You can learn well regardless of your motivation type – Evidence from a virtual learning environment

Autonomy continuum hypothesis in self-determination theory (SDT) has received convincing support in correlational studies. Further, autonomous motivation types have typically been discovered to be positively related to academic performance. On the other hand, research shows that the relationship between controlled types of motivation and academic performance varies and is not always negative. One explanation for that variation is ‘area-specificity’. Therefore, investigating the different motivation types in previously unexamined fields of study in SDT research has been called out. In this paper, we report on our research on during-the-course-motivation in a semester-long introductory programming course. Due to the cumulative nature of the topic, learning programming is known to be inherently challenging. Programming courses often employ abundant skill practising under tight deadlines. The course in this research offers students automated feedback on their programming assignments, to help them identify possible gaps in their skills. However, in previous SDT research, both deadlines and feedback have been found to carry risks for intrinsic motivation. We examined the continuum hypothesis through correlation and person-centered analysis, which has been used considerably less than variable-centered studies in SDT research. Our results indicate that latent profiles with autonomous types of motivation were much more common than ones with controlled motivation types. However, both students with profiles high on autonomous and ones high on controlled (and low on autonomous) motivations succeeded well on the course. Hence, our study supports previous evidence: controlled motivation or low intrinsic motivation need not be detrimental for academic performance.