College of Education
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Item Latino fathers' motivations, parental play, parent and friend relationship support, and children's socioemotional development from early childhood to adolescence in racially-ethnically diverse families(2024) Ghosh, Rachel Alina; Cabrera, Natasha; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Parenting practices and parent-child relationship quality, shaped in part by parenting cognitions and beliefs, have a strong proximal contribution to the course and outcome of children’s development from early in the lifespan. However, much existent empirical knowledge about parenting comes from studies of White middle-class mothers and children, and there is far less evidence from racially, ethnically, and economically diverse families – especially from fathers. Through a collection of three interrelated studies, the present dissertation contributes to this literature with an examination of fathers’ parenting motivations, and mothers’ and fathers’ independent and interactive influences on child and adolescent socioemotional outcomes among diverse families. Empirical Paper 1 qualitatively explored what motivated first-time Latino fathers in the U.S. to be good parents for their infants, and examined differences in their motivations by nativity status. Fathers described five primary themes, with variation by nativity,in their parenting motivations: 1) personal rearing history, 2) desire to rear a well-adjusted child, 3) relationship with their child, 4) intrinsic motivations, and 5) sense of duty and responsibility. Empirical Paper 2 examined associations between mothers’ and fathers’ quality of play (i.e., challenging parenting behaviors, playfulness) at 18 months and toddlers’ social competence at 24 months, and tested whether child negative emotional temperament moderated these associations. Contrary to hypotheses, there were no significant associations between mothers’ or fathers’ two types of play and children’s social competence, and no significant moderation effects by negative emotionality. Empirical Paper 3 examined the interactive effects of adolescents’ level of support in their relationships with mothers, fathers, and best friends in the 8th grade and associations with depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and externalizing problems in the 9th grade, as well as differences by adolescent sex. There were several interactive effects of the relationships on later depressive symptoms, though not on anxiety symptoms or externalizing problems, and few differences by adolescent sex. More support from one parent was related to fewer depressive symptoms when youth experienced an unsupportive relationship with the other parent or with a best friend. Taken together, the findings of these studies advance developmental theory and provide nuance to our understanding of mothering, fathering, and children’s and adolescents’ socioemotional developmental processes. These studies have implications for research and programs aimed at promoting the normative, healthy development of diverse youth through recognizing and capitalizing on the contributions of different members within the family system.Item Uncovering the Relations Among College Students’ Expectancies, Task Values, Engagement, and STEM Course Outcomes(2020) Gladstone, Jessica R.; Wigfield, Allan; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)In the last thirty years, student engagement has received much attention as an important contributor to students’ school success. One major limitation of the research on student engagement is that there is not a widely accepted theory regarding what constitutes it and how it relates to motivation. In the present study I examined relations of college students’ motivational beliefs and task values (as defined in Eccles and colleagues’ expectancy-value theory, EVT) to proposed dimensions of their engagement: behavioral, cognitive, social, agentic, and behavioral and emotional disaffection. In particular, I examined: (1) empirical overlap among certain dimensions of engagement and task value constructs; (2) which EVT constructs are associated with which dimensions of engagement; (3) how motivational beliefs, values, and engagement dimensions relate over time; and (4) whether engagement dimensions mediate the relationship between motivational beliefs, values, and math and science grades. Students (Ntime1 = 486, Ntime2 = 516) were recruited from a large public university and then completed surveys about their motivation and engagement in their introductory math or science course twice, at the beginning of the semester and again after mid-terms examinations. Findings indicated that although there were strong associations among certain engagement dimensions and task value constructs, structural equation model fit indices indicated that these should be treated as separate constructs. Regression analyses showed that in general, students’ competence beliefs and values were associated with behavioral, cognitive, and emotional engagement and behavioral and emotional disaffection dimensions. However, the relations between the motivational variables and social and agentic engagement were weak or non-significant. Cross-lagged panel analyses indicated that some relations among task values and engagement dimensions were reciprocal over time, but more often motivation predicted