The Influence of Motivation, Emotions, Cognition, and Metacognition on Students’ Learning Performance: A Comparative Study in Higher Education in Blended and Traditional Contexts

Abstract

Previous research has proposed a conceptual model of the relationships between motivation, emotions, cognition, and metacognition related to students’ learning performance and validated it in a blended learning context that combines traditional learning with the use of educational technology. This study examined these relationships to test the hypothesis that the levels of some factors in a face-to-face learning environment differ from those in a blended learning context, finding that the conceptual model is valid for both settings. The role of positive emotions was significant in blended learning but not in face-to-face learning. Furthermore, help-seeking and peer learning were relevant only in blended learning. A positive relationship between academic motivations and metacognitive strategies was found in the face-to-face context, whereas one from motivations to metacognitive and cognitive strategies was found in the blended context. Negative emotions were present in both learning settings. This shows that the role of emotions is relevant to students’ perceived success.

The Effects of Self-Esteem and Academic Engagement on University Students’ Performance

“…The response to the instrument was answered using a Likert scale between 1 (not at all true of me) and 7 (very true of me). This instrument has been used and validated in the Mexican context [ 27 , 28 , 61 ].…”

“…Behavioral disengagement included being distracted (DI), mentally withdrawn (ME), and passive (PA). As with the MSLQ, this instrument has been previously used in studies by [ 27 , 28 , 61 ]. The scale was evaluated on a 5-point Likert scale, where 1 meant completely disagree, and 5 meant completely agree.…”

“…This is when the student moves from using simple cognitive strategies, in which their commitment is low, to using more sophisticated cognitive strategies, such as self-regulation or metacognition [ 25 ]. Metacognitive engagement is the knowledge of knowledge [ 26 ], and is found at a higher level of cognition [ 27 , 28 ]. When students are engaged with metacognitive actions, this leads them to self-regulated learning and to learning to plan, regulate, and monitor their knowledge.…”

Continuance Intention to use MOOCs: The Effects of Psychological Stimuli and Emotions

“…In offline math learning, students’ perceived competition could affect their emotions, which would further affect their academic achievement, forming an effect chain (Forsblom et al, 2022 ). In classroom learning, Acosta-Gonzaga and Ramirez-Arellano ( 2021 ) conceptually propose that students’ motivation could affect their emotions and then influence their academic achievements. Our results support these findings by confirming the effects of perceived competition on emotions, which finally impact continuance intention.…”

“…Altogether, it is reasonable that emotions play the mediating roles. In higher education, motivation can rouse students’ emotions, which affect their cognitive states, which affect their academic achievement in a cascading manner with emotions mediating the effects (Acosta-Gonzaga & Ramirez-Arellano, 2021 ). Personal well-being significantly affects positive emotions, and positive emotions significantly affect school experience, which finally positively affects academic achievement (Phan & Ngu, 2020 ).…”