Situational Motivation Research Articles

Multiple action options in the context of time: When exams approach, students study more and experience fewer motivational conflicts

University students’ study motivation in a particular moment is shaped by contextual factors such as upcoming exams and conflicts between different action tendencies. We investigated how these two contextual factors are related. Based on the theoretical assumption that students’ in-the-moment study motivation increases relative to their motivation for other activities as exams approach, we investigated how students’ study activities and their experience of motivational action conflicts develop when exams come closer in time. Using the experience sampling method, we tracked the in-situ activities and conflict experience of 134 first-semester university students over one week and a total of 4995 measurement points just before exams. Multilevel logistic regression revealed that the probability to study increased by 13.9% and the probability to experience a motivational conflict decreased by 17.5% each day the exam came closer in time. Multilevel regression showed that motivational conflicts were more intense the closer the exam was in time. Students were generally less likely to experience conflicts while studying and experienced more intense conflicts when the conflicting activity was study related. We discuss that both multiple goals and the temporal distance of relevant events should be considered as relevant contexts shaping the situated motivation of university students.

The Differential Effect of Privacy-Related Trust on Groupware Application Adoption and Use during the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic lockdown lead to the rapid adoption and use of various groupware applications ("apps'') for remote connection with colleagues, friends, and family. Different factors such as user experiences, trust, and social influences ("user-situational motivations'') were instrumental in determining how and what apps people adopted and used, especially at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this empirical study, we examine how these factors and four predominant user-situational motivations (i.e., the mandated use of an app by an employer/institution, recommended use of an app by an employer/institution, recommended use of an app by a peer(s), and self-selection of an app) influenced the rapid adoption and use of groupware applications. Specifically, we develop an "emergency adoption model" of groupware applications using 195 valid survey responses to highlight the factors that motivated these apps' use at the onset of COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. We leverage the Technology Adoption Model (TAM) and integrate it with the users' past use of the application before the COVID-19 lockdown, user-situational motivation, and their privacy-related trust in the application provider to develop a more comprehensive model. Using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM), we find that the users who used a groupware app in the past continued to use it, and in line with TAM, users' intention to adopt and use a groupware application was largely driven by the ease-of-use and usefulness of the app. Furthermore, while not a part of the traditional TAM model, we find that privacy-related trust in the application provider plays an important role in emergency adoption. However, unlike typical adoption models, the nature of all these effects---most prominently those related to privacy-related trust---depend on the underlying situational motivation. We discuss the implications of these findings and suggest ways to improve the adoption and use of groupware applications, especially during crises like the COVID-19 pandemic.

Personalization Improves Gamification

Personalization of gamification is an alternative to overcome the shortcomings of the one-size-fits-all approach, but the few empirical studies analyzing its effects do not provide conclusive results. While many user and contextual information affect gamified experiences, prior personalized gamification research focused on a single user characteristic/dimension. Therefore, we hypothesize if a multidimensional approach for personalized gamification, considering multiple (user and contextual) information, can improve user motivation when compared to the traditional implementation of gamification. In this paper, we test that hypothesis through a mixed-methods sequential explanatory study. First, 26 participants completed two assessments using one of the two gamification designs and self-reported their motivations through the Situational Motivation Scale. Then, we conducted semi-structured interviews to understand learners' subjective experiences during these assessments. As result, the students using the personalized design were more motivated than those using the one-size-fits-all approach regarding intrinsic motivation and identified regulation. Furthermore, we found the personalized design featured game elements suitable to users' preferences, being perceived as motivating and need-supporting. Thus, informing i) practitioners on the use of a strategy for personalizing gamified educational systems that is likely to improve students' motivations, compared to OSFA gamification, and ii) researchers on the potential of multidimensional personalization to improve single-dimension strategies. For transparency, dataset and analysis procedures are available at https://osf.io/grzhp.

Misinformation and Government Crisis Management in South Korea: Understanding Active Publics’ Belief in Misinformation about the Yemeni Refugee Issue and Its Effect on Active Communication Behaviors

This study aims to investigate how situationally motivated publics respond to misinformation in the context of the Yemeni refugee issue in South Korea. In particular, this study examined how situational motivation in problem-solving on the issue is associated with belief in misinformation and active communication behaviors in the framework of situation theory of problem-solving (STOPS). The results of this study showed that individuals with a high level of situational motivation are more likely to believe misinformation on a given issue. In addition, the result found that belief in misinformation mediates between situational motivation in problem-solving and information forwarding. The results of this study contribute to government crisis management dealing with refugee issues.

