ERIC ED394137: A Questionnaire Measure of Children's Motivations for Reading. Instructional Resource No. 22. PDF
Preview ERIC ED394137: A Questionnaire Measure of Children's Motivations for Reading. Instructional Resource No. 22.
DOCUMENT RESUME CS 012 441 ED 394 137 Wigfield, Allan; And Others AUTHOR A Questionnaire Measure of Children's Motivations for TITLE Reading. Instructional Resource No. 22. National Reading Research Center, Athens, GA.; INSTITUTION National Reading Research Center, College Park, MD. Office of Educational Research and Improvement (ED), SPONS AGENCY Washington, DC. PUB DATE 96 117A20007 CONTRACT 24p. NOTE Tests/Evaluation Descriptive (141) Reports PUB TYPE Instruments (160) MF01/PC01 Plus Postage. EDRS PRICE Evaluation Methods; Intermediate Grades; Junior High DESCRIPTORS Schools; Middle Schools; *Questionnaires; *Reading Attitudes; *Reading Motivation; Sex Differences; *Student Attitudes *Motivations for Reading Questionnaire IDENTIFIERS ABSTRACT This paper describes the Motivations for Reading Questionnaire (MRQ), including information on how the MRQ can be used and how to administer and score it. The MRQ assesses 11 possible dimensions of reading motivations. It can be used with children in late elementary school and middle school. Scores on the MRQ have been shown to relate to children's reported reading frequency, and their performance on different standardized tests. It can be used in various ways in schools: for instance, to generate profiles of children's motivations change over the course of a school year, or to Contains 13 see how boys' and girls' reading motivations differ. references and 2 tables of data. The Motivations for Reading Questionnaire is attached. (Author/RS) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** A KAREN MCGOUGH JOHN T. GUTHRIE ALLAN WIGFIELD !eh U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Off,e of Id.xahonat Research and imprcrvernorl EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) fe/This document has been reproduced as NRRC received from the person or organization originating ii Instructional Resource No. 22 CI Minor changes have bean made ro Spring 1996 rriprove reproduction qualify National Reading Research Center Points of view or opinions staled in this document do not necessarify reprecent official OERI position or policy 2 BEST COPY AVAILABLE NRRC National Reading Research Center A Questionnaire Measure of Children's Motivations for Reading Allan Wigfield John T. Guthrie Karen Mc Gough University of Maryland College Park INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCE NO. 22 Spring 1996 University of Georgia The work reported herein is a National Reading Research Project of the It was supported under the Educational Research and and Unive-sity of Maryland. by the Office DevelopmeL t Centers Program (PR/AWARD NO. I I7A20007) as administered findings and of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education. The policies of the National opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect the position or the U.S. Reading Research Center, the Office of Educational Research and Improvement, or Department of Education. 3 NRRC National Reading Research Center National Advisory Board Executive Committee Donna E. Alvermann, Co-Director Phyllis W. Aldrich University of Georgia Saratoga Warren Board of Cooperative Educational John T. Guthrie, Co-Director Services, Saratoga Springs, New York University of Maryland College Park Arthur N. Applebee James F. Baumann, Associate Director State University of New York, Albany University of Georgia Ronald S. Brandt Patricia S. Koskinen, Associate Director Association for Supervision and Curriculum University of Maryland College Park Development Jamie Lynn Metsala, Interim Associate Director Marsha T. DeLain University of Maryland College Park Delaware Department of Public Instruction Nancy B. Mizelle, Assistant Director Carl A. Grant University of Georgia University of Wisconsin-Madison Penny Oldfather Walter Kintsch University of Georgia University of Colorado at Boulder John F. O'Flahavan Robert L. Linn University of Maryland College Park University of Colorado at Boulder James V. Hoffman Luis C. Moll University of Texas at Austin University of Arizona Cynthia R. Hynd Carol M. Santa University of Georgia Robert Serpell School District No. 5 University of Maryland 13altimore County Kalispell, Montana Betty Shockley Anne P. Sweet Clarke County School District, Athens, Georgia Office of Educational Research and Improvement. Linda DeGroff U.S. Department of Education University of Georgia Louise Cherry Wilkinson Rutgers University Publications Editors Production Editor Research Reports and Perspectives Katherine P. Hutchison Linda DeGroff, Editor University of Georgia University of Georgia James V. Hoffman, Associate Editor University of Texas at Austin Dissemination Coordinator Mariam Jean Dreher, Associate Editor Jordana E. Rich University of Maryland College Park University of Georgia Instructional Resources Lee Galda, University of Georgia Text Formatter Research Highlights Ann Marie Vanstone William G. Holliday University of Georgia University of Maryland College Park Policy Briefs NRRC - University of Georgia James V. Hoffman 