Skip to Main Content
 

Global Search Box

 
 
 
 

Files

File List


Dissertation - Todd Gibbs.pdf (1.93 MB)

ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

Striving for Wellness: An Exploration of Motivation, Goal Pursuits, and Well-being in an Online Educational Environment

Gibbs, Todd Adam
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1490284819134807

Abstract Details

2017, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, EDU Physical Activity and Educational Services.
Colleges and universities have been tasked with instilling a comprehensive range of healthy behaviors among student populations. Educational interventions that promote health-oriented knowledge, awareness, and behavioral change have thus become desirable options for institutions of higher education. This study examined an online course that was designed to promote health and wellness by engaging students in a process of striving toward self-selected goals. Students created three personal goals to enhance their well-being based upon a holistic wellness model, and reported progress toward these goals over a nine-week period. The purpose of this study was to determine the motivational constructs that facilitated student engagement with goal pursuits, and the resultant well-being associated with these efforts. The Self-Concordance Model (SCM; Sheldon & Elliot, 1999) was employed as an empirically validated model of motivational influences related to goal attainment and well-being. Data generated by students was used to replicate prior studies using the SCM. Analysis of the data involved regression analyses, bootstrapping procedures for mediation analyses, and the development of a structural equation model to test fit of the SCM as one theorized explanatory framework for course outcomes. Findings indicated that the data from to the current study did not align with hypotheses and findings from prior studies using the SCM. Respecifications were necessary to achieve an adequate fit of the structural model to the data from the course. These results suggest that self-concordance may not possess the same utility for explaining goal attainment and well-being in the context of an online educational environment. Instead, reported engagement with goal pursuance and the satisfaction of the psychological need for competence were found to be the most significant determinants of goal attainment and well-being. Implications from this study suggest that online educational interventions can effectively enhance participant engagement with health and wellness behaviors, but further exploration is necessary to identify the specific motivational elements that facilitate positive outcomes.
Paul Granello (Advisor)
Colette Dollarhide (Committee Member)
Darcy Granello (Committee Member)
173 p.
Counseling Education
college students; goals; health promotion; mental health; motivation; online education; Self Concordance; Self Determination Theory; well-being; wellness

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Gibbs, T. A. (2017). Striving for Wellness: An Exploration of Motivation, Goal Pursuits, and Well-being in an Online Educational Environment [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1490284819134807

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Gibbs, Todd. Striving for Wellness: An Exploration of Motivation, Goal Pursuits, and Well-being in an Online Educational Environment. 2017. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1490284819134807.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Gibbs, Todd. "Striving for Wellness: An Exploration of Motivation, Goal Pursuits, and Well-being in an Online Educational Environment." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2017. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1490284819134807

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1490284819134807
844
© 2017, some rights reserved.Creative Commons License Striving for Wellness: An Exploration of Motivation, Goal Pursuits, and Well-being in an Online Educational Environment by Todd Adam Gibbs is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at etd.ohiolink.edu.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.