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Owner: Utku Caybas
Owner Email: utkucaybas@gmail.com
Paper Title: "We Motivate One Another": Peer Influences on Undergraduate Students' Motivation in Introductory Biology
Session Title: Parent and Peer Socialization of Students' Motivational Beliefs (Table 13)
Paper Type: Roundtable Presentation
Presentation Date: 4/13/2023
Presentation Location: Chicago, IL
Descriptors: Motivation, Peer Interaction/Friendship
Methodology: Qualitative
Author(s): Utku Caybas, Michigan State University; Jaylene Patterson, University of Kentucky; Mayson Spillman, University of Kentucky; Anastacia Emily Cole, University of Kentucky; Jaeyun Han; Ellen L. Usher, Mayo Clinic; Jennifer Osterhage, University of Kentucky
Unit: SIG-Motivation in Education
Abstract: Despite research on peer influences on motivation in K-12 settings, the role of peers in postsecondary education is understudied. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively investigate undergraduate students’ beliefs about how peers affect their motivation. Students (N=619) enrolled in introductory biology were asked (a) whether they knew a peer in their course and (b) how, if at all, their peer(s) affected their motivation. Students' motivation in the course was influenced by their peers via help-seeking, student-formed study groups, co-regulation, social connectedness, and comparison. However, a considerable number of the students stated that their motivation was independent of their relationships with others. Future research is needed to understand how peers play a role in students’ beliefs, values, and goals.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3102/2017579