Exploring Students’ Learning Motivation and Motivational Strategies in Engineering Mechanics Education

Abstract

This study aims to explore the current status of students’ learning motivation and corresponding motivational strategies in the Engineering Mechanics course. A total of 114 students majoring in Mechanical Design and Manufacturing at a university in Fujian Province, China, participated in the study. Based on educational psychology theories, a self-designed questionnaire was used to measure learning motivation across three dimensions: cognitive drive, self-enhancement drive, and affiliative/auxiliary learning drive. Results indicated that students scored highly on all three dimensions, demonstrating strong interest in course content, a pronounced desire for self-improvement, and good team collaboration awareness. The differences among the dimensions were minimal, suggesting a balanced and coordinated motivational structure. Gender analysis showed that male students scored slightly higher than females, but differences were not statistically significant, indicating a limited effect of gender on learning motivation. Grade-level analysis revealed no significant differences across years, suggesting that learning motivation remained relatively stable throughout different academic stages. Correlation analysis demonstrated strong positive relationships among the three dimensions, indicating that cognitive interest, self-enhancement needs, and collaborative tendencies mutually reinforce one another to form a coherent motivational system. Based on these findings, pedagogical strategies are proposed: enhancing cognitive drive through contextualized case studies and inquiry-based tasks; strengthening self-enhancement drive via goal setting, tiered tasks, and positive feedback; and improving affiliative/auxiliary learning drive through group collaboration, classroom interaction, and performance presentations. This study provides empirical evidence and practical guidance for teaching design and learning motivation enhancement in foundational engineering courses.