The Effects of Medical Students' Achievement Goal Orientations on Affective Attitudes towards Anatomy Learning

Purpose: This study was designed to investigate how medical students' achievement goal orientations towards anatomy class influence perceived affect towards anatomy learning. Methods: Participants were 124 medical students. Students' self-report measures were used for the assessment of their achievement goal orientations, perceived value, interests, effort, tension, test anxiety, and negative dissection experiences. Correlation and multiple regression analyses were used for the data analyses. Results: Students with high levels of mastery-approach goals displayed high interests, values, and efforts while they showed low levels of tension, test anxiety, and negative dissection experiences. In contrast, students with high mastery- and performance-avoidance goals showed high levels of tension and/or test anxiety. Students' performance-approach goals are positively associated with both high effort and high negative dissection experiences. Conclusion: These findings offer theoretical and practical implications for anatomy teaching and learning by suggesting that students' learning experiences vary in terms of students' achievement goal orientations which may make differences in students' psychological experiences in a class.