Flow state refers to an optimal psychological experience and is associated with a number of experiential qualities one of which is complete absorption in the task at hand. Self-determination theory provides a framework for examining the relation between different types of motivation and flow because it distinguishes among different forms of motivation based on the degree that they can be considered self-determined. Although flow has been studied among athletes and, to a lesser degree, exercisers, no studies have focused on the flow experiences of yoga practitioners. Yoga, which originated in India, has been gaining popularity in the United States. The purpose of this descriptive study was to examine the flow experiences and motivational perspectives of ashtanga yoga practitioners. Five specific aims were addressed. A sample of 127 ashtanga yoga practitioners were recruited from six yoga studios in various locations across the United States. Participants completed a series of questionnaires related to flow experiences, motivational orientation, yoga practice characteristics, and sociodemographic information. The majority of the participants of the study were women, highly educated, and approximately 40 years old. The participants demonstrated a strong commitment to yoga practicing on average 4 times per week for over 1.5 hours. The majority had more than 2.5 years of ashtanga yoga experience. They reported strong intrinsic and selfdetermined extrinsic motivation to practice ashtanga yoga. They reported experiencing flow during ashtanga yoga practice and at least moderately endorsed all nine dimensions of flow state. Higher scores on the EMS subscales of intrinsic motivation (IM) to accomplish things and IM to experience sensation were predictive of higher flow state for the practitioners. The respondents yoga flow scores were significantly higher than the flow scores associated with a comparison other physical activity participated in currently or in the past. Finally, age (inversely) and years of ashtanga yoga experience were predictive of flow experiences for this group of yoga practitioners. For those interested in the study of motivation, these findings contribute to the understanding of the relation between flow and motivation and how enjoyment may be manifested within the context of physical activity.

The government uses a range of mechanisms to mitigate market failure in the provision of health care in the United Kingdom. Explicit financial incentives are increasingly used within the UK. However, there is some evidence that providing explicit incentives may not have the desired effect on the supply of healthcare as healthcare professionals are intrinsically motivated. This thesis reviews the literature defining and measuring intrinsic motivation in economics. It then presents a developed theoretical model of work motivation among healthcare providers which informs the empirical analysis. This thesis estimates four empirical applications to test the theoretical model of intrinsic motivation. Two applications use the British Quarterly Labour Force Survey data to examine: 1) differences in the motivation structure of employees in caring public sector from employees in other employment sectors, 2) the impact of income and employment sector on intrinsic motivation, and 3) the reason for the high levels of intrinsic motivation for employees in the caring public sector. The other two empirical works explore how the changes of financial incentives under Quality and Outcomes Framework have affected Scottish General Practitioners’ intrinsic motivation. The findings of this thesis have important policy implications. Mainly, they suggest that policy makers should be careful when using financial incentives to motivate healthcare professionals, as the unintended impact on intrinsic motivation may undermine the effectiveness of the policy.

国立情報学研究所で電子化したコンテンツを使用している。

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1990. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [187]-196).

Thesis (M.S.)--Northern Michigan University, 2007. / Bibliography: leaves 77-88.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Committee on Human Development, Dept. of Psychology, August 2002. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (M.I.T.)--The Evergreen State College, 2010. / Title from title screen (viewed 7/7/2010). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 102-107).

