Dynamics of Motivation

Learning Motivation of University Students

How quickly does motivation for a subject settle at a high or low level during the first year of university? In what ways do students differ in the development of their motivation?And how much do courses differ from one another in terms of motivation?

We, researchers from the universities of Eichstätt, Jena, and Leipzig, are investigating how learning motivation develops directly after the start of university studies in this DFG-funded research project.

To do this, we accompanied first-year students in their courses. Through repeated but very brief surveys on students’ smartphones or tablets, we captured fluctuating motivational and emotional experiences at the very moments they occurred.

The research data allow us to trace individual development of motivation and emotions in high resolution, along with the everyday experiences students have while learning.

Project lead: Prof. Dr. Julia Dietrich

Project staff: Dr. Anna-Maria Mayer

Cooperation partners: Miriam Jähne (Jena), Jun.-Prof. Dr. Julia Moeller & Jessica Baars (Leipzig), Prof. Dr. Reinhard Pekrun (Essex), Prof. Jacquelynne Eccles (Irvine)

Funding: German Research Foundation (DFG) – Project Number 451682742

Project duration: 2021–2025

Publikationen

Jähne, M. F., Naumann, A., Moeller, J., Baars, J., & Dietrich, J. (in press). Which insights can research on achievement motivation gain from network analysis? Comparing different network methods empirically. Motivation Science. https://doi.org/10.1037/mot0000397

Oschwald, A., Moeller, J., Kracke, B., Viljaranta, J., & Dietrich, J. (in press). Student motivation and instructional clarity: Linking experience sampling method data to objective behavioral observations. British Journal of Educational Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12775

Moeller, J., Dietrich, J., Jähne, M. F., & Nörenberg, L. (2024). Dynamics of achievement motivation in concrete situations questionnaire (DYNAMICS-Q). Retrieved from https://osf.io/kycav/

Moeller, J., Dietrich, J., Neubauer, A. B., Brose, A., Kühnel, J., Dehne, M., Jähne M. F., Schmiedek, F., Bellhäuser, H., Malmberg, L.-E., Stockinger, K., Riediger, M., Pekrun, R. (2023). Generalizability crisis meets heterogeneity revolution: Determining under which boundary conditions findings replicate and generalize. Preprint: https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/5wsna

Dietrich, J., Schmiedek, F., & Moeller, J. (2022). Learning happens in learning situations, so let's study them. Introduction to the special issue. Learning & Instruction, 81, 101623. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2022.101623

Moeller, J., Viljaranta, J., Tolvanen, A., Kracke, B., & Dietrich, J. (2022). Introducing the DYNAMICS framework of moment-to-moment development in achievement motivation. Learning & Instruction, 81, 101653. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2022.101653