Key Motivational Factors Research Articles

Motivation to Physical Exercise in Manual Wheelchair Users With Paraplegia

Background: Motivation could be considered as a critical factor for being and staying physically active in the spinal cord-injured population. Objectives: Our goals were (1) to describe motivation to exercise in people with paraplegia, comparing those who engage in regular physical exercise with those who do not and (2) to establish whether such motivation is related to the type of physical exercise practiced. Methods: This study was quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive research. One-hundred and six participants with chronic paraplegia completed the Spanish version of the Exercise Motivations Inventory (EMI-2). Participants were divided into the non-exerciser group (NEG) and the exerciser group (EG). EG was subclassified into sports players (SPs) and physical exercisers (PEs). Results: Participants in both EG and NEG presented a similar motivation toward physical exercise. The most important motive to practice or to adhere to exercise in participants with SCI was ill-health avoidance (mean, 8.45; SD, 1.33). Fitness was the second most important motive (ie, nimbleness, flexibility, strength, and endurance). Motives that distinguished EG from NEG included enjoyment and revitalization [t(41.9) = -2.54, p < .05, r = 0.36], competition [t(56.8) = 2.24, p < .05, r = 0.28], and health pressure [t(104) = 3.22, p < .01, r = 0.30]. Furthermore, we found that motivation was related to the type of physical exercise performed. SPs showed a statistically significantly higher score for competition and enjoyment and revitalization than PEs (p < .05). Conclusion: Ill-health avoidance and fitness are the key motivational factors to practice and adhere to physical exercise. Motivation is related to the type of physical exercise performed. Health providers need to understand these factors to promote and sustain long-term adherence to exercise in the SCI population.

Transitioning to Organic Rice Farming in Thailand: Drivers and Factors

This research focuses on determining the drivers and factors that influence conversion to organic rice farming to better inform local and national policies. It provides an insight into the procedures in the decision-making process of farmers and the practices they use. Questionnaire and interview data from farmers in the leading rice production region, Surin, were analyzed using logistic regression to understand the drivers of organic rice farming and the barriers and challenges of adapting to this practice. The findings highlight the critical role of extension farm officers in promoting, educating, and motivating farmers to adopt organic farming. The ability to access (affordable) loans through local cooperative and land ownership was also a key motivational factor. Young people (under 25) are not engaging with farming generally, and this is a major barrier to long-term growth of the organic rice industry in Thailand.

Accounting Practices of Small and Medium Sized Manufacturing Enterprises (SMEs) in Nepalgunj Industrial District

The study aims to examine current status of accounting practices in Nepalese small and medium sized manufacturing firms, basing the study on the primary data followed by survey research method. The study concentrated on 18 firms out of 30 manufacturing SMEs as the study area, located in Nepalgunj industrial district. Through self-designed questionnaire comprised into five point Linkert scale, data was collected from managers, owners, and accounting officers of SMEs. The findings revealed that majority of SMEs have been following manual accounting system, and also have been internally preparing their financial accounting statements from accounting experts. In terms of maintaining accounting information, the study reached a conclusion that tax assessment and business performance are key motivational factors. Traditional accounting indicators have got the highest usage, and also viewed as the most usefulness for performance measurement. This study provides more understanding on the accounting practices of manufacturing SMEs that can be used for further research regarding accounting practices in cross industrial district as well as cross country comparisons to provide rich information.

Handwriting flexible electronics: Tools, materials and emerging applications

Flexible electronics are excepted to be an important support for the next electronic age, and their quick, cost-effective, and easily realized fabrication is a key motivating factor to the on-going and future applications. The fabrication technique derived from day-to-day handwriting has prompted the advancement of producing flexible electronics with readily available, low-cost and user-friendly tools. Combined advances in materials science, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering strengthen this method in implementing electronic components, circuits, sensors, and energy devices. This review focuses on the milestones and recent achievements of handwriting flexible electronics, concerning the available tools, writing mechanisms, involved materials, and emerging applications. On account of the merits and demerits of the handwriting technique, discussions and conclusions about the superiorities, possible usages, challenges and predictions are also presented.

