@article{KwarikundaSchiefeleSsenyongaetal.2020, author = {Kwarikunda, Diana and Schiefele, Ulrich and Ssenyonga, Joseph and Muwonge, Charles Magoba}, title = {The Relationship between Motivation for, and Interest in, Learning Physics among Lower Secondary School Students in Uganda}, series = {African Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education}, volume = {24}, journal = {African Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education}, number = {3}, publisher = {Routledge, Taylor \& Francis Group}, address = {Abingdon}, issn = {1811-7295}, doi = {10.1080/18117295.2020.1841961}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-605353}, pages = {435 -- 446}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Motivation and interest affect students' learning especially in Physics, a subject learners perceive as abstract. The present study was guided by three objectives: (a) to adapt and validate the Science Motivation Questionnaire (SMQ-II) for the Ugandan context; (b) to examine whether there are significant differences in motivation for learning Physics with respect to students' gender; and (c) to establish the extent to which students' interest predicts their motivation to learn Physics. The sample comprised 374 randomly selected students from five schools in central Uganda who responded to anonymous questionnaires that included scales from the SMQ-II and the Individual Interest Questionnaire. Data were analysed using confirmatory factor analyses, t-tests and structural equation modelling in SPSS-25 and Mplus-8. The five-factor model solution of the SMQ-II fitted adequately with the present data, with deletion of one item. The modified SMQ-II exhibited invariant factor loadings and intercepts (i.e. strong measurement invariance) when administered to boys and girls. Furthermore, motivation for learning Physics did not vary with gender. Students' interest was related to motivation for learning Physics. Lastly, although students' interest significantly predicted all motivational constructs, we noted considerable predictive strength of interest on students' self-efficacy and self-determination in learning Physics. Implications of these findings for the teaching and learning of Physics at lower secondary school are discussed in the paper.}, language = {en} } @article{BrandtBeckerTetzneretal.2018, author = {Brandt, Naemi D. and Becker, Michael and Tetzner, Julia and Brunner, Martin and Kuhl, Poldi and Maaz, Kai}, title = {Personality across the lifespan exploring measurement invariance of a short Big Five Inventory from ages 11 to 84}, series = {European journal of psychological assessment}, volume = {36}, journal = {European journal of psychological assessment}, number = {1}, publisher = {Hogrefe}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {1015-5759}, doi = {10.1027/1015-5759/a000490}, pages = {162 -- 173}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Personality is a relevant predictor for important life outcomes across the entire lifespan. Although previous studies have suggested the comparability of the measurement of the Big Five personality traits across adulthood, the generalizability to childhood is largely unknown. The present study investigated the structure of the Big Five personality traits assessed with the Big Five Inventory-SOEP Version (BFI-S; SOEP = Socio-Economic Panel) across a broad age range spanning 11-84 years. We used two samples of N = 1,090 children (52\% female, M-age = 11.87) and N = 18,789 adults (53\% female, M-age = 51.09), estimating a multigroup CFA analysis across four age groups (late childhood: 11-14 years; early adulthood: 17-30 years; middle adulthood: 31-60 years; late adulthood: 61-84 years). Our results indicated the comparability of the personality trait metric in terms of general factor structure, loading patterns, and the majority of intercepts across all age groups. Therefore, the findings suggest both a reliable assessment of the Big Five personality traits with the BFI-S even in late childhood and a vastly comparable metric across age groups.}, language = {en} } @article{SallenHirschmannHerrmann2018, author = {Sallen, Jeffrey and Hirschmann, Florian and Herrmann, Christian}, title = {Evaluation and Adaption of the Trier Inventory for Chronic Stress (TICS) for Assessment in Competitive Sports}, series = {Frontiers in psychology}, volume = {9}, journal = {Frontiers in psychology}, publisher = {Frontiers Research Foundation}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {1664-1078}, doi = {10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00308}, pages = {12}, year = {2018}, abstract = {The demands of a career in competitive sports can lead to chronic stress perception among athletes if there is a non-conformity of requirements and available coping resources. The Trier Inventory for Chronic Stress (TICS) (Schulz et al., 2004) is said to be thoroughly validated. Nevertheless, it has not yet been subjected to a confirmatory factor analysis. The present study aims (1) to evaluate the factorial validity of the TICS within the context of competitive sports and (2) to adapt a short version (TICS-36). The total sample consisted of 564 athletes (age in years: M = 19.1, SD = 3.70). The factor structure of the original TICS did not adequately fit the present data, whereas the short version presented a satisfactory fit. The results indicate that the TICS-36 is an economical instrument for gathering interpretable information about chronic stress. For assessment in competitive sports with TICS-36, we generated overall and gender-specific norm values.}, language = {en} } @article{StutzSchaffnerSchiefele2017, author = {Stutz, Franziska and Schaffner, Ellen and Schiefele, Ulrich}, title = {Measurement invariance and validity of a brief questionnaire on reading motivation in elementary students}, series = {Journal of research in reading : a journal of the United Kingdom Reading Association}, volume = {40}, journal = {Journal of research in reading : a journal of the United Kingdom Reading Association}, publisher = {Wiley}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {0141-0423}, doi = {10.1111/1467-9817.12085}, pages = {439 -- 461}, year = {2017}, abstract = {In order to initiate more research on the role of reading motivation during the initial stages of learning to comprehend texts, we developed the Reading Motivation Questionnaire for Elementary Students (RMQ-E). The sample comprised 1497 elementary students in Grades 1-3. By means of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, three factors were determined: Curiosity, involvement and competition. The three-factor structure of the RMQ-E was found to be invariant across grade levels (scalar invariance) and across female and male students (strict invariance). As was anticipated, students in higher grades and male students were lower in curiosity and involvement than students in lower grades and female students. Whereas competitive reading motivation did not differ across grade levels, it was higher for boys than for girls. Moreover, the contributions of involvement and competition to reading amount and reading competence were in accordance with the hypotheses. The predictive validity of curiosity, however, was not confirmed.}, language = {en} }