Drives and Motives During Online Degree Completion

Abstract

This study examined the motives and drives of adult students during online degree completion, including the commonalities among and differences between Hispanic and non-Hispanic adult students. Participants included 364 adult students at a Hispanic-serving institution (HSI) who completed a series of reflective writing assignments, generating over 15,000 pages of data. After linguistic and statistical data analysis, results identified the drives and motives common to all adult students and significant differences between Hispanic and non-Hispanic adult students. Some merit little or no action, while three offer opportunities—achievement and affiliation as drives, the states of acquire and lack, and allure as motive. These results offer implications for Hispanic and non-Hispanic adult students and those in higher education who serve or teach such students—academic advisors, instructional designers, instructors, and program administrators—and inform how technology can support such efforts.