engagement rather than the reverse. Students’ behavioral and cognitive engagement were strong mediators of the relations between their task values and domain-specific grades in math and science. I conclude from these results that (at least for college-aged students) certain engagement constructs should be integrated more fully into the well-established expectancy-value model; however, future research is needed to ensure that these relations hold across different domains.Item More useful, or not so bad? Evaluating the effects of interventions to reduce perceived cost and increase utility value with college physics students(2017) Rosenzweig, Emily Quinn; Wigfield, Allan; Ramani, Geetha; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)In the present study I developed and evaluated the effects of two interventions designed to target students’ motivation to learn in an introductory college physics course. One intervention was designed to improve students’ perceptions of utility value and the other was designed to reduce students’ perceptions of cost. Utility value and cost both are central constructs from Eccles and colleagues’ expectancy-value theory of motivation (Eccles-Parsons et al., 1983). Students (N = 148) were randomly assigned to receive the cost intervention, the utility value intervention, or one of two control conditions. Compared to a survey control condition, neither intervention impacted overall students’ motivation, measured at 3 time points over the semester, or their course outcomes. In moderation analyses, neither intervention impacted any students’ perceptions of utility value. However, both interventions impacted some students’ perceptions of cost, competence-related beliefs, and course outcomes positively while impacting these variables for other students negatively. The cost intervention benefitted consistently and in different ways students who had low baseline competence-related beliefs, low prior achievement, strong malleable beliefs about intelligence, or who were female. However, the intervention showed consistent undermining effects on motivation and/or achievement for students with strong fixed beliefs about intelligence. The utility value intervention benefitted consistently the course outcomes of students who had low baseline competence-related beliefs, low prior achievement, or who were female. The intervention showed less consistent undermining effects on motivation for students with strong fixed beliefs about intelligence, high baseline competence-related beliefs, or high prior achievement. Prior researchers have shown that utility value interventions improve course outcomes for some students who are at risk for underachievement. The present study extends prior work by showing that utility value interventions benefit similar students in college physics courses. It also demonstrates that a cost intervention is a viable way to impact at-risk students’ physics course outcomes. Future researchers should consider carefully moderating variables and how to mitigate potential undermining effects for some students when implementing future expectancy-value-theory-based interventions in college physics courses.Item A Replication and Extension of Psychometric Research on the Grit Scale(2014) Weston, Lynsey Carlene; O'Neal, Colleen R; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Grit, a "perseverance and passion for long-term goals" (Duckworth, Peterson, Matthews, & Kelly, 2007, p. 1087), is important for academic success, but the field has not fully explored how grit functions as a distinct construct within the motivational literature or across ethnically and socioeconomically diverse samples. This pilot study replicated and extended Duckworth's seminal grit studies (e.g., Duckworth et al., 2007; Duckworth & Quinn, 2009) by examining grit's psychometric properties, its relation to other predictors of achievement, and its predictive validity, above related constructs and demographics, for literacy achievement among 33 low-income, ethnic minority high school students. Participants completed online questionnaires assessing their grit, engagement, stress, conscientiousness, and self-control, and took a brief reading assessment. Results suggest that grit may function differently in low-income minority students facing barriers to long-term academic achievement, and that grit's relation to student achievement may not be as clear-cut as what has previously been claimed.Item Teacher Competence Support for Reading in Middle School(2012) McRae, Angela; Guthrie, John T.; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between student perceptions of teacher competence support, self-efficacy for reading, and reading achievement for African American and European American students. Previous studies of teacher support have emphasized emotional support and have found considerable evidence for positive effects on motivation and achievement (Wentzel, 2009). Over time, support for competence has increasingly emerged as a distinct dimension of teacher support (Beghetto, 2007; Wentzel et al., 2010) and there is a need for the extension of this empirical research on the association between teacher competence support, motivation, and achievement. This study seeks to narrow this focus to student perceptions of teacher competence support, student self-efficacy, and reading achievement in middle school. The study sample consisted of 