The Key Extrinsic Motivational Factors to Boost Undergraduate Students' Academic Performance and Achievement at a Private Higher Education Institution in Southern Lebanon

The Key Extrinsic Motivational Factors to Boost Undergraduate Students' Academic Performance and Achievement at a Private Higher Education Institution in Southern Lebanon

Interrelated factors driving the purchase of over-the-top television subscription services: A study using exploratory factor analysis and the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory method

This study identifies the key factors motivating people to subscribe to over-the-top (OTT) services and examines the causal relationships between those factors. As it is a multiple criteria decision-making problem, the study embraces an integrated model of exploratory factor analysis and the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method. The latter technique is used to simplify the decision-making process and visualise the interrelationships between the motivation factors. The study identifies four key motivational factors: flexibility, content, variety and social status, of which content is the most crucial. The findings of this study will be of interest to marketing analysts and decision-makers seeking to measure, analyse and improve marketing performance in order to develop better strategies for marketing OTT services.

Strategies in planning research integrity training (evidence of Ukraine)

In recent years, much work has been done to promote integrity in academic community in Ukraine. Still, educational interventions introduced to the local level have not yet become an effective instrument to foster integrity in academia. Current research aims to discuss the key motivational factors that influence the effectiveness of integrity trainings for early-career researchers at Ukrainian universities in order to identify the possible gaps during implementation of research integrity education at the institutional level; highlights the role education plays in fostering research integrity; explores the key factors that influence early-career researcher’s professional development; proposes the possible content of integrity workshop for early-career researchers; analyzes the interview findings to better understand the impact of education interventions on research behavior; and offers recommendations that could help the academic community develop educational content that increases awareness on research misconduct and detrimental practices. The article is based on the experience of conducting the research integrity workshops at the regional institution of higher education. Data was carried out as qualitative face-to-face semi-structured interviews to learn about the sources of knowledge on research integrity. The results of the study have shown that integrity trainings at Ukrainian higher education institutions goal not only to introduce researchers to integrity knowledge, but also to engage them in discussion about responsibility in science. The findings of the study may help to identify key factors that influence the effectiveness of research integrity trainings and develop effective tools to promote research integrity at the Ukrainian higher educational institutions.

A User-Centric Design Approach to Understand International Education in the Contemporary World: Motivations and Gender Preferences for Studying in Europe

Education holds promise as a vehicle for sustainable global development and human capacity development, as reflected in the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations. International education has become a prominent feature in contemporary times on the educational landscape as students become increasingly mobile in pursuit of their right to education. This study investigates the key factors that motivate international students to undertake better quality education at higher education (university) level, particularly in Europe, and the underlying gender preferences for study destinations within the framework of push-pull factors. The study collected responses of 288 individuals from 84 countries who had undertaken some form of education in Europe through the European Commission-funded Erasmus Mundus (EM) Scholarship. Responses were collected through an online platform, Survey Monkey. Outcomes of the study revealed that Germany, United Kingdom, Sweden, Netherlands, and Spain are the most popular destinations for pursuing higher education in Europe. The United Kingdom is the most preferred destination for female students while Germany is the most preferred destination for male students, with slight changes for other countries. Key motivating factors for international education were found to be scholarship opportunity, better quality of education, and availability of the relevant study program. The least influencing factors were found to be the commonality of language, suitable environment (eg climate, temperature), geographical proximity, the scope of migration, and social cost.

Key Motivational Factors Affecting Teachers’ Long-Term Engagement in School Projects

Key Motivational Factors Affecting Teachers’ Long-Term Engagement in School Projects

Research of motivation of employees in the IT sector in Bulgaria

The motivation of professionals is not based solely on good monetary remuneration. Nowadays, every experienced IT professional is interested first and foremost in a healthy work environment in a company and then on the pay level. The employer's assessment takes into account the level of stress, work-life balance, career development prerequisites, as well as the offered social benefits - supplementary health insurance, sports cards, food vouchers, drinks and fruit at work, events with colleagues outside the office, places for creative relaxation at work. Anything that helps the creative workflow because IT professionals, are creators in the field who work and need special conditions to grow their potential and deliver good results. The article explores and analyzes the motivation factors leading to the employees’ commitment of the IT companies in Bulgaria. Basic theoretical points of view are presented and the work of leading researchers in this field is being commented. A methodology has been developed and the summarized results are presented, on the two hypotheses that the authors set, namely: There is a link between Employee Compensation, working conditions, personal development opportunities and the psychological climate, and employee engagement and that Employee Compensation has exhausted the possibilities to be the only factor to guarantee the commitment of the employees in the IT industry. The results show that companies can not ignore any of the identified key motivational factors without losing employees and/or productivity/efficiency.

