Chapter 2: Self-Efficacy and Adolescents’ Motivation

Adolescence—the period from puberty to the early twenties—is a time when individuals undergo many cognitive, social, emotional, and physical changes. There are multiple academic changes and increased challenges arising largely from the transitions from one school level to the next (e.g., elementary to middle/junior high school, high school to college). These transitions can have dramatic effects on student motivation and learning, as is seen in the opening scenario.

Current views conceptualize motivation as a dynamic and complex phenomenon comprising many cognitive, affective, and social processes that instigate, direct, and sustain action (Pintrich & Schunk, 2002). Key motivational processes include goals, expectations, attributions, values, emotions, and peer group dynamics. These processes, alone and in combination, influence students’ perceptions of which academic disciplines are the most interesting and perhaps worthwhile studying. We see many of these processes at work in Cedric as he attempted to improve his biology grades.