USF St. Petersburg campus Faculty Publications
Factors associated with students' intentions to engage in science learning activities: an application of the theory of reasoned action.
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1995
Abstract
The determinants of fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth graders' intentions to perform science learning activities were investigated. The theoretical basis for this study was the theory of reasoned action. The sample consisted of 254 students, who were assessed on their laboratory and nonlaboratory behavioral intentions and attitude toward science. The ability of the theory of reasoned action to predict students' behavioral intentions was tested by using the two determinants included in the theory and five external variables identified by the researcher. The five external variables were gender, grade, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status as determined by the range of the family ' s annual income, and attitude toward science. The two determinants were attitude toward the behavior of performing laboratory or nonlaboratory activities and subjective norm. Two models were tested. The first model included the two determinants as predictor variables and behavioral intention as the criterion. The second model involved the analysis of the two determinants as they were considered in subgroups according to the five external variables. This model also included interaction terms. Multiple regression statistical techniques were used to test the two models. Pearson product- moment correlations were reported for both models. For laboratory learning activities, the two determinants, attitude toward behavior and subjective norm, were found to collectively contribute to the prediction of behavioral intention, accounting for almost a fourth of the variance in behavioral intention. For nonlaboratory learning activities, the two determinants accounted for over a fourth of the variance in behavioral intention. Testing of the second model revealed that for laboratory activities, no interaction terms were significant, but attitude toward science was a significant predictor of behavioral intention. Post-hoc tests were conducted on this external variable to analyze the variance accounted for by each category within the external variable, and to calculate the correlation and regression coefficients of the two determinants. In the case of nonlaboratory activities, no interaction terms were significant, but grade was a significant predictor of behavioral intention. Again, post-hoc tests were conducted on the external variable {grade), to analyze variance accounted for and to calculate the correlation and regression coefficients of the two determinants according to the categories within the external variable.
Language
en_US
Publisher
University of Florida
Recommended Citation
Butler, M.B. (1995). Factors associated with students: intentions to engage in science learning activities: An application of the theory of reasoned action. (Doctoral dissertation). University of Florida.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
