FEAR OF FAILURE, DISAFFECTION AND PROCRASTINATION AS MEDIATORS BETWEEN CONTROLLED MOTIVATION AND ACADEMIC CHEATING
Authors
Codruţa MIH1,*, Viorel MIH2
1 Department of Science of Education, Babeş-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, Romania
2 Department of Psychology, Babeş-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, Romania
ABSTRACT
Employing a self-determination theory approach, the present study aimed to add to the extant variable-centered research by focusing on controlled motivation and precursors of high-school students’ self-reported academic cheating behaviors (i.e., cheating on tests, having homework done by someone else, copying another student’s homework, or plagiarism). In this respect, we tested a conceptual model specifying the direct and indirect relationships between students’ controlled motivation and their fear of failure. Findings confirmed the hypothesized model revealing that (1) controlled motivation was a positive predictor for high-school students’ fear of failure; (2) students’ fear of failure positively predicted academic cheating, behavioral disaffection, and procrastination; and (3) behavioral disaffection and procrastination mediated the relationship between students’ fear of failure and engaging in test cheating behaviors. Findings in this study provide insights for further theoretical development and practical implications concerning the mechanisms underlying the relationship between students’ external motivation and their engagement in academic cheating behaviors.
KEYWORDS: self-determination theory, controlled motivation, behavioral disaffection, procrastination, cheating
PAGES:117-132
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