The present study aims to analyse the effect of motivational variables and previous academic achievement on students’ future choice of chemistry once this subject becomes optional in the educational system. Toward this goal, the translation and adaptation of the Science Motivation Questionnaire II (SMQII) has been undertaken in our investigation to measure students’ motivation towards physics and chemistry. The sample comprised 1060 secondary school Spanish students divided into two groups: 695 students who chose the subject when it became optional for the first time and 365 who decided to leave it. Factor analysis confirmed the original structure of latent variables in our sample, providing validity for this adaptation to a new language and context. A segmentation analysis confirmed that career motivation was the best predictor of students’ retention in physics and chemistry before previous academic achievement and the rest of the motivational variables. Although significant gender differences were found in self-efficacy and self-determination, these seem not to be relevant in students’ choice.

中文翻译：

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动机对中学化学选择的影响：针对西班牙学生的《科学动机调查表II》的改编和验证

本研究旨在分析动机变量和以前的学业成就对学生未来化学选择的影响，只要该学科在教育体系中成为可选。为了实现这一目标，我们在调查中对“科学动机问卷II（SMQII）”进行了翻译和改编，以衡量学生对物理和化学的动机。样本包括1060名中学西班牙学生，分为两组：695名学生在初次选择该科目时选择了该科目，还有365名决定离开该科目的学生。因子分析证实了我们样本中潜在变量的原始结构，为这种适应新语言和新环境提供了有效性。细分分析证实，职业动机是学生在先前的学业成绩和其他动机变量之前留在物理和化学领域的最佳预测指标。尽管在自我效能和自我决定方面发现了明显的性别差异，但这些差异似乎与学生的选择无关。