Real-world simultaneous alcohol and cannabis use: An ecological study of situational motives and social and physical contexts.

Given the adverse outcomes associated with simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use, understanding factors that give rise to occasions of simultaneous use is critical. This study examines the relationships between situational motives and contexts and three situational outcomes: simultaneous alcohol and marijuana use (SAM) use versus cannabis-only use, number of cannabis uses, and subjective effects. Past-month SAM users (n = 341; 52% female; 75% White; 10% Latinx/Hispanic; age 18-24) from three U.S. college campuses completed 8 weeks of surveys up to five times a day. Three-level generalized linear mixed-effects models tested the effects of situational motives and social and physical contexts on occasion type (SAM vs. cannabis-only), cannabis use, and subjective effects. Situational social and enhancement motives were related to greater odds of SAM relative to cannabis-only use; expansion motives were reported more often on cannabis-only occasions. Using with others and at friends' places, being with others consuming cannabis, and being with others who are intoxicated were more likely when combining alcohol with cannabis. Increased number of cannabis uses and subjective effects in a social context were evident only on cannabis-only occasions. Using alone and using at home were greater on cannabis-only occasions and were associated with lower cannabis use and subjective effects. The combination of alcohol and cannabis use occurs during social situations and when motivated by positive reinforcement but number of cannabis uses is not increased when consuming cannabis with alcohol in social situations. Characterizing the complex interplay of situational factors that contribute to risky use will inform interventions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

E-commerce in the fashion business: the roles of the COVID-19 situational factors, hedonic and utilitarian motives on consumers’ intention to purchase online

ABSTRACT The study intends to investigate the roles of the COVID-19 epidemic situational factors and hedonic and utilitarian motives on consumers’ intent to buy fashion products online. It is theorised that the COVID-19 epidemic situational factors include physical obstacles caused by the lockdown and the closings of brick-and-mortar retailers, the antecedent states linked to the anxiety during the outbreak, the store atmosphere characterised by the risk of contracting the Coronavirus during shopping activity, and social distancing. An online questionnaire was collected from 351 Indonesian consumers. SmartPLS 3 and PLS-SEM were used for hypothesis testing. The results reveal that the COVID-19 epidemic situational factors, utilitarian and hedonic motives positively and significantly affect consumers’ intent to buy fashion products online. These findings will help online marketers and retailers develop their websites and improve their selling endeavours.

The Influence of Situational Leadership, Work Environment, Competence, and Motivation on Employee Job Satisfaction at the National Library of Indonesia

This study aims to determine the effect of situational leadership, work environment, competence, and motivation on employee satisfaction at the National Library. The research population is the National Library employees who work in the Deputy for Library Material Development and Information Services, with a total sample of 195 people. The design of this research is quantitative research with a data analysis method using multiple linear regression. The results of the study state that situational leadership has a positive and significant effect on employee job satisfaction, the work environment has a positive and significant impact on employee job satisfaction, competence has a positive and significant impact on employee job satisfaction, and motivation has a positive and significant impact on employee job satisfaction. Situational leadership, work environment, competence and motivation together have a positive and significant effect on employee job satisfaction.

A systematic evaluation of game elements effects on students\u2019 motivation

Motivation theory is indispensable when discussing processes of learning. Learners who are motivated can learn almost everything. Students’ motivation is probably one of the most important factors for teacher effectiveness both for engagement in the learning process and high academic performance. To have effective environmental education, it is not only necessary to inform the public about the ocean but also to involve and engage them is essential. Motivation and engagement are some of the most commonly mentioned concepts in gamification, thus, a gamified application seems to have the necessary features to improve the motivation of students in the learning context of Ocean Literacy topics. The main aims of this work were: i) to understand through a systematic evaluation, how game elements affect the different motivation layers; and ii) to compare them in terms of enhancing the motivation to recycle among secondary school students (11-14 years). To measure students’ motivation, a pre-test and a post-test using a recycling situational motivation survey were administered in a classroom environment in Portugal and the UK. Findings show a trend regarding the effect of game elements mainly on the most autonomous forms of motivation. The different game elements, each one with different degrees of effects, were shown to have potential to increase motivation.

