Content area

Full text

The Motivation and Engagement Scale-University/College (MES-UC) was used to identify student typologies on the basis of adaptive and maladaptive academic cognitions and behaviours. The sample comprised first-year (n = 390), second-year (n = 300), and third-year (n = 251) undergraduate students with 4 student typologies identified: high engagement/skills, low engagement/skills, and 2 moderately engaged groups distinguished by either high or low levels of maladaptive cognitions (e.g., anxiety). Additional analyses which displayed theoretically appropriate differences between these groups suggest that the MES-UC is suitable for identifying student typologies.

We investigated whether the Motivation and Engagement Scale-University/College (MESUC; Martin, 2009) is suitable for identifying student typologies. This is expected to assist in determining which students may most benefit from intervention or assistance programs. Identifying disengaged students is important for higher education institutions due to increasing requirements to improve student retention, persistence, and course completion (Bradley, Noonan, Nugent, & Scales, 2008). Greater academic engagement contributes to greater academic success and greater likelihood to successfully complete education (Astin & Sax, 1998; Kuh, Cruce, Shoup, Kinzie, & Gonyea, 2008).

The MES-UC is used to assess adaptive behaviors (planning, task management, persistence), adaptive cognitions (self-belief, valuing of education, learning focus), maladaptive behaviours (self-sabotage, disengagement) and maladaptive cognitions (anxiety, failure avoidance, uncertain control). The MESUC provides good model fit, reliability, and is invariant across younger and older university students and gender (Martin, 2009). According to Martin (2009), a pattern of high adaptive and low maladaptive behaviors and cognitions indicates greater academic motivation and engagement. It is thus expected that student typologies will be differentiated on the basis of scores on adaptive and maladaptive cognitions and behaviors.

Additional support for using the MESUC to identify these typologies will be indicated by differences between typologies in meaningfulness in study, belonging on campus, and deferral prior to commencing university study. Greater academic engagement is associated with the extent that students find meaning and purpose in their studies (DeakinCrick, 2012; Siu, Bakker, & Jiang, 2014), and have a sense of belonging with teachers and peers (Morrow & Ackerman, 2012; Reeve, 2012). Experiences prior to commencing university study are also expected to contribute to adaptive academic skills and cognitions.

Martin, Wilson, Liem, and Ginns (2013) found that the experiences gained in deferment (e.g., from working, travelling, or...

Show less