Human Development & Quantitative Methodology
Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2248
The departments within the College of Education were reorganized and renamed as of July 1, 2011. This department incorporates the former departments of Measurement, Statistics & Evaluation; Human Development; and the Institute for Child Study.
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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 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 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 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.Item Recognizing High Achievement in Context: A Multilevel Analysis of Friends' Values and Individuals' Motivation and Background as Associated with the Identification of Tenth-Graders by Teachers and Test Performance(2007-04-25) Barber, Carolyn; Torney-Purta, Judith; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The relationships of school context, motivation, and individual background to receiving teacher nominations for advanced work and/or scoring in the top decile on a standardized test of achievement were examined in both English and mathematics using survey data collected from a nationally-representative sample of tenth grade students as part of the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002. This study builds upon previous research examining the relationships between students identified as high-achieving by test score criteria and by teacher nomination criteria by exploring whether certain characteristics of students and their schools systematically make them more or less likely to meet them. Students' individual perceptions of their school context were only associated with achievement criteria met in math. Students who perceived their friends to be the least socially-oriented were most likely to meet both criteria. Further, male students who perceived their friends to be the least academically-oriented were the most likely to have high test performance but no teacher nomination. Students who were self-efficacious and intrinsically motivated were the most likely to meet both criteria in English and in math The relationship of intrinsic motivation in math to having high achievement recognized by teachers in this area was especially prominent for male students. Further, students of Black or Hispanic ethnicity were more likely than were white students to be nominated as high achieving by teachers despite lower test performance, as were students from lower socioeconomic statuses. Male students, on the other hand, were more likely than females overall to have high test performance without being nominated as high-achieving by teachers. Specific aspects of these relationships vary between subject areas. In addition to several associations with individual characteristics, the proportions of students identified as high-achieving only by teachers differ systematically among schools. This variation can be explained by several school-level variables, including school socioeconomic status and minority composition. These findings affirm that there are systematic differences between students identified as high-achieving by teacher nominations and by test scores. Learning more about these differences will help teachers and administrators to consider explicitly these factors when identifying adolescent students for special programs and other recognitions.Item Beyond a Relational Understanding of Fractions: Elements of Instruction that Contribute to Preservice Teachers' Knowledge and Motivation(2006-04-26) Jones, Kristie Kaye; Alexander, Patricia A.; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This study was undertaken in order to better understand preservice elementary teachers' knowledge of and motivations toward fractions before and after taking a course designed to promote relational understanding, as well as what teaching practices might be related to student outcomes. Students in five sections of the course were given a fraction assessment and a motivation questionnaire at the beginning and end of the semester, and observations were made of the nine days when fractions were taught. Students' knowledge of basic concepts improved, as did their computational skill and ability to solve word problems. However, their tendency to use inefficient algorithms did not change. Error patterns at the beginning of the semester revealed misconceptions about fractions, but errors at the end of the semester were largely reflective of low skill. Value and self-concept of ability increased while anxiety decreased, but these changes differed somewhat by instructor. In particular, having students explain their thinking instead of listen to lecture tended to have increased benefits for anxiety.Item Achievement Goal Orientations in Physical Rehabilitation(2005-12-01) Lawson, Sonia; Alexander, Patricia A; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Goals are used extensively in physical rehabilitation medicine to measure success. However, the goal construct has been given very little attention in research as compared to the domains of education and sport. Educational researchers and sport psychologists have described the cognitions and relations between goals, beliefs, motivation, and achievement behavior for their respective domains. In particular, goal orientation, a set of beliefs about ability, effort, achievement, and resulting behavior, is a dimension of achievement motivation that affects success in those fields. Goal orientation may influence participation and success in physical rehabilitation as there are aspects of physical rehabilitation that are similar to education and sport contexts. This study examined goal orientations for 237 patients receiving acute in-patient rehabilitation. A questionnaire was created and validated to assess goal or work orientations specific to this sample. Interview data supplemented results from the factor analysis of the questionnaire. Occupational therapists of the patient participants provided quantitative and qualitative data regarding their patients' success and factors related to success. The mastery and performance-avoid goal orientations and the cooperation work orientation were found with the highest frequency. However, none of these orientations related to success. The high frequency of the cooperation work orientation with interview comments validating the usefulness of this motivational aspect provides evidence for the use of groups in rehabilitation. The age of the participant significantly influenced three of the five goal or work orientations included in the study. This study provides a start in the investigation of additional dimensions to the goal construct that may affect participation and rehabilitation success.Item The Associations of Autonomy Support and Conceptual Press with Engaged Reading and Conceptual Learning from Text(2004-11-24) Perencevich, Kathleen Cox; Guthrie, John T.; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This study examined the associations of autonomy support and conceptual press, with reading engagement and conceptual learning from text. When students perceive their teacher to be supporting autonomy, it means that student choice, ownership, and personal goals are emphasized. When students perceive their teacher to be supporting conceptual press, it means that the teacher (a) promotes understanding of the substantial principles of a domain; (b) helps students use information integration strategies during reading, such as concept mapping, and (c) promotes persistence on moderately challenging tasks. Based on the self-process model of motivation (Connell & Wellborn, 1990) and an engagement perspective of reading (Baker, Dreher & Guthrie, 2000), it was hypothesized that as students perceived their instruction to be motivating, their reading engagement would increase. In turn, as engaged reading increases, conceptual learning from text would increase. For this investigation, 244 fourth- and fifth-grade students reported their perceptions of their teachers' use of conceptual press and autonomy support in reading instruction. Multifaceted components of reading engagement were measured. Reading engagement was defined as the manifestations of affective, behavioral, and cognitive processes during reading. In addition, participants completed a reading performance assessment in the domain of science designed to measure prior knowledge, strategic reading, and conceptual learning from text. Structural equation modeling was used to compare alternative theoretical models depicting the relations among motivated reading instruction, engaged reading, and conceptual learning from text. The direct effects model had a direct path connecting motivating reading instruction with conceptual learning from text whereas the hypothesized indirect effects model contained an indirect path from motivating reading instruction to conceptual learning from text via engaged reading. Results confirmed the hypothesis that the model including an indirect effect of motivating reading instruction on conceptual learning from text through engaged reading explained the data more fully than a direct effect model. This is consistent with the self-process model of motivation (Connell & Wellborn, 1990). These results have implications for theories of the role of social contexts in engagement and achievement, particularly in the domain of reading, and also suggest ways by which teachers might foster reading engagement among students.