366 seventh- grade students in an ethnically and economically diverse school district. Students completed measures of their perceptions of teacher competence support, which included encouragement and instrumental help in reading. Students also completed a reading self-efficacy questionnaire and an assessment of information text comprehension. While controlling for socioeconomic status, hierarchical multiple regressions and MANOVA were conducted. African American students perceived statistically significantly higher levels of teacher competence support for reading compared to their European American peers. European American students performed at a higher level on the reading achievement measure, and there was no significant difference between groups in self-efficacy. Teacher competence support was significantly associated with self-efficacy regardless of ethnicity, and was also significantly associated with reading achievement, but only for African American students. Self-efficacy was significantly correlated with reading achievement for both ethnic groups; however, this correlation was statistically significantly higher for European American students. Post hoc analyses revealed that the correlation between self-efficacy and reading achievement was significant for European American students regardless of perceived level of teacher competence support, and the self-efficacy and reading achievement relationship was significant for African American students only if they perceived high levels of teacher competence support.Item PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT THAT DEFIES THE TRADITIONAL CONSTRUCT OF TEACHER LEARNING: A Charter School's Commencement(2012) Oliver, Rollia Mandrell; Mawhinney, Hanne; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)In August 2006, in accordance with a recently passed charter school law, a Mid-Atlantic school district opened its first public charter schools. The charter schools' staff had opportunities to exercise autonomy over their instruction and had very little in-service training. This study examined what seven teachers at a newly created charter school did with their time to achieve on-going professional development in the absence of frequent traditional structured in-service training. I employed a case study approach to portraiture that was guided by Desimone's (2009) core features of professional development as the theoretical framework. The data were specific activities that teachers used in place of frequent in-service that reported by the participants. Elements of the activities teachers used to construct knowledge were analyzed using the core features of professional development. Content focus, collective participation, coherence, active learning, and duration were present throughout the data. The data from this study revealed that teachers were deliberate in their actions. They constructed their own professional experiences and held themselves accountable. The retrospective nature, small sample of teachers, and limited span of focus for this study posed limitations. These findings have implications for designing professional development, facilitating autonomous instructional development, and future research.Item Motivation and Long-Term Language Achievement: Understanding Motivation to Persist in Foreign Language Learning(2009) Smith, Laura J.; Martin, Cynthia; Lavine, Roberta; Curriculum and Instruction; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Achieving native-like proficiency in a foreign language is a long-term process; therefore, designing and implementing a plan for long-term language achievement may help more learners achieve their long-term language goals of fluency as well as related career goals. This study presents recommendations that may be incorporated into the college curriculum to help both learners and teachers facilitate the development of motivation to persist in language learning and use at native-like proficiency. The results of this dissertation study provide greater insight into language learning motivation, changes in motivation, and motivational regulation. Data were collected using a questionnaire and an unstructured interview protocol to report the language learning motivation patterns of seven native-English speaking, traditional age undergraduate foreign language learners. Data were collected, coded, and analyzed following an emergent constant comparison method using process modeling procedures to analyze and report quantifiable categories of data, sequences of variables, patterns, and processes as they emerged. Results indicate that changes in the primary source of motivation and motivational orientations occur over time and that internally regulated motivation associated with long-term goals is associated with persistence. A greater understanding of language learning motivation may help teachers and learners develop strategies to regulate motivation in order to facilitate the development of motivation to persist in language learning beyond basic university requirements. This may also operationalize motivation for professional language use at native-like proficiency.Item The Effects of Constructs of Motivation that Affirm and Undermine Reading Achievement Inside and Outside of School on Middle School Students' Reading Achievement(2009) Coddington, Cassandra Shular; Wigfield, Allan; Guthrie, John T; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this