Motivational profiles and their relationship with responsibility, school social climate and resilience in high school students

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the relationships among motivational profiles, their responsibility levels, the school social climate and resilience, and the differences according to gender and age of students from different secondary schools in Spain. A sample of 768 students (mean age of 13.84 years), 314 boys (46.1%) and 354 girls (53.9%) was used. The measurements taken concerned: personal and social responsibility, basic psychological need satisfaction, motivation, resilience and school social climate. Bivariate correlation, cluster and multivariate analyses were carried out. The cluster analysis was made using the Motivation toward Education Scale with its different variables (intrinsic, identified, introjected, external motivation and amotivation), revealing four profiles: low quality (1, low values in all motivational variables except in amotivation), low quantity (2, low values), high quantity (3, high values), and high quality (4, high values except in amotivation). The contrast in comparisons shows differences in resilience, personal and social responsibility, teacher climate and school climate (p < .001). The group with the highest values in resilience, basic psychological needs, responsibility and school social climate was that with a high quality profile. There were statistical differences in all variables with respect to the low quantity and low quality groups (p < .001), while the high quantity group showed statistical differences only in personal and social responsibility (p < .001). The low quality group had the lowest values among all the variables, with statistical differences with respect to all groups (p < .001). On the other hand, there were more boys than girls associated with high quantity, without differences in their age. In conclusion, high quality motivation profiles (those with high or low amotivation values and high values in autonomous and controlling motivation), also have a higher satisfaction of basic psychological needs. Moreover, these students are more resilient, show more responsibility and enhance the school/teaching social climate, while low quality and /or quantity motivation, influence negatively on these variables.