Change in Learning Motivation Observed through the Introduction of Design Thinking in a Mobile Application Programming Course

Traditional teacher-centered teaching focused on classroom lectures has met numerous challenges in recent years, which has motivated teachers to make use of design thinking for their classes. This study made use of design thinking in an iOS programming course to find ways to improve the students’ critical thinking, learning motivation and solve practical issues through mobile APP development. In the program, students were required to answer situational motivation questionnaires before and after design thinking is implemented in the course. Results showed that the values of the Cronbach’s Alpha for the initial course expectation in both iterations were reliable. Subsequently, when students feel that the solutions are recognized and supported by other students and teachers in the course, there is an upward trend in the curves of their external regulation, identified regulation, and intrinsic motivation. This study successfully designed the course content and evaluation methods that have shown significant increase in the students’ motivation through the incorporation of design thinking in the mobile application programming course.

Flourishing in Young Adults: The Role of Achievement Goals, Participation Motivation, and Self-Perception Levels in Physical Activity Contexts

This study aims to determine how achievement goals, participation motivation and self-perception levels in physical activity environments relate to the flourishing of young adults. The general purpose of the study was also to examine differences in selected variables of young adults flourishing in physical activity environments. To achieve our aims, the recruited sample consisted of 580 young adult exercisers ranging in age from 18 to 40 years from fitness centers in Izmir, Turkey. Participants completed a personal information form, the Flourishing Scale, the 2 × 2 Achievement Goals Questionnaire for Sport (2 × 2 AGQ-S), the Situational Motivation Scale (SIMS), and the Physical Self-Description Questionnaire (PSDQ). We examined correlations, regressions, and path models with our measured variables. Flourishing relates significantly (p < 0.001) and positively with global self-esteem, the mastery-approach goal, intrinsic motivation, and global physical self-concept. Our path model suggested that the mastery-approach goal, intrinsic motivation, and global self-esteem partially mediated the relationship between global physical self-concept and flourishing. Our findings help to inform alternative approaches for cultivating exercisers’ flourishing. However, knowledge on how to support and develop flourishing is still under-researched in sport and exercise settings.

Megaphoning effects of skepticism, cynicism, and situational motivation on an environmental CSR activity

The purpose of this study was to examine how individuals’ skepticism and cynicism about an environmental corporate social responsibility (CSR) activity influence their positive and negative communication behaviors toward a corporation (megaphoning effects). The findings demonstrated the important mediating role of situational motivation in problem solving on a given environmental issue between skepticism/cynicism and megaphoning effects. Using a nationwide survey of 504 participants living in the United States, this study found that skepticism and cynicism increased the negative megaphoning effect and decreased positive megaphoning behaviors. Furthermore, skepticism/cynicism and megaphoning behaviors were partially mediated by situational motivation in problem solving. In particular, skeptics who were motivated to solve an environmental issue were less likely to take and forward negative information about a corporation in an environmental CSR activity. This study provides new theoretical and practical insights into CSR strategies that address skepticism and cynicism in publics and their resulting communicative behaviors.

Students’ Motivation to Acquire English through Virtual Learning Midst Covid-19 Pandemic

This research aimed to find out students’ motivation to acquire English as a foreign language through virtual learning midst Covid-19 pandemic. It involved 202 students spread throughout Indonesia. Data were collected by means of motivation questionnaires adopted from the Situational Motivation Scale (SIMS) of students’ motivation, i.e., instrumental motivation and integral motivation. The data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and Pearson’s Correlation on SPSS 22. The result shows that the students have a low level of motivation both for integrative and instrumental motivation to acquire English. The statistical calculation reveals that there is a correlation between the students’ motivation and virtual learning activity as shown by the level of significance 0,000<0,05 with the coefficient Pearson’s correlation of 0,282. There is no correlation between the students’ motivation and the Covid-19 pandemic as depicted by Pearson’s correlation of 0,062 with the significant level of 0,382>0,05. The research implies a need for a more innovative instructional design for virtual language learning to better improve students’ motivation to learn English during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Consequences of Sisyphean Efforts: Meaningless Effort Decreases Motivation to Engage in Subsequent Conservation Behaviors through Disappointment

This paper explores the consequences of engaging in conservation efforts that later appear purposeless. Specifically, we tested the model in which disappointment lays at the root of decreased motivation in such situations. In Studies 1 and 2, participants (n = 239 and n = 283) imagined that they had recycled plastic bottles for a week and that an assistant had collected their garbage in either separate bags (meaningful condition) or only one bag (meaningless condition). Half of participants imagined that they had put plastic bags and screw caps into separate containers (low-effort condition), the other half imagined that they had torn off the label bands (high-effort condition). In Study 3, a longitudinal field experiment, participants (n = 286) took part in a real situation that followed the procedure from Studies 1 and 2. Altogether, we confirmed the moderating effect of effort on relationship between meaninglessness and motivation through experienced disappointment. We discuss consequences of efforts wasted for beliefs, intentions and behaviors affording sustainable solutions.

