Browsing by Author "Mykkänen, Eveliina"

The purpose of this study was to examine the correlations between goal orientations and selfefficacy among Finnish university students. Based on these correlations, students could be encouraged to recognize harmful behavioral patterns and to improve them towards patterns that are more beneficial for learning and self-efficacy. The study focuses on the question “what kind of goal orientations do students have and how these orientations are associated with selfefficacy”. The study is based on the achievement goal theory and more specifically on Markku Niemivirta’s (2002) model in which five goal orientations are distinguished: learning-, achievement-, performance-approach-, performance-avoidance- and avoidance orientation. Several previous studies have been done on the topic, but previous research has been mostly targeted at children and adolescents. In this study, the focus is on adult university students. Earlier studies indicate that learning-, achievement- and performance-approach orientations correlate with strong or rather strong self-efficacy, and performance-avoidance- and avoidance orientations correlate with rather weak or weak self-efficacy. Similar results were expected of this study. The study was carried out as a quantitative research with correlative methods. Data was collected from university students by using a questionnaire and analyzed with SPSS-program. 105 students around Finland took part in the study. Different parameters were used in the description of the division of the goal orientations among respondents and the relations between the key variables were primarily analyzed by using Pearson’s correlation coefficient. The study indicated that learning- and achievement orientations correlate with strong selfefficacy, whereas performance-avoidance- and avoidance orientations correlate with low selfefficacy. Most of the research hypotheses were thus supported by the data, with the exception for the lack of statistically significant correlation between the performance-approach orientation and self-efficacy. The results support prior studies concerning the relations between goal orientations and self-efficacy. On the grounds of the results, a conclusion can be drawn that the increase in the student’s trust in his or her ability to success in a given task increases his or her motivation for learning and vice versa. In consequence, students could be encouraged to recognize their goal orientations and, if needed, to develop their orientations towards more desirable forms.