Motivation and learning strategies among university students in Serbia

In this study, the understanding of self-regulated learning as one of the key competences in contemporary education was based on Pintrich’s model of self-regulated learning. The goal was to examine the links between different motivational orientations and learning strategies among university students in Serbia and explore the relations between these variables on the one hand and academic achievement, gender, field of study, and year of study on the other. A total of 520 students enrolled in art, science, and social science studies at universities in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš, and Kragujevac filled out the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ). The obtained data were processed via a factor analysis, correlations, and non-parametric tests. We isolated six factors, including Self-Confidence and Orientation Towards Understanding, Elaboration and Metacognitive Self-Regulation Strategies, Critical Thinking and Orientation Towards Expanding Knowledge, Orientation Towards External Criteria Accompanied by Self- Discipline, Anxiety, and High Learning Motivation and Dedication to Achieving the Set Goals. The application of metacognitive self-regulation strategies could be linked to both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Students oriented towards external criteria exhibited higher levels of academic achievement. We identified gender differences in the application of elaboration and metacognitive self-regulation strategies in terms of learning motivation and anxiety levels. Art students were more prone to the use of the critical thinking strategy compared to science and social science students. In this paper, we highlight practical implications related to designing self-regulated learning courses for university teachers and students, along with recommendations for future research.