Self-Regulation and graduate students - Essay Example

The research scope is based on The McClelland theory (Schermerhorn, Hunt & Osborn, p. 15). This identifies the presence of nAch - need for achievement, nAff - need for affiliation, and nPower - need for power in themselves and in others to be able to create work environments that are responsive to respective need profiles. The aim of this project is to establish what components of the common graduate student's internal and external environment and how this may impact their ability to self-regulate in the learning environment, based on the graduate student's perspective.

This can be considered important because, while anyone can read about motivation, understand the actual environment that supports internal motivation can lead to a better understanding of how to create a self-regulated learning environment. The final results will allow for an environmental perspective on the forces that guide the graduate student towards self-learning or away from it. Understanding how the internal and external environment impacts the graduate student's capability to be a self-regulated learner can assist in developing stronger methodologies and resources for the graduate student.

McClelland's theory describes three different types of personalities and the techniques that motivate them. "A high-need achiever will prefer individual responsibilities, challenging goals, and performance feedback, a high-need affiliator is drawn to interpersonal relationships and opportunities for communication. The high-need-for-power type seeks "influence over others and likes attention and recognition" (Schermerhorn, Hunt & Osborn, p. 15). The need for achievement is defined by Schermerhorn, Hunt & Osborn as, "the desire to do something better or more efficiently, to solve problems, or to master complex tasks" and is commonly referred to as "nAch" (2003).

McClelland has developed his Theory of Acquired Needs. He states that amongst our needs is the need for affiliation (nAFF). The need for affiliation is "the desire to establish and maintain friendly and warm relations with others."Need for Achievement (as internal motivation)Bruce Tuckman at the The Ohio State University presented his Tripartite Model of Motivation for Achievement: Attitude/Drive/Strategy* to the Symposium: Motivational Factors Affecting Student Achievement - Current Perspectives.

Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Boston, August 1999. He presents the need for achievement as the following:"a model of motivation for achievement that includes three generic motivational factors that influence outcome attainment : (1) attitude or belief about one's capability to attain the outcome; (2) drive or desire to attain the out