How Can Feedback Increase Self-Determined Motivation to Keep Writing?

Abstract

When someone makes the decision to attend college, they are committing to the time, energy, and money, as well as the academic writing, required. Unfortunately, a large number of students will find that writing assignments are not their favorite, and possibly their most dreaded, part of college. The dread some students experience often delays the writing until finally, if the external pressures are great enough, they write at the last minute, which compromises quality. The object of my investigation is to explore the theories developed in psychology and other disciplines that address this problem, with particular attention to feedback and motivation. Through an analytical assessment of the research on motivation and feedback theories, this paper examines the question of how optimal feedback types and application strategies influence students’ self-determined motivation for writing.