Finding Relevance, Competence, and Enjoyment: The Development of Domain Identification and Interest in First-Year Science Majors

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine how first-year college students perceive their development of domain identification with, and interest in, their prospective science major during their initial year of college. Four themes emerged from the coding and analysis of interviews with eight first-year science students: Self-Definition in Flux, Feeling Competent, Expressing Interest through Enjoyment, and Relevant to Me. These themes were mainly consistent with the current model of domain identification (Osborne & Jones, 2011) but differ from the current model of interest development (Hidi & Renninger, 2006). Theoretical and practical implications are included for faculty and advisors working with first-year science students

Beyond the Test of the Four Channel Model of Flow in the Context of Online Shopping

In this study we investigate the effects of user skill and task challenge on online shoppers’ experiences. We use a model suggested by flow theory in which shoppers are grouped into four categories (flow, anxiety, boredom, and apathy) based on their perceptions of task challenge and their skill in performing an online shopping task. Results show that anxious shoppers have lower perceptions of the dimensions of flow, believe online shopping Web sites are less useful, and believe they are less likely to use the system in the future compared to the other three groups of online shoppers. In addition to challenge and skill, having a clear goal and fast feedback also contribute to the flow experience

Toward a Systematic Evidence-Base for Science in Out-of-School Time: The Role of Assessment

Analyzes the tools used in assessments of afterschool and summer science programs, explores the need for comprehensive tools for comparisons across programs, and discusses the most effective structure and format for such a tool. Includes recommendations

Theory of Planned Behavior and the Influence of Communication Self-Efficacy on Intention to Pursue a Software Development Career

In modern software development, communication is one of the key success factors in software project development and team performance. However, software engineering (SE) students and educators may not have fully considered its significance in comparison to technical skills. The objective of the study was to determine the influence of communication self-efficacy and factors related to the theory of planned behavior (TPB) on the intention to pursue a career in software development. A survey was used to collect data from senior SE students at six universities in Thailand. The partial least squares – structural equation model (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze the data. The findings indicate that attitudes toward software development careers and communication self-efficacy for software development had a positive influence on the students’ intention to pursue a career in software development. This study is the first attempt to investigate how communication self-efficacy in software development affects intention to work in a software development career. Educators can use the findings to improve curricula to foster students’ communication self-efficacy and encourage them to pursue a software development career

Cultivating Psychological Determinants of Flow through Autonomy-Supportive Cognitive-Behavioural Training

In educational contexts, the deep and intrinsically rewarding engagement characteristic of being in flow is invaluable to the learning process. In addition to contributing to flourishing, psychological growth and development, flow is directly related to the frequency with which a student will actively vie to continue to use and extend their highest skills. A comprehensive framework delineating how to systematically cultivate flow would prove indispensable to those who aspire to optimise their performance or facilitate this strength in others. Still, little research has examined a systematic means of actively nurturing autonomous forms of motivational regulation to engage and the psychological strengths which underlie and promote flow in academic learning contexts. Therefore, the main objective of this small-scale descriptive pilot study was to ascertain the extent to which student-athletes could learn to wilfully cultivate dispositional flow states. It was presupposed that autonomy-supportive cognitive-behavioural training in a collaborative learning environment could in fact facilitate the process. The endeavour was thus approached by establishing a multimodal cognitive-behavioural training program designed to systematically cultivate the nine dimensions of flow. The study adhered to an explanatory sequential mixed methods research design. Thus, the 13 sport science students (four females and nine males) participating in the 12-week seminar completed pretest/posttest dispositional assessments of their locus of motivational regulation, their use of cognitive-behavioural performance enhancement strategies, and flow. In addition, six months subsequent to the intervention, structured interviews were conducted with a subset of the cohort and a thematic analysis of the resultant data set was conducted in an effort to both further interpret and elucidate the results yielded from the quantitative data set. Although the psychometric test findings did not yield unequivocal results, they demonstrated posttest increases in students’ intrinsic motivational regulation as well as their use of self-talk, activation, imagery, and attention control strategies. Finally, while all but two student-athletes reported an increase in their general propensity to experience unidimensional flow, unvarying results were not yielded across the multidimensional measures thereof. However, the thematic analysis provided evidence that the student-athletes believed that if employing performance strategies including a systematic goal setting process, arousal regulation, imagery, and self-talk, one can in fact cultivate flow if one wants to. Therefore, this study contributes to scholarship pertaining to understanding how to deliberately promote flow in similar higher learning contexts

