EFFECTS OF METACOGNITIVE STRATEGY AND ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION TRAINING ON DISSERTATION EFFICACY AND ANXIETY AMONG DOCTORAL STUDENTS IN SOUTHWESTERN NIGERIAN UNIVERSITIES

Abstract

The importance of dissertation writing towards sustaining academic and intellectual culture cannot be overemphasised. However, the dissertation processes are often fraught with certain inhibiting factors such as low efficacy and anxiety. Hence, there is the need to build in the students a minimum level of confidence and efficacy through cognitive therapies such as meta cognitive strategy and achievement motivation training. Previous studies on successful completion of doctoral dissertations in Nigerian universities particularly in Southwestern, have focused more on opinionated than intervention studies using cognitive therapies in enhancing such accomplishment. This study, therefore, examined the effects of metacognitive strategy (MST) and achievement motivation training (AMT) on dissertation efficacy and anxiety of doctoral students. It further ascertained the moderating influence of emotional intelligence (EI) and gender. The study adopted pretest-posttest and control group experimental design with a 3x2x3 factorial matrix. The samples consisted of 84 doctoral students purposively selected from three universities in South-western Nigeria. Participants were assigned to three experimental groups (MST, AMT and control). Three instruments used for data collection were: Dissertation Self-Efficacy Scale (r=0.88); Dissertation Anxiety Scale (r=0.93); and EI Scale (r=0.78). The administration of treatments lasted eight weeks for the experimental groups. Fourteen hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. Data were analysed using Analysis of Covariance. There was a significant main effect of treatments on participants' dissertation efficacy [F(2,65)= 35.47, p<0.05; (=.52)]. Participants who were exposed to Metacognitive Strategy ( x ?=109.60) performed better than those in AMT group (x ?=103.80) and the control group ( x ?=91.37) on measure of dissertation efficacy. Emotional intelligence had a significant moderating main effect on participants' dissertation efficacy [F (1,65)=7.63, p< 0.05; (=.19)]. Participants with high EI recorded the highest mean score in dissertation efficacy (106.70); followed by participants with moderate EI (x ?=100.68) and then participants with low EI (x ?=96.06). However, there was no significant main effect of gender on dissertation efficacy. The interaction effects of treatment and EI on dissertation efficacy were not significant. Likewise, the three-way interaction effects of treatments, EI and gender were not significant. The treatments had a significant main effect on dissertation anxiety [F(2,65)=3.81, p<0.05; (=.10)] of the participants. Metacognitive Strategy group also had the lowest anxiety mean score ( x ?= 78.91) compared to Achievement Motivation Training group ( x ?=85.59) and Control group ( x ?=92.92). Participants with high EI recorded the least mean score ( x ?=84.34) when compared to their moderate ( x ?=86.46) and low EI (x ?=88.08) counterparts on measure of dissertation anxiety. The interaction effects of treatment and EI on dissertation anxiety were not significant. Likewise, the three-way interaction effects of treatments, EI and gender were not significant. While the Metacognitive Strategy and Achievement Motivation Training enhanced dissertation efficacy and reduced dissertation anxiety, the former was more effective. Therefore, doctoral students should be exposed to Metacognitive Strategy and Achievement Motivation Training to facilitate completion of the doctoral programme as scheduled.