318 Aderhold University of Texas at Austin University of Georgia Videos Athens, Georgia 30602-7125 Shawn M. Glynn, University of Georgia Fax: (706) 542-3678 (706) 542-3674 INTERNET: [email protected] NRRC Staff Barbara F. Howard, Office Manager NRRC - University of Maryland College Park Kathy B. Davis. Senior Secretary 3216 J. M. Patterson Building University of Georgia University of Maryland Barbara A. Neitzey, Administrative Assistant College Park, Maryland 20742 Valerie Tyra, Accountant Fax: (301) 314-9625 (301) 405-8035 University of Maryland College Park INTERNET: [email protected] About the National Reading Research Center Dissemination is an important feature of NRRC The National Reading Research Center (NRRC) is activities. Information on NRRC research appears in funded by the Office of Fducational Research and several formats. Research Reports communicate the Improvement of the U.S. Department of Education to results of original research or synthesize the findings of conduct research on reading and reading instruction. several lines of inquiry. They are written primarily for The NRRC is operated by a consortium of the Univer- researchers studying various areas of reading and sity of Georgia and the University of Maryland College reading instruction. The Perspective Series presents a Park in collaboration with researchers at several institu- wide range of publications, from calls for research and tions nationwide. commentary on research and practice to first-person The NRRC's mission is to discover and document Instructional accounts of experiences schools. in those conditions in homes, schools, and communities Resources include curriculum materials, instructional that encourage children to become skilled, enthusiastic, guides, and materials for professional growth, designed lifelong readers. NRRC researchers are committed to primarily for teachers. advancing the development of instructional programs For more information about the NRRC's research sensitive to the cognitive, sociocultural, and motiva- projects and other activities, or to have your name tional factors that affect children's success in reading. added to the mailing list, please contact: NRRC researchers from a variety of disciplines conduct studies with teachers and students from widely diverse Donna E. Alvermann, Co-Director cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds in pre-kinder- National Reading Research Center garten through grade 12 classrooms. Research projects 318 Aderhold Hall deal with the influence of family and family-school University of Georgia interactions on the development of literacy; the interac- Athens, GA 30602-7125 tion of sociocultural factors and motivation to read; the (706) 542-3674 impact of literature-based reading programs on reading achievement; the effects of reading strategies instruction John T. Guthrie, Co-Director on comprehension and critical thinking in literature, National Reading Research Center science, and history; the influence of innovative group 3216 J. M. Patterson Building participation structures on motivation and learning; the University of Maryland potential of computer technology to enhance literacy; College Park, MD 20742 and the development of methods and standards for (301) 405-8035 alternative literacy assessments. The NRRC is further committed to the participation of tc:ichers as full partners in its research. A better understanding of how teachers view the development of literacy, how they use knowledge from research, and how they approach change in the classroom is crucial to improving instruction. To further this understanding, the NRRC conducts school-based research in which teachers explore their own philosophical and pedagogi- cal orientations and trace their professional growth. 5 Editorial Review Board NRRC Rachel Grant Suzanne Clewell Peter Afflerbach University of Maryland College Park Montgomery County Public Schools University of Maryland College Park Rockville, Maryland Barbara Guzzetti Jane Agee Arizona State University Joan Coley University of Georgia Western Maryland College Frances Hancock JoBeth Allen Concordia College of Saint Paul, Michelle Commeyras University of Georgia Minnesota University of Georgia Janice F. Almasi Kathleen Heubach Linda Cooper University of Buffalo-SUNY University of Georgia Shaker Heights City Schools Shaker Heights, Ohio Patty Anders Sally Hudson-Ross University of Arizona University of Georgia Karen Costello Connecticut Department of Education Cynthia Hynd Harybrd, Connecticut Harriette Arrington University of Georgia University of Kentucky Jim Cunningham Gay Ivey Gibsonville, North Carolina Marlia Banning University of Georgia University of Utah Karin Dahl David Jardine Ohio State University Jill Bartoli University of Calgary Elizabethtown College Marcia Delany Robert Jimenez Wilkes County Public Schools Eurydice Bauer University of Oregon Washington, Georgia University of Georgia Michelle Kelly Lynne Diaz-Rico Janet Benton University of Utah California State University-San Bowling Green, Kentucky Bernardino James King Irene Blum University of South Florida Ann Duffy Pine Springs Elementary School University of Georgia Falls Church, Virginia Kate Kirby Gwinnett County Public Schools