The effects of product presentation on consumer experiences, emotion, and website patronage intention towards an apparel website

The objectives of this study were to examine: (1) whether Pine and Gilmore\u27s (1999) four experience realms (4Es) are affected by website features, (2) whether the 4Es affect consumer emotional components of pleasure and arousal, and (3) whether pleasure and arousal lead to enhanced website patronage intention. For the main experiment, two stimulus websites reflecting high experiential value and low experiential value were developed. Data were collected in a laboratory setting from 196 participants. An analysis of the causal model was conducted using the maximum-likelihood estimation procedure of Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS) for hypotheses testing. The results of this study indicated that website features affected the 4Es and two of the 4Es (entertainment and esthetic experiences) affected pleasure and arousal, as well as consequent website patronage intention. Entertainment and esthetic experiences appeared to have a direct and mediating effect on website patronage intention. Based on these findings, practical and theoretical implications are offered

A critical analysis of mystery in videogames

Historically, videogame research has focused on how different videogame attributes (like challenge, fantasy, control, goals, etc.) impact the player experience. This type of research is important because it can provide insight into how to design more enjoyable videogames. However, very little exists within the current literature that focuses on mystery and its impact on the player experience. This dissertation is concerned with providing the research community with a better understanding of how mystery manifests in videogames and consequently impacts the player experience, specifically curiosity and motivation. To this end, the research questions are: 1. How do players experience mystery in videogames? 2. How do game designers consider mystery when designing their games? 3. What is the relationship between player-centered and designer-centered views of mystery in videogames? 4. What is the impact of player-centered and designer-centered elements of mystery on player motivation? Such understanding of mystery in videogames is provided in the form of a detailed taxonomy that concentrates on mystery from both the videogame designer and player perspectives. After a thorough review and summary of the related research, this taxonomy was created through two qualitative studies utilizing Grounded Theory. The findings of those studies were validated through an empirical instrument via a third, quantitative study. The conclusions and outcomes of this dissertation provide the gaming community with the knowledge on how to optimize mystery in videogame design which increases player curiosity and motivation. It also offers greater insight to the research community on the impact of mystery, as a videogame attribute, on the player experience. This dissertation describes in detail the methodology and processes of these research studies and how this taxonomy was established, and it explains the impact of this work as well as suggests areas for future work

The Importance of Previous Experience for the Trial of Mobile Self-Service Technologies

An increasing number of companies utilize mobile communication such as advertisements via Short Message Service (SMS) or mobile payment to facilitate interaction with their customers. Given the manifold potentials of mobile technologies, it is not surprising that a lot of innovative business models and services are emerging. In this paper we first discuss various theories of technology diffusion and trial of technology, which are frequently used in information systems and marketing research. Subsequently, we present a system which allows ordering products by simply photographing an advanced form of barcode, which can be placed on virtually any printed media, the product itself, or even be shown on television. We use a Structural Equation Modeling approach to measure the importance of various antecedents of trial, namely the ability to use a mobile technology, users’ role clarity, and both extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. Furthermore, the role of previous experience as a moderator of the antecedents of technology trial is explored. The results show that there is a significant difference between experienced and inexperienced users regarding the trial of this service innovation

Exploring student perceptions about the use of visual programming environments, their relation to student learning styles and their impact on student motivation in undergraduate introductory programming modules

My research aims to explore how students perceive the usability and enjoyment of visual/block-based programming environments (VPEs), to what extent their learning styles relate to these perceptions and finally to what extent these tools facilitate student understanding of basic programming constructs and impact their motivation to learn programming