Adopting an Organismic Perspective on Adolescent Academic Motivation for Instrumental Ensemble Participation

Students’ motivation to engage in elective music courses can be complicated or nuanced and is often informed by myriad personal and environmental factors. In this review of literature, I examine general education and music education research related to organismic perspectives on the development and maintenance of academic motivation among middle school students. The motivational constructs considered were Eccles’ task values (i.e., interest, attainment, utility, and cost) and Deci and Ryan’s psychological needs (i.e., autonomy, competence, and relatedness). When adolescents evaluate the importance, usefulness, enjoyment, and cost of the electives in which they take part, they are formulating task value beliefs. The more that students value a task, the greater the likelihood they will continue to engage in the task despite the costs. Continued task engagement, however, may require that students’ psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness be met. Implications and suggestions for music teachers are also presented.