THE EFFECTS OF CONSTRUCTS OF MOTIVATION THAT AFFIRM AND UNDERMINE READING ...

389 Pages·2009·7.42 MB·English

ABSTRACT

Title of Document: THE EFFECTS OF CONSTRUCTS OF
MOTIVATION THAT AFFIRM AND
UNDERMINE READING ACHIEVEMENT
INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF SCHOOL ON
MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING
ACHIEVEMENT

Cassandra Shular Coddington, Ph.D., 2009

Directed By: Professor Allan Wigfield, Department of Human
Development

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 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 reasons, school and outside
school.
Participants were 247 seventh grade students from two middle schools in a mid-
Atlantic state. Students completed four measures, 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.
THE EFFECTS OF CONSTRUCTS OF MOTIVATION THAT AFFIRM AND
UNDERMINE READING ACHIEVEMENT INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF SCHOOL
ON MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS’ READING ACHIEVEMENT

By

Cassandra Shular Coddington

Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the
University of Maryland, College Park, in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
2009

Advisory Committee:
Professor John T. Guthrie, Advisor
Professor Allan Wigfield, Chair
Professor Mariam Jean Dreher
Associate Professor Min Wang
Professor Kathryn R. Wentzel
© Copyright by
Cassandra Shular Coddington
2009
ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To Dr. John Guthrie, my deepest gratitude for choosing me to be one of your doctoral
students. I am forever grateful for the opportunities and guidance you have provided throughout
my graduate school career. You have taught me lasting lessons on the importance of always
pushing into new frontiers. I feel fortunate to have had you as a mentor.
To Drs. Jean Dreher, Min Wang, Kathy Wentzel and Allan Wigfield, thank you for the
time and effort you have invested in reviewing my dissertation manuscript. This study would not
be as theoretically or methodologically rigorous without your thoughtful suggestions for revision.
I appreciate your assistance in pushing me to make the study that much better.
To my fellow graduate students who spent countless hours sharing your knowledge on
everything from formatting to statistical analyses – thank you. I have learned through this process
the value of having the support of a strong and vibrant academic community. I could not have
successfully completed this dissertation study without your help.
To my family and friends outside of academia, thank you for continuing to support my
goal of achieving a PhD often when you had no idea what that meant or entailed. Spending time
knitting and chatting with you are what kept me grounded in this process. Special thanks to Ellen
and Joe Kaplan, who opened their home to me in a way that made me feel supported and cared
for beyond what was necessary or expected of them.
To my parents, Kurt and Yvonne, and my sister, Jenny, who have been my constant
cheerleaders and supporters from the beginning – thank you. Mom and Dad, you instilled a love
and motivation for reading in me from early on – who knew it would turn into a career?
And to Luke, my wonderful husband and voice of scientific skepticism, thank you for
believing I could do this, even when I occasionally stopped believing in myself. Your love and
understanding through this process make this dissertation our first small victory in the academic
world together.
iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................... II
TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................ III
LIST OF TABLES ...................................................................................................... IX
LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................. XIV
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ................................................................................. 1
Guiding Theory and Research .......................................................................... 1
Motivation and Achievement ................................................................. 1
Multidimensional Motivation ................................................................ 2
Reading Motivation and Reading Achievement .................................... 5
School and Outside of School Contexts ................................................ 6
Motivations that Affirm and Undermine Achievement.......................... 7
Gender................................................................................................. 12
Purpose and Significance of the Study ........................................................... 13
Research Questions ......................................................................................... 17
Method ............................................................................................................ 20
List of Definitions ........................................................................................... 21
CHAPTER 2: BACKGROUND ................................................................................. 26
Overview of Literature Review ...................................................................... 26
Motivation and Achievement .......................................................................... 27
Reading Achievement .......................................................................... 27
Inferencing .......................................................................................... 29
iv
Multidimensional Motivation ......................................................................... 34
Guthrie and Wigfield’s Engagement Model of Reading ..................... 35
Research Evidence Supporting the Engagement Model of Reading ... 38
Affirming and Undermining Aspects of Motivation for Reading: Examining
Relations Between Approach and Avoidance Motivation for Reading .......... 42
Rationale ............................................................................................. 42
Theoretical Evidence .......................................................................... 48
Self-Determination Theory.................................................................. 50
Social Cognitive Theory ...................................................................... 61
Social Motivation ................................................................................ 69
Changes in Reading Motivation for School and Non-School Contexts ......... 81
Rationale for Importance of Context .................................................. 81
Evidence Supporting Importance of the Reading Context .................. 83
Reading Motivation in Adolescent Students................................................... 85
Rationale for Importance of Studying Adolescent Readers ................ 85
Evidence Supporting Importance of Adolescent Readers as a Sample87
Evidence for the Association of Gender and Motivation ................................ 87
Summary ......................................................................................................... 91
Research Questions ......................................................................................... 93
