Liscio, Sophia

Robinson, Bailee

Liberty University Digital Commons

Title: The Impact of Motivational Types on First Semester GPA Among Military Spouses in College.  Proposal: Although there is a plethora of research completed on the military population, there is a lack of research completed on military spouses, especially in the area of continuing education.  The need for research in this area is substantial because over 50% of military personnel are married and approximately 90% of those spouses indicated that education was a goal for their life.  Although many military spouses wish to continue their education, there are many obstacles preventing them from achieving this goal.  Moving and added responsibilities often limit their ability of working towards an education.  Military spouses have the same responsibilities and duties as civilian spouses, but military spouses also have added responsibilities and duties due to their spouse being deployed, being relocated, and the constant uncertainty of their daily life.  The recent changes to the GI Bill and lack of funds also present a problem for spouses wanting to return to school.  Going back to school, or continuing school, offers many benefits for military spouses: healthy distraction while their spouse is deployed, greater sense of personal accomplishment, and increasing their likelihood of obtaining a job.   This study seeks to provide more information about what factors are involved in increasing educational retention and first semester GPA in military spouse students.  This study is specifically interested in the role of motivational types, intrinsic motivation versus extrinsic motivation, on first semester GPA.  This study sampled military spouse students attending Liberty University Online, through the Office of Military Affairs.  Some of the survey measures included in the study are the Work Preference Inventory (WPI), Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Religious Commitment Inventory (RCI), Response to Stressful Experiences Scale, and The Military Deployment Survey.  Through researching the literature in this area, our research questions are 1) are Intrinsic motivation scores and Extrinsic motivation scores predictive of first semester GPAs for military spouses? And 2) are the GPAs of military spouses higher when low Military Lifestyle Satisfaction scores interact with high Extrinsic Motivation scores?  We hypothesize that 1) higher scores for Intrinsic Motivation will predict higher first semester GPA, 2) lower scores on Military Lifestyle Satisfaction will predict higher first semester GPA, and 3) lower Lifestyle Satisfaction scores moderated by high Extrinsic Motivation scores will predict higher first semester GPA.  Students: Sophia Liscio (aliscio@liberty.edu) and Bailee Robinson (bastewart3@liberty.edu)   Faculty: Dr. Laurel Shaler (lshaler@liberty.edu) and Dr. Fred Volk (fvolk@liberty.edu)  

The Impact of Motivational Types on First Semester GPA Among Military Spouses in College

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