Motivation Orientations, Academic Achievement, and Career Goals of Undergraduate Music Education Majors

Abstract

This study is an examination of motivation orientations (mastery, intrinsic, cooperative, individual, competition, ego, approach success, avoid failure, hypercompetition, personal development competition) and musical self-concept in relation to measures of academic achievement and career goals of preservice music teachers. The research questions addressed (a) relations among motivation and self-concept variables and their underlying factors, and (b) relations between the motivation and self-concept variables and academic achievement, class level, sex, and immediate and long-term career goals. Participants were 148 undergraduate music education majors from three American universities. A survey was administered to measure the motivation constructs and to gather information concerning academic achievement, demographic variables, and career goals. Of the subjects surveyed, 69. 4 % reported public school teaching as an immediate career goal, and 49.3 % reported it as a long-term goal. Significantly greater numbers of women (62.7%) than men (3 7.3 %) indicated public school teaching as the long term goal. Means for self concept in music dif fered by university, while means for motivation and frequencies for career goals did not. Factor analysis revealed five factors: Competitive/Ego, Achieve Success/Avoid Failure, Cooperative vs. Individual, Intrinsic/Mastery, and Personal Development Competition. Significant but low correlations were found between Personal Development Competition and class level. Motivation and self-concept variables were not correlated with academic achievement variables and generally did not differ by sex or class level. Differences in motivation and musical self-concept by immediate and long-term career goal categories were nonsignificant.