Motivational messages from teachers before exams: Links to intrinsic motivation, engagement, and academic performance

This mixed-method study explored teachers' motivational messages before exams and their impact on students' intrinsic motivation, engagement, and academic performance. High school students in Spain (N = 419) completed questionnaires on motivation and engagement and described teachers’ motivational messages. Messages encouraging effort and capability were the most reported, followed by reassuring messages. Serial mediations showed a positive link between reassuring messages and academic performance via intrinsic motivation and engagement, while lack of messages had a negative effect. No moderation effect of gender was found. These findings underscore the importance of reassuring messages during exam periods. • Most reported messages by students encouraged effort and capability followed by reassuring messages. • Only reassuring exam motivational messages were significantly related to student outcomes. • Motivation and engagement serially mediated the effect of reassuring messages on performance. • The relationship between nothing messages and performance was serially mediated by motivation and engagement.