Past studies have associated gratitude interventions with a host of positive outcomes. However, there is a dearth of research regarding the impact such interventions have on the academic motivation of university students, thought to be a primary determinant of academic achievement and overall satisfaction with school activities. Here, we examined the effects of a 2-week online gratitude journal intervention on the academic motivation of university students. Eighty-four students were randomly assigned to either an active manipulation group (gratitude group) or a neutral control group. In the first 6 days of each week, participants in the gratitude group were asked to log in to the online system once a day and list up to five things they had felt grateful for. They were also requested to evaluate various aspects of their daily lives. Participants in the control group were only requested to perform the daily self-evaluations. Academic motivation was assessed using the Academic Motivation Scale (AMS), which conceptualizes motivation in academic settings as being composed by three different components, i.e., intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation and amotivation, the latter being associated with the perceived lack of contingency between actions and outcomes. Responses were collected 5 times: before group assignment (baseline), 1 week after the start of the intervention, immediately after the intervention, and at two follow-ups, 1 and 3 months after the intervention. Analysis using a self-determination index derived from the AMS components showed that participants who regularly engaged with the gratitude journal task displayed significant enhancements in academic motivation. Additional analysis revealed that the enhancements were driven by decreases in the levels of amotivation. Furthermore, follow-up data showed that there were no signs that such enhancements had receded 3 months after the end of the intervention. Improvements in academic motivation were not observed among participants in the control group. The current results provide evidence that gratitude interventions can positively impact the academic motivation of university students. More broadly, they show that the effects extend well beyond the realm of typically assessed measures of individual well-being, and can effectively regulate a fundamental component of goal-directed behavior such as motivation.

中文翻译：

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经过2周的在线感谢期刊干预，增强了大学生的学习动机

过去的研究将感恩干预与许多积极成果相关联。但是，关于此类干预措施对大学生学习动机的影响的研究还很匮乏，被认为是学习成绩和对学校活动总体满意度的主要决定因素。在这里，我们研究了为期2周的在线感谢期刊干预对大学生学习动机的影响。八十四名学生被随机分配到一个积极的操作组（感激组）或一个中性的对照组。在每周的前6天中，感激小组的参与者被要求每天登录一次在线系统，并列出他们感激不已的五件事。还要求他们评估日常生活的各个方面。仅要求对照组的参与者进行每日自我评估。使用学术动机量表（AMS）评估学术动机，该量表将学术环境中的动机概念化为由三个不同的要素组成，即内在动机，外在动机和动机，后者与人们认为行动与行为之间缺乏偶然性有关。结果。收集了5次反应：分组之前（基线），干预开始后1周，干预之后立即以及两次随访（干预后1和3个月）。使用源自AMS组件的自决指数进行的分析表明，定期参与感恩日记任务的参与者表现出学习动机的显着提高。进一步的分析表明，这种增强是由动机水平的降低所驱动的。此外，随访数据显示，没有迹象表明干预结束后3个月这种增强已经减弱。对照组参与者中未观察到学术动机的改善。目前的结果提供了证据，表明感恩干预可以对大学生的学习动机产生积极影响。从更广泛的角度来看，他们表明，这种影响远远超出了对个人福祉进行典型评估的范围，并且可以有效地调节目标导向行为（如动机）的基本组成部分。随访数据显示，没有迹象表明在干预结束后3个月这种增强已经减弱。对照组参与者中未观察到学术动机的改善。目前的结果提供了证据，表明感恩干预可以对大学生的学习动机产生积极影响。从更广泛的角度来看，他们表明，这种影响远远超出了对个人福祉进行典型评估的范围，并且可以有效地调节目标导向行为（如动机）的基本组成部分。随访数据显示，没有迹象表明在干预结束后3个月这种增强已经减弱。对照组参与者中未观察到学术动机的改善。目前的结果提供了证据，表明感恩干预可以对大学生的学习动机产生积极影响。从更广泛的角度来看，他们表明，这种影响远远超出了对个人福祉进行典型评估的范围，并且可以有效地调节目标导向行为（如动机）的基本组成部分。目前的结果提供了证据，表明感恩干预可以对大学生的学习动机产生积极影响。从更广泛的角度来看，他们表明，这种影响远远超出了对个人福祉进行典型评估的范围，并且可以有效地调节目标导向行为（如动机）的基本组成部分。目前的结果提供了证据，表明感恩干预可以对大学生的学习动机产生积极影响。从更广泛的角度来看，他们表明，这种影响远远超出了对个人福祉进行典型评估的范围，并且可以有效地调节目标导向行为（如动机）的基本组成部分。