Testing a Unified Model of Task-specific Motivation: how teachers appraise three professional development activities

This article tests the tenability of a Unified Model of Task-specific Motivation (UMTM). The UMTM integrates task-specific components from several theories of motivation. Core of the model are four interacting but relatively independent types of valences. Affective and cognitive valences represent feelings while doing an activity and thoughts about the value of its consequences respectively; both affective and cognitive valences can be positive and negative, hence calling for approach and avoidance motivation respectively. The interaction between these four types of valences results in a valence appraisal that influences readiness for action. Task-specific antecedents, autonomy, feasibility, social relatedness and subjective norm, influence valences. 441 Primary school teachers provided judgments of all components of the model except social relatedness for three imaginary professional learning activities. The three activities were framed as a school board decided, a team decided and a personally decided learning activity. Structural equation modelling showed that for each activity a separate model was needed. How valences influenced readiness for action was specific to each activity. In the board and team decided activities, for instance, readiness for action appeared to be based predominantly on cognitive valences, while in the personally decided activity affective and cognitive valences showed a more balanced contribution. Regarding task-specific antecedents, however, the picture was less clear. Nevertheless, the UMTM proved to offer rich possibilities for the explanation of complex motivational phenomena and promises a significant reduction of the superabundance of theories that encumbers motivation research

Valences and sense of personal autonomy with regard to professional development in Dutch primary teachers: Do decision contexts and age make a difference?

In this study on motivations concerning professional development (PD) we interviewed 95 primary school teachers in the Netherlands. We coded these data using the Unified Model of Task-specific Motivation (de Brabander & Martens, 2014) in different decision contexts concerning who decides about teacher participation in PD: school board, teacher teams, or individual teachers. We analysed the valences that teachers associated with PD activities, their experiences of autonomy, and whether and how these variables were affected by decision context and teacher age. Results show that decision contexts relate differently to valences and autonomy experiences. Positive autonomy and positive valences increased going from schoolboard to team to individual decision contexts. Whereas the literature on effective teacher PD stresses the importance of PD design features, our study is the first to empirically demonstrate the crucial influence of decision contexts. Among older teachers, teaching experience informed the selection of PD content to transfer to their classrooms. Younger teachers tended to first explore whether PD worked in their classrooms before deciding about adoption. Direct applicability emerged as a dominant criterion for evaluating PD. Decision context and autonomy regarding PD programmes play important roles in ensuring applicability. Our research revealed that the dominance of the direct applicability criterion was not motivated by student benefits alone. It was also based in an attitude of efficiency among primary teachers, reflecting growing work pressures and a general prioritisation of classroom teaching above all other tasks, including PD

Developing ethnic talent in the Dutch national tax administration: a case study

The lack of career movement of members of ethnic minority groups in work organizations has been widely documented. The purpose of this paper is to gain insight into conditions for the realization of diversity goals in the case of talent development

Lógicas políticas da educação de adultos em Portugal

Este artigo aborda as políticas públicas de educação de adultos em Portugal desde 1974, a partir de três lógicas: a lógica democrática-emancipatória; a de modernização e de controlo estatal; e a lógica da gestão de recursos humanos. Essas lógicas são tratadas em articulação com os desenvolvimentos e as principais características das políticas públicas de educação de adultos nos últimos 40 anos, destacando-se a influência da União Europeia no que se refere à ênfase atribuída à tendência vocacionalista e de gestão de recursos humanos.This article analyzes adult education policies in Portugal from 1974, based on three perspectives: democratic-emancipatory; modernization and state control; and, human resources management. These perspectives are discussed following the developments and main characteristics of adult education public policies over the last 40 years. It emphasizes the influence of the European Union regarding the vocationalist and human resources management trends.Cet article aborde les politiques d´éducation des adultes au Portugal depuis 1974, à partir de trois logiques: la logique démocratique et émancipatrice; celle de la modernisation et du contrôle de l’État; et celle de la gestion des ressources humaines. Ces logiques sont analysées selon les développements et les principales caractéristiques des politiques d’éducation des adultes des 40 dernières années. L’influence de l’Union Européenne, concernant l’importance accordée à la tendance vocationnelle et de gestion des ressources humaines est mise en évidence.Este artículo aborda las políticas públicas de educación de adultos en Portugal desde 1974, a partir de tres lógicas: la lógica democrática-emancipatoria; la lógica de modernización y de control estatal; y la lógica de la gestión de recursos humanos. Estas lógicas se abordan en relación con los desarrollos y las principales características de las políticas públicas de educación de adultos en los últimos 40 años, destacándose la influencia de la Unión Europea en lo que se refiere al énfasis atribuido a la tendencia vocacional y de gestión de recursos humanos.(undefined)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio