Effects of motivation orientation on schoolwork enjoyment and achievement and study habits

The present study assessed the effect of student motivation and actions that support scholastic achievement on the performance, mental life and study habits of undergraduate students. Two hundred twenty one psychology students completed questionnaires, containing scales and essay texts, assessing performance, motivational orientation, measures of flow experiences and actions relevant to successful scholastic activities. Intrinsically-motivated participants adopted habits and states of mind that supported school work, resulting in better performance. The results of analyses of Likert scales and machine sentiment analyses of participants' narrative essay texts suggest that intrinsically-oriented people seek out opportunities to perform actions that regulate their schoolwork situation and mental state, and modulate study activities and awareness to be in accord with their intentions, and report states of mind consistent with optimal, flow experiences, unlike non intrinsically-oriented participants. These flow experiences were reflected in participant reports of school experience, measured using machine sentiment analysis (Narayanan, 2016; Narayanan, Arora, & Bhatia, 2013). Participant optimal experiences positively impact satisfaction, and performance.