Rethinking game consumption in tourism: a case of the 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia outbreak in China

ABSTRACT This opinion piece highlights a lethal connection between novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP) and wildlife consumption in tourism. While NCP continues to make headlines in the mainstream media, little academic research has considered this illness, especially through the lens of food neophilic tourism. Yet this research stream requires attention, particularly because food is a key motivational factor behind tourists’ travel and destination choices. In the case of food neophilic tourism, visitors directly consume wildlife and other exotic cuisine. Unfortunately, this novelty-seeking behavior may pose health risks; wild and exotic animals can carry deadly viruses that have been found to trigger global health epidemics such as SARS, H1N1, bird flu, and NCP. Despite international government agencies’ legislative efforts to control wild and exotic animal consumption, demand from food neophilic tourists continues to increase. This paper initiates a dialogue urging tourism scholars to study food tourism and offers practical and theoretical insight to contextualize this perennial and pertinent phenomenon.

A mixed methods evaluation of an individualised yoga therapy intervention for rheumatoid arthritis: Pilot study

Objectivesto explore patients’ experiences of an individualised yoga therapy intervention for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), specifically in terms of its acceptability and impact on patient-reported outcomes. DesignTen patients took part in a 16 week yoga therapy intervention in a hospital setting, consisting of 10 one-to-one consultations with a yoga therapist followed by two group review sessions. Changes in health (EQ-5D, HADS) were assessed pre- and post-intervention and at 12-month follow-up. In-depth interviews were conducted post-intervention and analysed using thematic analysis. ResultsAttendance of the 1-to-1 sessions was high (98 %) and all participants reported strong commitment to their personalised home practice. There were significant improvements in measures of depression, anxiety, pain, quality of life and general health at post-intervention and 12-months (p < 0.05). In interviews, all but one participant reported positive changes to their symptoms and several reported reductions in their medication and broader benefits such as improved sleep, mood and energy, enabling re-engagement with life. The personally tailored nature of the practice and perceived benefits were key motivational factors. Particular value was placed on the therapeutic function of the consultation and provision of tools to manage stress and build resilience. ConclusionThis yoga therapy intervention was positively received by patients with RA, with high levels of adherence to both the treatments and tailored home practice. The findings suggest that yoga therapy has potential as an adjunct therapy to improve RA symptoms, increase self-care behaviours and manage stress and negative affect such as anxiety. A larger multi-centre study is therefore warranted.

Hydrogen enrichment on diesel engine with biogas in dual fuel mode

Fossil fuels fulfill a major part of the world's energy demand. Higher demand for energy, depletion of fossil fuels and environmental impacts are the key motivational factors to explore alternate energy sources. Biogas and Hydrogen seem to be the promising alternate gaseous fuels. In this paper, the performance and emission studies were performed on a stationary dual fuel engine using fuel combinations of diesel, biogas-diesel, hydrogen-diesel, and hydrogen-biogas-diesel. Experimental results reveal that the performance of dual fuel mode with hydrogen-biogas-diesel fuel improved, and emissions were reduced in comparison to the neat diesel operation. The Brake Thermal Efficiency (BThEff) was improved by 3.09%, Brake Specific Diesel Consumption (BSDC) was reduced by 71.05%, and Brake Specific Energy Consumption (BSEC) decreased by 12.13%. The emission parameters CO, HC, and NOx, were reduced by 88.09%, 5.68%, and 83.01% respectively. Injection timing, which was obtained at 21°CA BTDC, was optimized experimentally for the selected optimum hydrogen-biogas-diesel fuel.

What can completion time of quizzes tell us about students’ motivations and learning strategies?