Ann Egan-Robertson David Bloome Lawrenceville, Georgia Amherst College Amherst College Linda Labbo Jim Flood John Borkowski University of Georgia San Diego State University Notre Dame University Michael Law Dana Fox Fenice Boyd University of Georgia University of Arizona University of Georgia Donald T. Leu Linda Gambrell Karen Bromley Syracuse University University of Maryland College Park Binghamton University Susan Lytle Mary Graham Martha Carr University of Pennsylvania McLean, Virginia University of Georgia Bettie St. Pierre Stephen Phelps Bert Mangino University of Georgia Buffalo Stare College Las Vegas, Nevada e Stahl Mike Pickle Susan Mazzoni University of Georgia Georgia Southern University Baltimore, Maryland Roger Stewart Amber T. Prince Ann Dacey McCann University of Wyoming Berry College University of Maryland College Park Anne P. Sweet Gaoyin Qian Sarah McCarthey Office of Educational Research Lehman College-CUNY University of Texas at Austin and hnprovernent Tom Reeves Veda McClain Louise Tomlinson University of Georgia University of Georgia University of Georgia Lenore Ringler Lisa McFalls Bruce VanSledright New York University University of Georgia University of Maryland College Park Mary Roe Randy McGinnis Barbara Walker University of Delaware University of Maryland Eastern Montana University-Billings Nadeen T. Ruiz Mike McKenna Louise Waynant California State University- Georgia Southern University Prince Georg's County Schools Sacramento Upper Marlboro, Maryland Barbara Michalove Olivia Saracho Fowler Drive Elementary School Dera Weaver University of Maryland College Park Athens, Georgia Athens Academy Athens, Georgia Paula Schwanenflugel Elizabeth B. Moje University of Georgia University of Utah Jane West Agnes Scott College Robert Serpell Lesley Morrow University of Maryland Baltimore Rutgers University Renee Weisburg County Elkins Park, Pennsylvania Bruce Murray Betty Shockley University of Georgia Allen Wigfield Fowler Drive Elementary School University of Maryland College Park Athens, Georgia Susan Neuman Temple University Shelley Wong Wayne H. Slater University of Maryland College Park University of Maryland ,:ollege Park John O'Flahavan University of Maryland College Park Josephine Peyton Young Margaret Smith University of Georgia Las Vegas, Nevada Marilyn Ohlhausen-McKinney University of Nevada Hallic Yupp Susan Sonnenschein California State University University of Maryland Baltimore Penny Oldfather County University of Georgia Bernard Spodek Barbara M. Palmer University of Illinois Mount Saint Mary's College About the Authors Research and Development. Dr. Guthrie was Allan Wigfield is an associate professor in the formerly the Director of Research for the Interna- Department of Human Development at the Univer- tional Reading Association 1974-1984. He received sity of Maryland College Park. His research inter- his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois in Educa- ests include the development and socialization of tional Psychology. In 1992, the National Reading achievement-related and motivation children's Conference awarded him the Oscar Causey award beliefs and attitudes. He received his Ph.D. in for outstanding contributions to reading research. educational psychology from the University of He is a Fellow in the American Psychological Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He can be contacted Association, American Psychological Society, the at le Department of Human Development, Univer- National Council of Research in English, and was sity of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742. elected to the Readin: Hall of Fame in 1994. Dr. Guthrie's interests are literacy development and John T. Guthrie is a professor of Human Devel- environments for learning. opment at the University of Maryland College Park, and Co-Director of the National Reading Karen McGough was a master's student in the Research Center (NRRC). The Center cOnducts Department of Human Development, University of studies of reading, writing, science and history Maryland. While she was completing her master's learning, assessment and professional development. degree, she was a Research Assistant at the Na- Prior to this position Dr. Guthrie headed the tional Reading Research Center. University of Maryland's Center for Educational affect their performance in different achieve- A Questionnaire Measure ment areas, including reading (for further of Children's Motivations discussion, see Oldfather & Wigfield, 1996, 1994, and Wigfield & Guthrie, For Reading Wigfield, 1995). However, few measures of children's motivations for reading exist, which has made it difficult to assess the ways in which children are motivated (or not motivated) to read, and Allan Wigfield to assess the relation of reading motivations to John T. Guthrie The engagement reading. in achievement Karen Mc Gough perspective that provides the theoretical frame- work for much of the ongoing work at the University of Maryland National Reading Research Center emphasizes College Park the importance of motivation to engaged read- ing. A survey of IRA members done in 1992 indicated that students' motivation (or lack of motivation) to read was one of teachers' great- National Reading