Motivation and Affective Theories

Motivation and Affective Theories groups accounts of why a learner engages, persists or gives up, centered on belief, value and disposition rather than on the mechanics of how information is processed or retained. Belongs here: Expectancy-Value Theory, which holds that effort follows from a learner's expectation of success combined with the value placed on the task; Growth Mindset, Carol Dweck's account of implicit beliefs about whether ability is fixed or can be developed; and Grit, Angela Duckworth's account of sustained passion and perseverance toward long-term goals. Does not belong here: a theory of how information is encoded or retained regardless of motivation, grouped under Memory, Retention and Retrieval Strategies, and a theory of a learner monitoring and directing their own study process, grouped under Metacognition and Self-Regulated Learning, even though motivation and self-regulation are closely related in the literature.