Association of achievement motivation and biopsychosocial factors of medical school students in a Mexican university: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Aim: This study aims to determine the relationship between achievement motivation and biopsychosocial factors of undergraduate medical students in a Mexican university. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 219 4th year medical students. A questionnaire made by the authors was applied to collect sociodemographic data. A modified version of the Achievement Motivation Scale was used to determine the level of achievement motivation, and the World Health Organization Quality of Life questionnaire was used to assess biopsychosocial variables. All variables were subjected to the Kolmogorov–Smirnov normality test with Lilliefors correction, and a Chi-square test was performed. Significant variables were subjected to Spearman’s correlation analysis. Results: About 51% of the students had a good or higher achievement motivation level. The variables that correlate positively with motivation are physical health (r = 0.535, p < 0.001), psychological health (r = 0.612, p < 0.001), environment (r = 0.419, p < 0.001), and social relationships (r = 0.424, p < 0.001). Conclusions: A student with a good environment, good social relationships, and good psychological and physical health will show greater persistence and better achievement motivation in the task for which they are directly responsible.

Keywords

• Motivation. Academic performance. Medical education. Intrinsic motivation. Academic achievement.