The aim of the present study was to investigate 217 university students' motivational orientations from seven different schools. Participants answered questionnaires that asked their beliefs about effort value versus ability in school achievement contexts, their achievement goal orientations, and learning strategies they use in the study of a specific subject matter. Results showed that students adopted more learning than work avoidance goal, and theses two orientations were negatively related. At the same time learning goal was significantly more related to deep strategies' use while work avoidance goal was related to surface strategies. Nevertheless effort was not considered by most students as more important than ability. Results were discussed in the light of the current literature and some conclusions were drawn for teaching in higher education.
Motivation in higher education; Learning strategies; Value of effort versus ability