Learning management systems (LMS) offer quiz tools that help students prepare for examinations. The purpose of this study is to investigate quiz tracking variables typically reported by LMS in relation to student achievement, motivation and learning strategies. The data from 143 undergraduate students comprised quiz tracking variables (number of attempts, completion time, and score), exam scores and responses to the Need for Cognition Scale (NfC), and selected components from the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire and the Achievement Goal Questionnaire. We hypothesized students retrieving information from memory while taking a quiz would complete the quiz in less time than students who searched for answers in the textbook, and consequently, quiz completion time would correlate with exam performance and key motivational and self-regulatory factors. We found quiz completion time correlated positively with performance-avoidance goal orientation. It correlated negatively with exam performance, NfC, self-efficacy, and effort regulation. The results indicated completion time of low stakes quizzes is associated with achievement-related motivations and reliably predicts achievement on summative exams. We attribute these links to the use of retrieval practice by students who successfully regulate their effort and learning strategies.

Pilgrimage in Slovakia—A Hidden Opportunity for the Management of Secular Objects?

The Slovak Republic is a country of a deeply rooted Catholic religion and rich cultural, religious and craft tradition. The authors, in their own research, primarily focus on a group of pilgrims, believers, mostly Roman Catholic and Greek Catholic, who are inhabitants of the Slovak Republic (not necessarily the region in which the object of interest is located). The research is based on geographic and sociological selection. The authors define the research object as cultural and historical secular monuments—museums, castles, chateaux, and the like—located in the centre attractive for this group of tourists, that is to say, in places connected with pilgrimage sites, cathedrals, historically important objects from the point of view of religious belief in individual regions of the Slovak Republic. The aim of the authors is to provide the management of these objects with valuable recommendations reasonably justified by the result of their research, in the context of attracting the target group to visit a selected cultural object not directly related to the tourist activity of the target group, but located in the region of which the target group expresses a strong interest, solely for reasons of religious belief and pilgrimage. The primary research phase target of the authors was to solve the problem of the existence of a specific spectrum of common dominant motivation factors of pilgrimage tourist participation as a target group of exploration of activities and an offer of secular objects in the region (see Materials and Methods, H1). We analysed the results of our research through the SPSS program. We used the factor analysis method to extract the key motivation factors, and we have extracted key factors using principal component analysis and VARIMAX rotation in the right-angle system (rotated solution), clusters, assuming that each corresponds to one of the expected motivation factors. Detailed research conception and methodology as well as the results are described in the article.

The effects of combining focus of attention and autonomy support on shot accuracy in the penalty kick.

The penalty kick is of great importance in the sport of soccer. Therefore, the aim of this study was to test predictions of the OPTIMAL theory and identify key attentional and motivational factors that impact the accuracy of the penalty kick. The following six groups of moderately skilled participants performed penalty kicks following instructions that directed their focus of attention or impacted their autonomy support: external focus with autonomy support (EF/AS), external focus alone (EF), internal focus with autonomy support (IF/AS), internal focus alone (IF), autonomy support alone (AS) and control (C) groups. The analysis showed that the EF/AS group demonstrated better kicking accuracy relatively to the IF/AS, IF and C groups, but there were no significant differences between the EF/AS and EF or AS groups. Interestingly, the EF/AS group showed higher self-efficacy compared to the EF, IF/AS, IF and C groups. The finding suggest that a combination of attentional and motivational factors may produce benefits in motor performance.

Patient perspectives of vigorous intensity aerobic interval exercise prehabilitation prior to radical cystectomy: a qualitative focus group study