study was to examine whether motivation for reading was multidimensional in two respects. First, central constructs were drawn from three major theories of motivation. Second, versions of each construct were formulated that were expected to correlate positively with achievement (affirming); and versions of each construct were formulated that were expected to correlate negatively with achievement (undermining). The goal of the study was to determine whether these reading motivation constructs were relatively independent and whether the multiple motivations contributed to predicting achievement. Constructs of motivation were derived from Self-Determination Theory (Deci, Vallerand, Pelletier, & Ryan, 1991), Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1977, 2001) and Social Goals (Wentzel, 2002, 2004). Constructs of motivation that affirm reading achievement and constructs of motivation that undermine reading achievement were both examined. These constructs included, intrinsic motivation, avoidance, self-efficacy, perceived difficulty, prosocial interactions, and antisocial interactions. This study also investigated student motivations for reading for two reasons, school and outside school. Participants were 247 seventh grade students from two middle schools in a mid-Atlantic state. Students completed four measures, including the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Comprehension test, a measure of inferencing ability, a motivation questionnaire for school reading, and a motivation questionnaire for outside school reading. Reading/Language Arts grades were also obtained for all students. Four objectives were addressed through the results of six research questions. Factor analyses results supported the discussion of motivation as a multidimensional construct. Three factors emerged when examining the three constructs of motivation that affirm achievement and the three constructs of motivation that undermine achievement. In addition, factor analyses results supported the perspective that undermining motivations are uniquely predictive of achievement and not simply negatively valenced affirming motivations. Two factors emerged when analyzing the affirming and undermining constructs of motivation in theoretical pairs. Regression analyses indicated that undermining motivations are predictive of achievement even when affirming motivations have been taken into account statistically. Some differences in these results for the school and outside school constructs are discussed. Significance of the findings was discussed in terms of the theoretical importance of the simultaneous functioning of multiple motivations for reading among adolescent students.Item DEVELOPMENT OF STUDENT MOTIVATION IN THE VISUAL ARTS USING HIP HOP CULTURE, AN ART SHOW, AND GRAFFITI(2009) Jenkins, Stephanie Conley; Hendricks, Susan; Curriculum and Instruction; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This participatory action research study explored the development of student motivation in the visual arts using hip hop culture. Six adolescent middle school students from a Washington, DC, public charter school were studied. They participated in an after-school art club centered on the National Portrait Gallery's "Recognize: Hip Hop and Contemporary Portraiture" special exhibition. The subjects were interviewed before and after visiting the museum and creating their own graffiti self-portraits. The self-portraits were displayed in an art exhibit at the school along with their artist statements. The interviews, statements and field notes were analyzed using the coding method. The results showed that feelings of competence, adequate support, autonomy, authentic purpose and personal connections to hip hop culture and musical artists all increased student motivation to participate in the visual arts. Motivation decreased when students attempted to create `real' looking graffiti, consistent with existing research.Item School-Related Apathy in 8th- and 10th- Grade Students: A Mixed-Method Exploration of Definitions, Construct Independence, Correlates, and Grade-Level Differences(2007-04-26) Riconscente, Michelle Maria; Alexander, Patricia A; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Research-based and folk conceptualizations of school-related apathy were explored in 309 8th- and 10th- grade Catholic school students and their teachers. Definitions, construct independence, and relation to select individual and group differences including grade level were examined. Findings indicated that while some independence exists among the set of five constructs assessed--adolescent apathy, amotivation, apathy syndrome, disengagement, and work avoidance--substantial overlap is present that can inform development of a more parsimonious conceptualization of students' lack of school motivation centered on perceived relevance and a general attitude of interest. Results also demonstrated only moderate levels of agreement between research-based and teacher identification of students low on school-related motivation; however, both approaches indicate that approximately 1 in 4 students manifests markedly low school-related motivation. Relations of several individual and group differences to conceptualizations of school-related apathy were documented in expected directions. Implications of the findings for educational research and practice are discussed.