Motivation, pedagogy, and gender: examining the multifaceted and dynamic situational responses of women and men in college STEM courses

BackgroundResearch illustrates that student motivations influence learning engagement, persistence, and achievement in powerful ways and that positive motivations are linked to deeper learning, critical thinking, pro-social behavior, and better performance. Most studies of learner motivation, however, are conducted outside of STEM and are focused at the contextual level, which may describe why students attend college or choose a degree program, but not why they engage in classroom activities. Furthermore, there is little research that meaningfully connects learner motivations with gender identity and course pedagogy. This study addresses these gaps by examining the interconnections among course pedagogy, gender, and situational-level motivations, which reveal why learners engage in different course activities and how engagement may vary over time. This detailed perspective on learner motivations is essential for instructors to gain insights into how their pedagogical and course design choices influence students’ motivational responses and to more effectively develop interventions that support positive forms of motivation among all students.ResultsParticipants in the study are undergraduate students enrolled in 72 introductory-level STEM courses across 11 institutions, and the dataset includes over 5000 unique responses to the Situational Motivation Scale, a Self-Determination Theory-based instrument that was administered weekly in each course. Analysis reveals seven typical motivational response types, ranging from a highly control-oriented to a highly autonomous response. Most students express multiple types of motivation during an academic term in a course, illustrating the dynamic nature of motivations. Cluster distributions by gender and pedagogy indicate significant differences in lecture-based learning courses, with women reporting less self-determined motivations compared to men. Motivational response profiles of women and men are both more similar, and more positive overall, in courses that employ active learning.ConclusionsThese findings have important implications for practitioners. The concept of motivational co-expression encourages instructors to move toward a more nuanced appraisal of learner motivation. The stability analyses challenge embedded beliefs about the fixed nature of learner motivation. The gender analyses raise questions about how instructors may more effectively promote the positive motivations of all students through their course design decisions.

The situational motivation scale in the exercise context: Construct validity, factor structure, and correlational analysis

The purpose of this study was to: a) translate and adapt the Situational Motivational Scale (SIMS) in a sample of Portuguese exercisers and examine the factor structure of the scale; and b) evaluate discriminant validity and internal consistency of the factors, as a way to determine multidimensionality. Additionally, we sought to determine the correlational validity of the scale by examining exerciser motivation on enjoyment and exercise participation. Participants were 264 Portuguese exercisers (female = 157) aged between 18 and 69 years, with a mean exercise experience of 5.73 years. Exercisers completed a multi-section survey assessing their situational motivation towards exercising. Several model specifications were tested, namely confirmatory and exploratory factor models. The results of this research support all three hypotheses: (i) that the translation and item adaptation were done correctly, and that the measurement model showed acceptable fit to the data; (ii) the discriminant validity of the factors as well as acceptable internal consistency; and (iii) the correlational validity of exercisers’ motivation with enjoyment and exercise frequency.

Predicting Information Behaviors in the COVID-19 Pandemic: Integrating the Role of Emotions and Subjective Norms into the Situational Theory of Problem Solving (STOPS) Framework

ABSTRACT This study examined individuals’ information behaviors in the COVID-19 pandemic. It applied the situational theory of problem solving (STOPS) and integrated the role of two negative emotions (i.e., fear and anger) and subjective norms into the framework. A survey of 627 South Korean adults was conducted in March 2020, when the country experienced an early but rapidly accelerating pandemic stage. The results of structural equation modeling demonstrated that in addition to confirming the major propositions of STOPS, three situational perception variables (i.e., problem recognition, involvement recognition, and constraint recognition) were highly associated with an individual’s fear and anger regarding the COVID-19 outbreak. However, only fear significantly affected situational motivation in problem-solving and information behaviors (i.e., information-seeking, forwarding, and permitting). The study discusses the theoretical and practical implications of the findings.