Research Center Universities of Georgia and Maryland is important to est concerns. Therefore, it Instructional Resource No. 22 obtain a better understanding of children's Spnng 1996 reading motivations, and to devise tools to measure reading motivations. Abstract. In this Instructional Resource we describe Development of the MRQ the Motivations for Reading Questionnaire (MRQ). We provide information about how the MRQ can be To develop the MRQ, we integrated re- used, and how to administer and score it. The MRQ search from both the general motivation assesses I I possible dimensions of reading motiva- literature and work on literacy motivations. tions. It can be used with children in late elementary Motivational researchers have proposed and school and middle school. Scores on the MRQ have investigated what they consider to be the most been shown to relate to children's reported reading important motivational constructs that mediate frequency, and their pcnformance on different achievement behavior (for further discussion of standardized tests. It can be used in various ways in these constructs, see Oldfather & Wigfield, schools; for instance, to generate profiles of chil- 1996, and Wigfield & Guthrie, 1995). Yet dren's motivations change over the course of a most of the work of these researchers has been school year, or to see how boys' and girls' reading motivation on motivation in general rather than motivations differ. for specific areas such as reading. Literacy The Motivations for Reading Questionnaire researchers have looked at what engages chil- (MRQ) is designed to assess different aspects dren and adults in reading, but often only of children's motivations for reading. is It consider some of the constructs defined by well-known that children's motivation can 1 0 Wigfield, Guthrie, & Mc Gough three dimensions on the MRQ that assess motivation theorists in their discussions of Therefore, measures engagement. aspects of intrinsic motivation: Reading Curi- reading developed by these researchers have assessed osity, the desire to learn about a particular more general attitudes toward reading (e.g., topic of interest to the child; Reading Topics Alexander & Filler, 1976; McKenna & Kear, Aesthetically Enjoyed, or the enjoyment of 1990) rather than specific dimensions of read- experiencing different kinds of literary or ing motivations stemming from motivation informational texts; and Importance of Read- theory. ing, which is a dimension taken from Eccles' To integrate both these areas into the and Wigfield's (e.g., Eccles et al., 1983; questionnaire. we first developed a set of Wigfield & Eccles, 1992) work on the nature possible dimensions or constructs that could of individual's valuing of different tasks or comprise reading motivations, and wrote items activities. The notion of aesthetic enjoyment to measure those dimensions. We then inter- gained from reading refers to the pleasure viewed a small group of children to see how gained from reading a well-written book or they described their own motivations for read- article on a topic one finds interesting. Al- ing, and modified some of the items following though similar in certain ways to intrinsic these interviews (for more detailed discussion, motivation to read, this kind of aesthetic enjoy- see Wigfield & Guthrie, 1995). ment is something we thought to be unique to The first two dimensions assess children's the reading area, and so is different fro.n sense of competence and efficacy in reading, traditional definitions of intrinsic motivation. constructs that are prominent in many motiva- Extrinsic motivation means being motivat- tion theories. These theorists (e.g., Bandura, ed to obtain something (like a reward or good 1977; Wigfield, 1994) propose that individuals grade) for doing an activity; thus the motiva- are more likely to do tasks or activities when tion is not for the activity itself, but for what they think they can master the activity. There- the activity will bring the individual. In the fore, to succeed in reading chileren need to MRQ, we distinguished different kinds of believe they can read. We call these dimensions extrinsic motivation for reading. Recognition Reading Efficacy, the belief that one can be for Reading is the gratification in receiving a successful at reading, and Reading Challenge, tangible form of recognition for success in the satisfacL on of mastering or assimilating reading; and Reading for Grades assesses the complex ideas in text. desire to be favorably evaluated by the teacher. The next set of dimensions are based on These different aspects of extrinsic motivation theoretical work on intrinsic versus extrinsic reflect the fact that children do much of their motivation. Motivation theorists in this area reading in school, where their reading perfor- propose that intrinsic motivation, or the interest mance is evaluated. Thus, recognition and and enjoyment one gets from an activity, is a powerful motivational force (e.g., Deci & grades may figure prominently in their motiva- Ryan, 1985; Harter, 1981). We developed tions for reading. NATIONAL READING RESEARCH CENTER, INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCE NO. 22 t
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