Abstract:

At universities, since the beginning of the Bologna Process in 1999 a decline in course attendance was observed. However, research shows a positive impact of course attendance on course quality and learning outcomes (e.g., Schulmeister, 2015; Westrick et al., 2009). In spite of the negative consequences of course absenteeism, students are more and more absent from courses and especially lectures (Steinbacher, 2011). Previous studies showed especially for lectures at German universities a high degree of absenteeism.

Temporal overload of students was suspected as one main cause but could not be corroborated in studies. Other theories rely on student cognition, e.g. conceptions of “positive thinking” or inner drivers (e.g., “study hard” or “be perfect”) being related to personality and childhood development. However, studies are missing to back them. Furthermore, motivation as well as perceived social support are presumed factors influencing attendance and the quality of teaching.

The aim of the present study was to test the impact of these factors on students’ attendance at lectures. In contrast to a survey administered directly in or after a lecture, the approach of asking potential participants on the campus increases the probability of including students who do not attend lectures. Data from N = 774 students at k = 4 German universities were collected.

The results confirm that, according to the students, lectures are less frequently attended than seminars or exercises (d = 0.25). A strong motivation to learn is closely related to intrinsic motivation (r = .35). Intrinsic motivation (r = .14) and learning objectives (r = .15) somewhat increase presence in lectures. Students with the inner drivers “be perfect” (r = .19) and “give your best” (r = .14) significantly more often attend lectures than students with other predominant drivers as “be quick”. However, there is no difference between more or less positive thinking students. Positive thinking is related to motivation (r = .29) and social support (r = .22).

Implications for lower absenteeism and possible implications for improving lectures and attendance were derived from students’ answers.

The study is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

Keywords:

Absenteeism, positive thinking, inner drivers, university instructors, teaching quality.