The relationship between achievement motivation and student age among physician assistant students.

摘要

The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between achievement goal orientation and student age in physician assistant students. Based on the responses of 499 students from 20 physician assistant programs, two research questions were addressed in this study. The first explored the nature of the relationship between achievement motivation and student age. Results of the data analyses indicated that a negative relationship existed between performance goals and student age. The relationship between mastery goals and student age was not statistically significant. The second research question investigated the differences in the achievement goals that students endorsed across the age cohorts. Findings indicated that participants in the older cohort were mastery oriented, in the middle cohort performance oriented, and among the younger cohort less clear: These participants endorsed both mastery and performance goals equally.;Given the increasing market demand for physician assistants nationwide, the findings of this research are important to physician assistant educators as they respond to the changing demographic and attrition patterns in their enrolling students. Forming a clearer understanding of the relationship between achievement goal orientation and students age in physician assistant students at the college level may have an impact on future curricular development as educators tailor courses and curricula to foster an atmosphere that better facilitates motivation and learning in their student population. Combined, these efforts may positively affect student retention rates, thereby lowering attrition.