Associations between adolescent students’ multiple domain task value-cost profiles and STEM aspirations
According to the modern expectancy-value theory, students’ task values may differ across domains, manifesting as varying motivational patterns. In middle school, students’ motivation becomes increasingly apparent and may direct their future occupational aspirations. Using a person-oriented approach,...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-12-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.951309/full |
| _version_ | 1797979143628914688 |
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| author | Janica Vinni-Laakso Katja Upadyaya Katariina Salmela-Aro |
| author_facet | Janica Vinni-Laakso Katja Upadyaya Katariina Salmela-Aro |
| author_sort | Janica Vinni-Laakso |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | According to the modern expectancy-value theory, students’ task values may differ across domains, manifesting as varying motivational patterns. In middle school, students’ motivation becomes increasingly apparent and may direct their future occupational aspirations. Using a person-oriented approach, this study examines students’ self-concept, and positive and negative task values (i.e., utility value, intrinsic value, and emotional cost) across Finnish language, math, biology, and physics, and the stability of the identified profiles. Further, the associations of the profiles with students’ subsequent academic achievement and math and natural science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)/health science STEM aspirations, and gendered effects were examined. Longitudinal data was collected through Grades 7 to 9 in 21 middle schools in Helsinki, Finland (N = 1,309, N = 1,179, N = 818, respectively; age 13–15 years; 55.9% female). Latent profile analysis (LPA) identified four task value profiles in Grades 7 and 8: Low motivation high cost STEM (13%/13%) showed low task values with high cost, especially in math and physics; High motivation low cost STEM (7%/8%) showed the highest task values with the lowest cost, especially in math and physics; High motivation high cost (18%/17%) showed high task values and cost across domains; and Moderate motivation and cost (62%/62%) showed moderate task values and cost across domains. The latent transition analysis identified Moderate motivation and cost as the most stable profile across 2 years. In comparison to the other profiles, students with a Low motivation high cost STEM profile were less likely to have STEM aspirations in Grade 9. These results suggests that majority of middle school students are highly to moderately motivated in various domains, however, some students simultaneously experience high cost. It may reflect the increasingly difficult courses and study demands in middle school. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T05:34:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0c948eee4d774e88af3d826621db639f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T05:34:20Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-0c948eee4d774e88af3d826621db639f2022-12-22T14:33:26ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782022-12-011310.3389/fpsyg.2022.951309951309Associations between adolescent students’ multiple domain task value-cost profiles and STEM aspirationsJanica Vinni-LaaksoKatja UpadyayaKatariina Salmela-AroAccording to the modern expectancy-value theory, students’ task values may differ across domains, manifesting as varying motivational patterns. In middle school, students’ motivation becomes increasingly apparent and may direct their future occupational aspirations. Using a person-oriented approach, this study examines students’ self-concept, and positive and negative task values (i.e., utility value, intrinsic value, and emotional cost) across Finnish language, math, biology, and physics, and the stability of the identified profiles. Further, the associations of the profiles with students’ subsequent academic achievement and math and natural science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)/health science STEM aspirations, and gendered effects were examined. Longitudinal data was collected through Grades 7 to 9 in 21 middle schools in Helsinki, Finland (N = 1,309, N = 1,179, N = 818, respectively; age 13–15 years; 55.9% female). Latent profile analysis (LPA) identified four task value profiles in Grades 7 and 8: Low motivation high cost STEM (13%/13%) showed low task values with high cost, especially in math and physics; High motivation low cost STEM (7%/8%) showed the highest task values with the lowest cost, especially in math and physics; High motivation high cost (18%/17%) showed high task values and cost across domains; and Moderate motivation and cost (62%/62%) showed moderate task values and cost across domains. The latent transition analysis identified Moderate motivation and cost as the most stable profile across 2 years. In comparison to the other profiles, students with a Low motivation high cost STEM profile were less likely to have STEM aspirations in Grade 9. These results suggests that majority of middle school students are highly to moderately motivated in various domains, however, some students simultaneously experience high cost. It may reflect the increasingly difficult courses and study demands in middle school.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.951309/fulltask valuescostself-conceptgenderSTEM aspirationslatent transition analysis |
| spellingShingle | Janica Vinni-Laakso Katja Upadyaya Katariina Salmela-Aro Associations between adolescent students’ multiple domain task value-cost profiles and STEM aspirations Frontiers in Psychology task values cost self-concept gender STEM aspirations latent transition analysis |
| title | Associations between adolescent students’ multiple domain task value-cost profiles and STEM aspirations |
| title_full | Associations between adolescent students’ multiple domain task value-cost profiles and STEM aspirations |
| title_fullStr | Associations between adolescent students’ multiple domain task value-cost profiles and STEM aspirations |
| title_full_unstemmed | Associations between adolescent students’ multiple domain task value-cost profiles and STEM aspirations |
| title_short | Associations between adolescent students’ multiple domain task value-cost profiles and STEM aspirations |
| title_sort | associations between adolescent students multiple domain task value cost profiles and stem aspirations |
| topic | task values cost self-concept gender STEM aspirations latent transition analysis |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.951309/full |
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