Learning and Motivation最新文献

This study aims to examine the effects of different instructional interventions (i.e., autonomy-supportive, controlling, or a combination thereof) on student motivation and academic research performance. Here, a total of 328 s-year Chinese students majoring in mathematics completed the Academic Motivation Scale (AMS) survey before and after the intervention involving an array of research-related assignments. Learners in the autonomy-supportive group showed a lower level of amotivation and higher intrinsic motivation compared to the pretest; the differences were 2.62 and 11.95 points. Their level of extrinsic motivation remained unchanged. The controlling intervention had the opposite effect, causing the mean extrinsic motivation score to increase by 10.25 points. The hybrid approach showed significant improvement in all three scales: amotivation (−3.82 points), extrinsic motivation (+4.35 points), and intrinsic motivation (+7.13 points). The autonomy-supportive teaching style corresponds to lower scores in mathematical modeling (72.30), linear algebra (74.62), and numerical analysis (77.65). High standard deviations indicate that research activity scores are spread out over a wide range. The controlling instructional approach yielded higher scores (83.95, 81.68, and 81.88 points, respectively) with the smallest standard deviations. Learners in the hybrid group scored the highest (86.98, 82.30, and 82.90 points, respectively), with moderate standard deviations indicating a well-balanced performance. The findings indicate that a hybrid approach, which combines autonomy support with instructor control, is the most effective in enhancing both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation among students, as well as improving their academic performance. The implications for higher education policy include the necessity of developing and implementing hybrid learning models that cater to the individual needs of students while providing the requisite level of support and oversight.

Large language models (LLMs) greatly affect language learning, but research on Chinese EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners’ engagement is limited. In this sense, the present study draws upon Self-Determination Theory (SDT) and employs a mixed-methods approach to explore how 210 Chinese EFL Learners engage with LLMs. Findings showed that most of the basic psychological needs (BPNs) play a critical role in predicting behavioral, cognitive, and emotional engagement. However, perceived autonomy did not emerge as a predictor for behavioral engagement, and perceived competence was not found to be a predictor for either behavioral engagement or cognitive engagement. Furthermore, our qualitative interviews showed that the influence of BPNs on EFL learners’ engagement with LLMs can be categorized into six thematic areas: self-directed learning empowerment, goal-oriented learning challenges, individual performance enhancement, limited knowledge advancement, collaborative learning access, and interpersonal connection gaps. The findings of this study could provide insights for foreign language teachers in their instructional design and for policymakers in formulating relevant policies.

Studies have shown that it is possible to establish conditional relations among stimuli presented for very brief durations in a matching-to-sample task.

Objectives

In the present investigation, we asked whether it is possible to establish equivalence relations following the training of conditional relations among stimuli presented for fractions of a second.

Methods

Two experiments were conducted. Adults performed a successive Go/No-go discrimination task in which one element of a compound stimuli was presented for durations as short as 33 ms. Stimuli were combinations of geometric figures and colored backgrounds. In the conditional discrimination training, touching only the correct stimuli was followed by reinforcement. Emergent stimulus relations were tested under extinction.

Results

Presenting either figures or colors with durations as short as 33 ms promoted the acquisition of baseline conditional relations that generated the emergence of corresponding equivalence classes.

Conclusions

Stimuli, with durations as short as 33 ms, exerted discriminative control over human participants and had the capability to establish equivalence classes, which holds significant importance for symbolic learning.

The key to excellence in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines requires mastery of the dynamics that underlie student learning and achievement. Among these factors, self-regulated learning, motivation, and emotional intelligence play critical but distinct roles in attaining academic outcomes. However, the relationships among these educational and psychological factors are not fully understood from the perspective of self-determination theory. This study delves into the intricate relationship between emotional intelligence, motivation to learn science, and self-regulated learning among Chinese STEM students. A sample of 650 undergraduate STEM students from various universities in China participated in this study. The pilot test was conducted before distributing the questionnaires, including the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Short Form (TEIQue-SF), the Science Motivation Questionnaire II (SMQ-II), and the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ). Using the structural equation modeling, this study found a significant correlation between self-regulated learning, motivation to learn science, and emotional intelligence. Moreover, the study showed the predictive role of self-regulated learning in determining STEM students’ emotional intelligence and motivation to learn science. This study provided some important implications for policy-makers and instructors in considering self-determination theory in STEM education and developing STEM students’ motivation, emotional intelligence, and self-regulated learning to enhance educational outcomes.

Musical Performance Anxiety (MPA) is a multifaceted issue that exists on a spectrum of severity, necessitating an exploration of the underlying factors that hinder or reduce it within musical educational environments. Self-efficacy and motivation are widely recognized as significant determinants in the context of musical performance. Motivation has been a focal point in music education research, underscoring its importance in educational psychology and other skill-based performance domains. A comprehensive understanding of motivation is essential for elucidating students' achievements, performance, well-being, and intentions in music education. This study aims to investigate the impact of music students' self-efficacy and motivation on their MPA by analyzing data from 557 music participants who completed scales related to self-efficacy, motivation, and MPA. The research had a correlation-based research approach, typical in descriptive quantitative studies. The findings indicated that there exists a notable negative correlation between self-efficacy and MPA, as well as between motivation and MPA. In contrast, a substantial constructive correlation emerged between motivation and self-efficacy, indicating the interrelated nature of these constructs within the context of the study. The findings of the study through Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) indicated that a substantial proportion, estimated at around 54 %, of the variability evident in MPA among music students can be ascribed to the collective impact exerted by their levels of self-efficacy and motivation. Indeed, higher levels of self-efficacy and motivation are associated with lower degrees of MPA, suggesting that nurturing these attributes could potentially enhance music students’ overall performance. The paper provides recommendations for teaching participants in musical education.