Purpose Preoperative cardiopulmonary fitness is increasingly being recognized as an important factor influencing postoperative recovery outcomes in cancer patients. The aim of this study was to explore patient perspectives of preoperative high intensity aerobic interval exercise before radical cystectomy. Materials and methods Focus groups involving a purposive convenience sample of patients with bladder cancer (N = 14; mean age ± SD: 72.3 ± 6.0 years) were undertaken in a hospital education department. Data were analyzed using Framework analysis. Results Participants identified physical (e.g., fitness) psychological (e.g., preparing for their operation) and social (e.g., peer support) benefits of the program. Key motivational factors for engaging in exercise prehabiliation were identified as social support, previous exercise experience and objective measures of progression. The need for clear information from healthcare providers to ensure that patients are adequately prepared for sessions was highlighted. Conclusions This qualitative study provides new insights into the perspectives and experiences of patients with bladder cancer regarding participation in preoperative vigorous intensity aerobic exercise. The study yielded novel perceptions on the physical, psychological and social health benefits accruing from the exercise program and patient views on program design features, which are important for informing future interventions and implementation strategies. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION A preoperative high intensity aerobic interval exercise program before radical cystectomy provides physical, psychological and social benefits to individuals living with bladder cancer. Supervised exercise, objective improvement, and peer and family support all contribute to motivation to engage with preoperative high intensity aerobic interval exercise. Individuals may require support post-radical cystectomy in order to continue with exercise due to the uncertainty around this.

Inclusive leadership and creative self-efficacy: Testing the moderating and mediating mechanisms

Purpose: Creative self-efficacy (CSE) is a key motivational factor for individual creativity and the creation of new knowledge, which leads to new product development. Based upon Social Exchange Theory (SET) and Social Learning Theory (SLT), this study explores the effects of inclusive leadership (“manifested by openness, accessibility, and availability of a leader”) upon employees of CSE through the mediation of psychological availability and moderation of proactive personality. Design: This study inspected a sample of 222 individuals working in the software industry and directly linked to design, development, testing and implementation of new products. “Process macro” by Hayes was applied to inspect the mediating effect of psychological availability and the moderating effect of proactive personality in the association between inclusive leadership and CSE. Findings: Results shows that inclusive leadership style is positively related to psychological availability but not directly related to CSE which shows the mediation role of psychological availability between inclusive leadership and CSE, while the relationship between IL and CSE via organizational availability is moderated by individuals proactive personality. Originality: This research emphasizes the significance of IL in enhancing CSE among software development personals. It advances the theory of IL by examining the intervening influence of psychological availability and proactive personality on individuals CSE.

Educational goals, assessment preferences and approaches to learning of MBA and MPA students in Singapore

This study seeks to examine the educational goals, learning approach, and assessment preferences among part-time Master of Business Administration (MBA) and Master of Professional Accounting (MPA) students in Singapore. The quantitative study uses a questionnaire that employs a revised two-factor study process questionnaire (R-SPQ-2F) to identify students’ approach to learning, and the adapted Assessment Preference Inventory (API) to examine students’ preferences to different assessment types and tasks. The sample comprises 101 students (55 MBA and 46 MPA students) from various age groups, of which 57 are male students. The results of this study showed that educational goals relating to career advancement/enhancement and improved knowledge and skills were the key motivational factors that lead students to pursue postgraduate studies. When it comes to approaches to learning, students generally reported adopting a deep learning approach. This approach to learning was also evident in the assessment preference where they preferred assessments that required problem solving and application of materials learnt during the course. Among the five assessment types, respondents have a strong preference for individual assignments and showed least preference for exams. However, there was no significant difference in the preference for any of the assessment items/format among gender and age groups. The findings in this study can inform curriculum redesign for both programmes to suit the needs of existing students and also to increase their appeal to prospective students. The respondents’ views on their learning approach and assessment preferences allow instructors and module leaders to rethink the teaching pedagogy and current assessment structure that favour assignments in order to improve students’ learning experience.

Erasmus University Students Motivation and Segments: The Case of Universitat Politècnica de València, Spain

Abstract This study quantified Erasmus students’ motivations for studying abroad. Surveys were completed by 120 Erasmus students at the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) and their motivations for studying abroad were analysed via factor analysis. A two-step cluster analysis was used to segment students’ behaviour based on their motivations. Four factors were obtained: individual development, destination choice facilitators, academic aspects and the destination’s strong points. Behaviour was not uniform, and two different segments were found. In the first, which we refer to as “without perceived motivations”, no motivation was positively rated, while in the second, “with perceived motivations”, academics were a key motivating factor. Universities should consider working with the tourism sector to offer activities related to local culture. They could also organise classes outside of school hours to help Erasmus students learn Spanish.