Impact of Motivation on University Student Performance: Report

This report investigates the relationship between motivation and academic performance among university students. It explores the influence of intrinsic, extrinsic, and amotivation on student outcomes. The study highlights that intrinsic motivation is linked to lower stress levels, while amotivation correlates with higher stress and poorer psychological adjustment to university life. The research also examines the impact of the university climate and external incentives on student motivation. Furthermore, the report discusses the influence of gender and entrance qualifications on academic scores, with limitations including self-reported measures and a gender imbalance in the sample. The findings suggest that the university environment can impact motivation levels, and that prior academic achievement is a strong predictor of success.

Introduction
Studies reveal that motivation bears a positive influence on the academic
performance of students. Individuals can have intrinsic motivation, extrinsic
motivation or, amotivation (Deci & Ryan, 1985;1991). Intrinsically motivated
individuals perform an activity for attainment of self satisfaction wheras
extrinsically motivated individuals perform to escape defamation or, attainment of
rewards. Amotivated individuals performs activities which are unintended and
uncontrolled. This study intends to assess the correlation amid various
motivational orientations and performance in a tertiary educational background.
Evidence suggests that university education calls for adjustmentment related to
social, interpersonal and academic demands (Dunkel-Schetter & Lobel, 1990)
which in turn can affect the physical and psychological well being of the student
(Aspinwall & Taylor, 1992; Fisher & Hood, 1987). In this study, a theoretical
model will be used to test the influence of perceived peer climate on self-
motivation followed by well being of the students pursuing higher education.
Discussion
The present study reveals that intrinsically motivated studying leads to lower
scores for perceived stress though it is not indicative of better psychological
tuning to university life or, higher orders of noticeable well being. Amotivation has
been found to be associated with higher stress levels, weaker psychological
adjustment to university life, in sync with previous studies that have established
link between amotivation and lower perception of competence, lower
attentiveness (Vallerand et al., 1989) and low self-esteem (Peterson & Seligman,
1984). The results obtained in the present study are supportive of preceding
investigations in educational backgrounds (Vallerand & Bissonnette, 1992;
Vallerand et al., 1992, 1997), that self initiated motivation yields positive
consequences. The learners in the current study are more amotivation in contrast
to earlier studies on Canadian learners (Vallerand et al., 1992). According to the
cognitive evaluation theory, the intensity of autonomy influences motivation (Deci
& Ryan, 1985, 1991; Ryan & Deci, 2000a & b). Students who receive the support
of their guardians and instructors to autonomously choose their career, develop
higher levels of intrinsic motivation thereby lowering drop outs in high school
(Vallerand et al., 1997). Socio contexual events such as usage of extrinsic
incentives like marks (Grolnick & Ryan, 1987) as is relevant in British university
system, lowers the sense of autonomy and hence, lowers intrinsic motivation.
Hence, the general university climate where the present study was conducted
increased amotivational behaviors and resulted in poor outcomes. Finally, sex
and entrance qualifications are responsible for a significant level of variation in
the scholastic scores. The result that students with higher entrance qualifications
attained superior marks in the university course is supportive of earlier results
that scores in secondary school and on college entrance examinations are the
finest indicators of the level of scholastic achievement in university (e.g., Allen,
1999). Females in the current study were more extrinsically motivated than their
male counterparts. The limitations include usage of self reported measures,

inability to determine the function of motivational orientations on the effects,
sample size has gender imbalance and sample included only psychology
students. Hence, the findings in the present study cannot be generalised outside
this learner populace.