Is cost separate from or part of subjective task value? An empirical examination of expectancy-value versus expectancy-value-cost perspectives

Abstract

Situated expectancy-value theorists propose that students’ domain-specific expectancies and subjective task values are critical predictors of their achievement and academic choices in those domains. The theory also posits that subjective task values are multidimensional and can be separated into four subcomponents: intrinsic value, attainment value, utility value, and perceived cost. Recently, there have been debates regarding whether perceived cost should be conceptualized and operationalized as part of subjective task value (i.e., the classic expectancy-value perspective), or as a separate construct from subjective task value (i.e., the expectancy-value-cost perspective). In the present study, we explore different structural associations among expectancies, values, and costs using a hierarchical structural equation modeling approach in a high-stakes undergraduate biochemistry course. We use two different measures of perceived cost: one that measured cost as a unidimensional construct and one that measured cost as a multidimensional construct. We also report on data collected both before and after the COVID-19 lockdowns in the United States. Overall, our results suggested that models that supported the expectancy-value perspective and models that supported the expectancy-value-cost perspective both fit the data reasonably well. However, in line with situated expectancy-value theory, we discuss how aspects of the educational context (a high-stakes undergraduate context), the historical context (COVID-19), and measurement of cost (unidimensional vs. multidimensional) may have impacted our findings. Implications for SEVT and future research in this area are discussed.