Background/Purpose: Intrinsic task value (Eccles & Wigfield, 1995) motivates learner by tapping into enjoyment of a task. Situational interest (SI) motivates by eliciting learner task interaction on multiple cognitive dimensions: novelty, exploration intention, attention demand, challenge, and instant enjoyment (Hidi, 2000). The two constructs are considered influencing engagement and achievement in different ways. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which the constructs predict Chinese middle school students' performance in fitness knowledge and aerobic fitness tests.
Method: Participants were 868 6th, 7th, and 8th graders in 24 randomly selected classes from eight middle schools in Shanghai, China. The SI dimensions were measured using Situational Interest Scale (Chen et al., 2001); intrinsic task value was measured using the Expectancy-Value Questionnaire (Eccles & Wigfield, 1995); fitness knowledge and aerobic fitness were measured using a standardized knowledge test and PACER.
Analysis/Results: Two hierarchical regressions with the motivation as the first block and grade and gender as second block revealed that Novelty (β=.14, p =.017) and gender (β=.25, p =.000) predicted PACER scores. Attention (β =.13, p =.027), grade (β =.34, p =.000), and gender (β=.09, p =.014) predicted knowledge test scores. Intrinsic task value did not predict either outcome measure.
Conclusions: The findings indicate that the effect of intrinsic task value was overridden by SI dimensions, suggesting that SI's dimensions are fundamental motivation sources. As these dimensions can be controlled by teachers, further studies are warranted to explore ways to manipulate the dimensions to maximize motivation effects on learning in physical education.