Motivation to Learn in a Military Training Curriculum
This research investigates antecedents and outcomes of motivation to learn across nine online courses. The results supported a cyclical model of motivational processes across courses in a training curriculum. Trainees’ course expectations had a positive effect on motivation to learn, motivation to learn had a positive effect on trainee reactions, and trainee reactions predicted expectations for subsequent courses in the curriculum. In addition, motivation to learn decreased across the nine courses such that the average level of motivation was .30 points lower (on a five-point scale) for the ninth than the first course. Agreeableness predicted changes in motivation to learn across courses such that motivation decreased at a steeper rate for highly agreeable trainees. The results suggest there is a dynamic interplay among motivational constructs over time, and motivation should be examined from a systems perspective to understand carryover effects across training courses.
Paper currently under review at Military Psychology.
Presentation:
Sitzmann, T., Brown, K. G., & Kraiger, K. (2006, May). The impact of anticipated reactions and core self-evaluations on motivation to learn, post-training reactions, and learning. In A. Towler (Chair) and R. A. Noe (Discussant), "Current issues in training effectiveness" at the Twenty-First Annual Meeting of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Dallas, TX.
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