Research Statement Interest
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My main topic of research and academic interest at the university is the Motivation to Learn. Historically, different areas, approaches, and studies have been contributed to illuminate this subject, but the Cognitive Psychology is the science whose studies and results had more impact on the topic within the educational field. My research focuses on the relation between self-concept and learning, both variables directly associated with motivational issues. Recently, the motivational theories, in order to support their propositions, have been using data sets obtained in a variety of educational settings, which are used to identify complex learning patterns. My work, as a researcher and an educator, consists of exploring the theoretical assumptions underlying and confront them with the data gathered in order to improve the understanding about learning and teaching methods in different domains.
Studies about motivation conducted in educational environments shows that when students are learning, because of their cognitive and affective patterns of processing information, the way in which they perceive and respond to the instruction is equally or more important than the materials, methods, or strategies used to teach. Best adaptative patterns favor most effective and productive attitudes and behaviors oriented to learn them. The result of these patterns is students more motivated. Motivated individuals persist more in challenging tasks. Their learning and performance are better than the majority's. Their level of effort and willingness to act and go beyond the minimum expected is higher. Finally, they engage in academic activities in a more creative, innovative, and effective way. These reasons justify the general interest and increasing amount of publications about educational motivation.
Goal-Orientation Theory
Within the so-called Cognitive Psychology, the Goal-Orientation Theory was developed to explain the achievement behavior, a topic of growing interest in a modern and competitive society like ours. It is highly applicable to academic and professional environments, and has been tested in many experimental and classroom field studies with adults and children as they perform learning tasks.
One of its most important findings are the three basic types of goals, namely those focused on learning, performance, and avoidance. The first is based on the learning process (external orientation) while the two last in the individual subjectivity (internal orientation), compromising the self-esteem most of the times. Focus on learning is indeed attention to the content of learning. The individual, who developed this cognitive pattern, is especially interested in gathering information, resolving real problems, understanding a topic, or changing the reality. Instead, the concern of those who focus on performance is distinction. Their predominant goal is besting others or getting grades or rewards. Finally, the third and less studied type of goal is the one that focuses on avoidance. It also is oriented to performance, not in order to achieve, but by preventing self-exposition and negative evaluations, and safeguarding emotions.
This theory has been generating numerous studies, data, and criticism. However, the so-called learning goals are currently more strongly associated with less anxiety, better performance, effort and persistence, positive affect and interest, more cognitive engagement, help-seeking and risk-taking, and more adaptative attributional patterns.
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My research and achievements
My contribution to the debate in this field was the creation of a psychometric scale oriented to identify the tendency of an individual to have a 'globalized' or 'situated' academic self-concept. This instrument was empirically and statistically tested so that its validity and reliability level could be established. It allows to know why and how a student constructs and binds the self-esteem and self-concept around non-adaptative motivational patterns. In this way, it helps to understand and provide support and advice to students and teachers interested in focusing their attention in more effective learning strategies to be successful in professional and academic environments.
Until now, the practical application that result of my research are in line with Pintrich, Garcia and Schunk's (1991, 2003). Some of them suggest actions as (1) highlighting meaningful aspects of academic activities, (2) designing tasks for novelty, diversity, and interest, (3) proposing challenging but reasonable tasks, (4) giving to students some choices and control, (5) focusing on individual improvement and learning, (6) evaluating privately, not in a public way, (7) recognizing student effort, (8) helping students see mistakes as opportunities, (9) fostering peer interaction and giving individual feedback, and (10) allowing students to plan work schedules for progress.
Research Agenda
I am currently working towards further exploration of the variables of my scale within the Attributional Theory by Weiner (1985). Specifically, I am working on the association among the four theoretical factors of Weiner's model (natural ability, chance/luck, effort, and difficulty of task) and my own findings about the psychological mechanisms underlying the cognitive pattern and goals of learning.
My long-term research agenda is to close the Goal-Orientation Theory and the Cognitive Psychology to the field of practical educational application, helping people to overcome the gap between the researcher and the educator’s daily practice in different domains, areas, and environments of learning.
References
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Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The Exercise of Control. New York: Freeman.
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Fry, H., Ketteridge, S., Marshall, S. (2008). A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: Enhance Academic Practice. New York: Routledge.
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Marsh, H. W. (1986). Verbal and Math Self-concepts: An Internal/External Frame of Reference Model. American Educational Research Journal, 23,129-149.
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Marsh, H. W. (1990). The structure of academic self-concept: The Marsh/Shavelson model. Journal of Educational Psychology, 82, 623-636.
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Marsh, H. W., & A. S. Yeung. (1993). Casual effects of academic self-concept on academic achievement structural equation models of longitudinal data. Journal of International Psychology, 89, 41-54.
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Marsh. H. W., Graven, R. G., & Melnerney, D. M. (2003). International advances in self-research. Charlotte: Information Age Publishing.
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Pintrich, P. R. (2003). A motivational science perspective on the role of student motivation in learning and teaching contexts, Journal of Educational Psychology, 95, 667–686.
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Pintrich, P. R. and Garcia, T (1991) ‘Student goal orientation and self-regulation in the classroom’, in M Maehr and P R Pintrich (eds) Advances in Motivation and Achievement, 7, 371–402, Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
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Pintrich, P. R. & Schunk, D. H. (2002). Motivation in Education: Theory, Research, and Applications (2nd ed), Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
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Pintrich, P. R. et al. (1993). Reliability and predictive validity of the motivated strategies for learning questionnaire (MSLQ), Educational and Psychological Measurement, 53, 801–813.
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Weiner, B. (1986). An attributional theory of motivation and emotion. New York: Springer-Verlag.