Motivation for Homework: Predictors and Behavioural Consequences

Background. Unwillingness to do homework is one of the most pressing problems of modern teenagers, leading to a negative attitude towards studying and conflicts at home. Accordingly, the relevance of the research problem lies in studying the reasons for this reluctance. Objective. From the standpoint of self-determination theory to analyze the relationship between satisfaction of the basic psychological needs at school, persistence and flexibility in completing homework assignments and cheating. Study Participants. The study involved students in grades 7–9 (N = 458, Mage = 14.03, SD = 2.91). Methods. The motivation for homework scale, the Basic psychological needs at school questionnaire and the Strategies for doing homework scale were used. Data were analyzed with nonparametric tests, correlations, and structural equation modeling. Results. It is shown that schoolchildren generally understand the value and importance of homework; autonomous motivation dominates over introjected motivation and especially external motivation. At the same time, each type of homework motivation has its own behavioral consequences. Using structural equation modeling, a model was confirmed showing that the satisfaction of basic psychological needs at school is a significant predictor of autonomous motivation to complete homework, which in turn, is a reliable predictor of persistence, flexible approach to completing homework, and a low cheating behavior. Introjected motivation has similar but significantly weaker effects on persistence, flexibility, and, on the other hand, cheating. In contrast, external motivation to complete homework is a predictor of cheating and low persistence, and external motivation is predicted by the frustration of basic psychological needs at school. Conclusions. The type of motivation to complete homework is essential for the choice of strategies for homework implementation. Adolescents who are persistent and flexible when doing homework, and who are not inclined to cheat and copy, are characterized by high autonomous motivation, which is associated with the feeling of being accepted by the teacher, a competent and autonomous subject of educational activity.