Matricaria chamomilla L. is a well-known plant, which has decreased morphine dependence and withdrawal. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of the hydroalcoholic extract of Matricaria chamomile and the role of serotonergic receptor on the rewarding effects of morphine using a conditioned place preference (CPP) paradigm in rats. In this study, adult male Wistar rats received intraperitoneal injection of Matricaria chamomile (30 mg/kg) to assess of the acquisition and expression of the morphine-induced CPP and also received intraperitoneal injection of ketanserin (1 mg/kg) to assess of the extinction and reinstatement of CPP following Matricaria chamomile and as well as measurement of CSF serotonin levels. The results indicated that the Matricaria chamomile extract significantly attenuated the acquisition and expression of morphine reward memory in CPP paradigm. While the Matricaria chamomile had no effect on the extinction of reward memory, despite a significant increase in the CSF serotonin levels in the rats receiving ketanserin/chamomile. Also, Matricaria chamomile had no effect on the reinstatement and the CSF serotonin levels, while ketanserin reduced the CSF serotonin level and increased the CPP score in the reinstatement of reward memory for morphine. We conclude that the Matricaria chamomile attenuated the acquisition and expression of morphine reward memory, while could not maintain the extinguished memory and had no effect on the reinstatement of reward memory. Also, the blocking of serotonin receptor reduced the CSF serotonin level and increased the CPP score in both extinction and reinstatement phases. Therefore, Matricaria chamomile as a useful adjunctive therapeutic strategy may exert a protective effect against opiate-induced reward and incentive motivation during drug craving in opiate-addicted individuals.

EFL writing achievement is shaped by complex interactions among motivational factors. This study investigates these interactions by examining the mediating and chain effects among prior achievement, self-efficacy, learner engagement, and final writing in EFL writing contexts. Data were collected through surveys and writing tests over a term in a Chinese university. The participants consisted of 176 college students enrolled in an English writing course. Structural equation modeling analysis was used to examine the mediating effects and chain effects of the latent variables. Results indicate that self-efficacy has a positive and indirect influence on final achievement via the mediation of learner engagement. Prior achievement also has a positive and indirect influence on final achievement via the mediation of self-efficacy. However, prior achievement does not show a positive indirect effect on final achievement via the mediation of learner engagement. A chain effect is observed when self-efficacy is included in the chain among prior achievement, learner engagement and final achievement, highlighting the significant role of self-efficacy in this relationship. Lastly, theoretical and pedagogical implications are discussed.

Three questionnaire studies examined retrospective revaluation during judgments of causal attribution in social situations, that is, judgments about whether a particular individual or environmental cause was responsible for an outcome. An initial phase of training occurred in which two individuals (or one person and an environmental event) were described as possible candidates as causes of an outcome. One cause was the target test cause, and the other cause was manipulated in Phase 2. In Phase 2, new information about the validity of the “nontarget” cause was presented. This “nontarget” cause was either elevated in its causal status (an “inflation” treatment) or decreased in status as a possible cause (a “deflation” treatment). Participants rated the extent that the target cause was the cause of the outcome before and after receiving the inflation or deflation information in Phase 2. The difference in those scores was calculated to examine the potential of the Phase 2 information to influence attributions regarding the target cause (retrospective revaluation). Retrospective revaluation effects were found, specifically in deflation conditions, such that this new Phase 2 information did influence judgments about causal status of the target cause (Study 1); but inflation effects were weak. Deflation occurred when the cause was environmental and when it involved two people as causes. Also, the importance of the strength of the association between two causes (“within-compound associations”) was evaluated in two subsequent studies, revealing that this factor is important for observing retrospective revaluation, particularly when the strength of the association is either weak or strong but not of medium strength.

One experiment in instrumental conditioning studied the effect of delayed reinforcement on attention, considered as the stimulus control produced by each element of a compound sample stimulus (CSS). A two-element (shape and color) CSS indicated the response to be reinforced between three comparison stimuli in an online matching-to-sample task with human participants. Forty-eight university students were assigned to three groups with different reinforcement delays: 0 s, 8 s, and 16 s (D0, D8, and D16). After learning the task, a separate test took place, with the elements of the CSS presented separately. Group D0 responded more to the shape. The D8 group responded to both elements, while the D16 group responded more to the color. Results showed that attention to each element of the CSS changes as reinforcement delay increases. These findings are similar to those of Urcelay and Miller (2009) on Pavlovian conditioning, pointing out similarities between Reynolds’ findings and Pavlovian overshadowing.

Due to the vital role of classroom communications in the success of EMI courses, factors driving students to communicate with teachers and classmates need to be recognized. In this respect, several scholars worldwide have explored different emotional, personal, and environmental sources of students’ willingness to communicate (WTC). Nonetheless, the impacts of learning motivation and academic self-efficacy have somehow been overlooked in previous investigations. That is, few investigations have inspected the effects of these personal factors on students’ decisions to speak. Additionally, no research study has been carried out on the consequences of motivation and self-efficacy for EMI students’ decisions to communicate. To address the mentioned gaps, this investigation measured the influences of learning motivation and academic self-efficacy on Chinese EMI students’ WTC. In doing so, three closed-ended questionnaires were given to 303 Chinese EMI students. Correlation tests indicated positive links between WTC, academic self-efficacy, and learning motivation. Regression analysis also demonstrated the significant, positive effects of learning motivation and academic self-efficacy on Chinese EMI students’ WTC. The results of this inquiry could be beneficial for all EMI teachers and teacher trainers.