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka om studenters inre och yttre motivation skiljde sig åt beroende på vilken högskoleutbildning individen har valt. Tidigare studier har visat att det finns en skillnad mellan typer av motivationsnivåer hos studenter på olika högskoleutbildningar. I studien deltog 46 studenter vid ett svenskt universitet från Musikproduktionsprogrammet och 39 studenter vid samma universitet från Civilekonomprogrammet. Resultatet visade att Civilekonomstudenterna hade signifikanta skillnader mellan motivationstyperna. Majoriteten av civilekonomstudenter skattade högre värden i yttre motivation (EM) än i inre motivation (IM). Civilekonomstudenterna visade även högre värden i yttre motivation (EM) i jämförelse med Musikproduktionsstudenterna. Värden i IM och EM var jämt fördelade hos studenter från musikproduktionsprogrammet och Amotivationen visade sig vara låg hos samtliga studenter. Deltagarnas årkurs och kön var kovariater som kontrollerades i studien. Här sågs deltagarnas årkurs och kön ha signifikanta samband med studenternas nivåer av IM och EM. Utifrån resultatet dras slutsatsen att studenter från musikproduktionsprogrammet sannolikt drivs av både personligt intresse och externa belöningar medan majoriteten av civilekonomstudenter endast tycks motiveras av externa belöningar. / The aim of this study was to investigate whether student’s intrinsic motivation (IM) and extrinsic motivation (EM) differs depending on which university program the individual has chosen. Previous studies have shown that there is a difference between the level of motivation among different college students. 46 Swedish university students from the Music Production Program and 39 Swedish students at the same university from the Civil Econom Program participated in the study. The results showed that the Civil Economic students had significant differences between motivational types. The majority of Civil economic students estimated higher values in EM compared to IM. The Civil Economic students even showed higher values in EM compared to students from the Music Production program. The values in IM and EM were equally distributed within students from the Music Production program and the Amotivation proved to be low among all students. The grade and the gender of the participants were covariates that were controlled in the study. The participants grade and gender showed to have correlations that were significant with the students’ level of IM and EM. Conclusions from the results are that students from the Music Production program are likely to have goals based on personal interest and external rewards while the majority of civil Economic students only seems to be motivated by external rewards.

M.A. / This study was conducted to ascertain whether there is a significant relationship between an internal locus of control orientation and elite sport performance. The question can be asked if Springbok athletes have a more internal locus of control orientation than provincial athletes and athletes in training and whether provincial athletes have a more internal locus of control than athletes in training. The term locus of control refers to the amount of control a person believes he has over the things that happen to him. A person that regards himself as someone with control over his environment and circumstances is termed a person with a internal locus of control. What happens to him and the reward he gets is dependent on his own behaviour. There are persons, on the other hand, that believe that what happens to them in their sport careers is the result of external circumstances: luck, chance or what others do to them. These persons believe that they do not have any control over what happens to them and therefore are called persons with an external locus of control. It is believed that locus of control can influence performance positively or negatively. This study tries to give answers on whether or not elite athletes have an internal locus of control. Sixty athlete's of age 16 and older were selected and divided into three groups. The first group are athletes that compete on international level, while the second group consists of athletes that compete on provincial level. The third group consists of athletes that are in training and represent athletes that perform well on school-level as well as members of sport clubs. The instrument used to test the athletes was the Internal-External Locus of Control Scale of J.B. Rotter (1966). The results confirms that elite athletes operate within an internal locus of control framework. Although not statistically significant, it seems as if athletes that compete on international level function more in an internal locus of control framework. It appears as if there is a certain interaction between top level performers and an internal locus of control.

Magister Artium (Social Work) - MA(SW) / Learner and teacher motivation are vital to the study of learner retention or dropout rates in schools. Together with self-efficacy of both teachers and learners, its effect on learner retention rates in South African secondary schools can no longer be ignored. The aim of this research was to examine the relationships of learner and teacher motivation and self-efficacy with learners’ intention to drop out of high school. The Self-Determination Theory (SDT) and Bandura’s Theory of Self-efficacy were adopted to explain the relationship between studied variables. A quantitative methodology was used with a cross-sectional comparative design. The sample consisted of 625 learners and 111 teachers from 5 randomly selected high schools in the Metro North (from 43 government high schools) and 5 randomly selected schools in Metro East (from 42 government high schools) Education Districts in the Western Cape. Fifty percent of the schools were considered low income schools based on the school fees requirement. The data were collected using self-report questionnaires consisting of four sections, Demographic Information, the Motivational Index, Self-efficacy and Dropout Perceptions. The data were analysed with the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS V23). The current study found no significant relationships between teacher and learner motivation and self-efficacy. However, there was a significant negative relationship between teacher self-efficacy and learners’ intention to drop out of school. There was also a significant positive relationship between learner motivation and learners’ intention to drop out of school. Further research should be conducted to establish the reasons why there are negative relationships between teacher self-efficacy and learner self- efficacy. Also why a large number of learners, especially those from low socio-economic schools, seem more motivated to leave school than to persist. A further investigation is also required into the predictive factors which lead to learner vulnerability to drop out of school.