The Development of Undergraduates Motivation for Research Work

The paper addresses the problem of students’ motivation for research work in higher educational settings which can be viewed as a way of enhancing their personal and professional development. The study presented was aimed at examining undergraduates’ attitudes towards research work using the Students’ Motives for Studying Questionnaire and the Incomplete Sentences Test. In general, most of the study participants had positive attitudes towards research work and were aware of its necessity as part of their university curriculum. However, only less than a third were interested in their own research projects. The paper discusses the results obtained and possible ways of developing undergraduates’ motivation for research work.