Situational interest during individual reading and peer reading activities using PALS: its relationship to students’ reading skills and reading motivations

ABSTRACT This study examines how students’ situational interest changes across different segments of peer reading activities and identifies the relationship with personal traits like the students reading skills and motivation. The authors measured their levels of situational interest, reading skills, and reading motivation, based on their participation in individual and peer reading using PALS. The result revealed that situational interest was rather stable across different segments during peer reading activities. However, the change in situational interest differed between less competent readers and more competent readers across different reading tasks. The less proficient readers showed a significant increase in situational interest before and after peer reading. Furthermore, situational interest during peer reading activities did not correlate with reading motivations, contrary to the result of the individual reading task. The findings suggest that peer reading may be more beneficial than individual reading when teaching learners with low reading skills or motivation.

The Direct and Indirect Relationships Within the Extended Trans-contextual Model for Moderate-to-vigorous Physical Activity.

Given the low levels of physical activity (PA) in adolescence, there are challenges to increasing students' PA outside of the school setting. Thus, researchers emphasize the supportive role that physical education (PE) teachers can play in PA motivation both in and out of school. The aim of the present study was to examine an expanded trans-contextual model (TCM) model for the transit of teachers' perceived support of students' autonomy in terms of contextual and situational motivation in PE to objectively measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in PE across different PE contents as well as to the motivational sequence for, and participation in, subjective MVPA during leisure time. This cross-sectional study involved 283 high school students, of whom 43.9% were boys. The autonomous support students received and other motivational factors and objective measures of MVPA in PE and subjective MVPA in leisure time were measured. The results indicate that support for autonomy was significantly and directly related to needs satisfaction (β = 0.61, p < 0.001) and indirectly to autonomous motivation in PE (β = 0.19, p < 0.001) and leisure time (β = 0.16, p < 0.001), intention in PE (β = 0.03, p < 0.05) and leisure time (β = 0.07, p < 0.001), and leisure time MVPA (β = 0.04, p < 0.001), although not MVPA in PE. Gender was a significant covariate for both MVPA in PE (β = −0.62, p < 0.001) and MVPA in leisure time (β = −0.37, p < 0.001), with higher MVPA in boys than girls. This study filled a gap in the scientific literature by demonstrating the full motivational sequence resulting in actual MVPA in PE classes. It also demonstrated that the main goal of PE of enhancing PA not only in school but also outside of school is working. The main motivator is needs satisfaction based on PE teachers' support.

Toward a Holistic Approach for Nuanced Public Segmentation: Social Vigilantism and the Situational Theory of Problem Solving (STOPS)

ABSTRACT This study investigated a dynamic interplay between social vigilantism (SV) – the extent to which one believes in his/her opinion superiority and the tendency to preach to others – and situational variables from the STOPS model. We explored how the two, separately and together, impacted publics’ active communicative action for problem-solving (active CAPS), as well as participation intent for an environmental corporate social responsibility (CSR) campaign. Structural equation modeling results demonstrated that problem and involvement recognitions motivated people to communicate about the given issue, while constraint recognition decreased the motivation. SV was a strong driving force for people to actively communicate about a given issue; additionally, as a moderator, SV amplified the positive effect of involvement recognition on situational motivation and that of referent criterion on active communicative engagement. SV, however, was a negative predictor of participation intent in the environmental CSR campaign. This study extends our understanding of segmentation of publics by taking a synthetic approach and furthers our knowledge in delineating more-nuanced subgroups in active publics.

Week-to-week interplay between teachers’ motivating style and students’ engagement

Research has shown that teachers’ autonomy support and provision of structure relate to students’ agentic and behavioral engagement. Moreover, agentic engagement elicits higher teacher autonomy support. In the present 5-week diary study, we investigated the dynamic nature of this interplay between teachers and students through their cross-assessment of students’ agentic and behavioral engagement. We also considered the week-to-week student-reported teacher autonomy support and provision of structure as well as two student personal characteristics — proactive personality and situational autonomous versus controlled motivation. Two hundred fifty-seven Turkish middle school students and their teachers from 13 classes participated in the study. Multilevel analyses showed that students’ week-to-week perceived autonomy support and initial level of autonomous motivation positively predicted week-to-week agentic engagement (teacher- and student-reported). Students’ week-to-week perceived structure positively predicted week-to-week agentic and behavioral engagement (student-, but not teacher-, reported). These findings indicate the interplay between students’ situational engagement and teachers’ situational motivating style (i.e., autonomy support and provision of structure). They also suggest greater predictive power for students’ situational motivation over the personal trait of proactive personality.