivation: A history of ideas. Educational
Psychologist, 45(1), 28–36.
https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520903433596
Zimmerman,
B. J. (2002). Becoming a self-regulated learner: An overview. Theory into practice, 41, 64-70.