CHAPTER 3: METHOD ............................................................................................ 98
Design ............................................................................................................. 98
Participants ...................................................................................................... 98
Measures ......................................................................................................... 99
v
Adolescent Motivation for School Reading (AMSR) Questionnaire . 100
The Adolescent Motivation for Outside of School Reading (AMOSR)
Questionnaire .................................................................................... 103
Inferencing ........................................................................................ 105
Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test ........................................................ 110
Reading/Language Arts (LA) Grades ............................................... 110
Procedures ..................................................................................................... 112
Data Entry and Coding.................................................................................. 114
CHAPTER 4: RESULTS .......................................................................................... 116
Summary ....................................................................................................... 116
Scale Construction for the AMSR ................................................................ 116
Data Entry ......................................................................................... 116
Sampling Adequacy ........................................................................... 117
Measures of Intercorrelation ............................................................ 117
Determining the Factor Analysis Technique .................................... 119
Intrinsic Motivation and Avoidance.................................................. 121
Self-Efficacy and Perceived Difficulty .............................................. 127
Prosocial and Antisocial Interactions .............................................. 132
Scale Construction for the AMOSR ............................................................. 138
Data Entry ......................................................................................... 138
Sampling Adequacy ........................................................................... 139
Measures of Intercorrelation ............................................................ 139
Determining the Factor Analysis Technique .................................... 141
vi
Factor Analysis Procedure ............................................................... 142
Intrinsic Motivation and Avoidance.................................................. 143
Self-Efficacy and Perceived Difficulty .............................................. 149
Prosocial and Antisocial Interactions .............................................. 154
Descriptive Statistics ..................................................................................... 161
Total Sample ..................................................................................... 161
Divided by Gender ............................................................................ 164
Research Question 1 ..................................................................................... 170
Research Questions 2a and 2b ...................................................................... 183
Research Questions 3a, 3b and 3c................................................................. 190
Research Question 4a .................................................................................... 207
Research Questions 5a and 5b ...................................................................... 218
Research Questions 6a, 6b, and 6c................................................................ 229
CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION .................................................................................... 250
Summary and Interpretations of Findings..................................................... 250
Overview ........................................................................................... 250
Multidimensional Motivation ............................................................ 251
Contribution of Motivations that Undermine Reading in Predicting
Achievement ...................................................................................... 256
Importance of the Reading Purpose – Inside vs. Outside School Reading
........................................................................................................... 262
Relationship Between Gender, Motivation and Achievement ........... 269
Limitations .................................................................................................... 271
vii
Characteristics of the Sample ........................................................... 271
Concurrent Data ............................................................................... 273
Item Specificity .................................................................................. 274
Theoretical Significance ............................................................................... 274
Practical Significance.................................................................................... 275
Future Directions .......................................................................................... 276
APPENDIX A: PILOT STUDY ............................................................................... 281
Literature Review.......................................................................................... 281
Method .......................................................................................................... 290
Participants ....................................................................................... 290
Measures ........................................................................................... 291
Procedure .......................................................................................... 294
Results ........................................................................................................... 296
Discussion ..................................................................................................... 303
Limitations and Future Directions ................................................................ 306
APPENDIX B: STUDENT MEASURES FOR DISSERTATION STUDY ............ 308
APPENDIX C: TEACHER INSTRUCTIONS FOR ADMINISTERING MEASURES329
APPENDIX D: AMSR AND AMOSR CORRELATION MATRICES BY CONSTRUCT
PAIRS ....................................................................................................................... 337
APPENDIX E: AMSR ITEMS BY CONSTRUCT (THEORETICAL) .................. 343
APPENDIX F: AMOSR ITEMS BY CONSTRUCT (THEORETICAL) ................ 345
APPENDIX G: AMSR ITEMS BY CONSTRUCT (PAF) ...................................... 347
APPENDIX H: AMOSR ITEMS BY CONSTRUCT (PAF) ................................... 349