An Integrative Cognitive-Motivational Model of Student Motivation to Engage in Activities for Development of Professional Competencies

Abstract

This paper introduces an integrative, cognitive model of motivation, expanding on work by Bandura (1977) and Vroom (1964), to gain insight into students’ participation in activities to promote their development of professional competencies. The paper seeks primarily to elucidate motivational theory that can guide educators’ efforts to encourage students’ fuller engagement in activities for competency development, including “soft skills” development. In this cognitive theory, students’ beliefs about personal capacity to perform developmental behaviours, behavioural effectiveness toward competency development, and ultimate personal benefits of competency development determine motivation toward actions for competency development. Secondarily the paper reports findings from an initial study concerning this theory. Interviews were conducted with 14 students in a professionally oriented undergraduate program. Questions concerned the students’ motivationally relevant beliefs, including awareness of developmental opportunities, beliefs about self-efficacy and program efficacy, and beliefs about the personal benefits of developing professional competencies. Thematic analysis of the transcribed interview data was performed in order to evaluate the applicability of our proposed model, in terms of whether students’ patterns of beliefs and behaviour were consistent with the model. Findings provided support for this applicability in several regards, while also allowing a deeper look at how students in professional programs conceptualize the process of competency development. Implications for educators seeking to motivate participation in developmental opportunities are discussed, along with possible directions for future research.