Satisfying higher education students’ psychological needs through case-based instruction for fostering creativity and entrepreneurship

Abstract Designing effective strategies for developing higher education students’ competencies, such as creativity and entrepreneurship, is crucial for their survival and self-realization in the technology-rich 21st century. This study is important as it addresses a significant research gap by desig...

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Main Authors: Xiaojing Weng, Qi Xia, Thomas K. F. Chiu, Zhihong Wan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Springer Nature 2025-03-01
Series:Humanities & Social Sciences Communications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-04597-2
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author Xiaojing Weng
Qi Xia
Thomas K. F. Chiu
Zhihong Wan
author_facet Xiaojing Weng
Qi Xia
Thomas K. F. Chiu
Zhihong Wan
author_sort Xiaojing Weng
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Designing effective strategies for developing higher education students’ competencies, such as creativity and entrepreneurship, is crucial for their survival and self-realization in the technology-rich 21st century. This study is important as it addresses a significant research gap by designing and implementing self-determination theory (SDT)-guided case-based instruction (CBI) to enhance digital learners’ creativity and entrepreneurship. A class of 34 master’s students in a taught programme focused on digital learning and technology at a public university in Hong Kong participated in the study. First, the students took a pre-test to assess their creativity and entrepreneurship. They then experienced a 13-week course designed using SDT-guided CBI. After the intervention, they completed a post-test on their creativity and entrepreneurship. Additionally, the researchers conducted interviews with 10 participants. These processes allowed the researchers to evaluate the effectiveness of the SDT-guided CBI learning activities and to gather participants’ suggestions for improving the design. The results of a repeated measures analysis of variance indicated the feasibility of SDT-guided CBI. Significant improvements in creativity were observed from the pre-test to the post-test, from the pre-test to the mid-test, and from the mid-test to the post-test. Meanwhile, students’ entrepreneurship significantly increased from the pre-test to the post-test, although the increases from the pre-test to the mid-test and from the mid-test to the post-test were slight and did not reach a significant level. From the qualitative data, students provided suggestions such as selecting effective case studies, using entrepreneurs’ stories, supporting entrepreneurial experiences, promoting technology-enhanced learning, and advocating for collaborative learning to improve the design. The findings imply that SDT-guided CBI has the potential to continually enhance students’ creativity and entrepreneurship throughout its implementation, with significant opportunities for improvement based on the implementation experiences.
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spelling doaj-art-beeba9e0d62d44dfb6607346ea77cb682025-08-20T02:59:19ZengSpringer NatureHumanities & Social Sciences Communications2662-99922025-03-0112111210.1057/s41599-025-04597-2Satisfying higher education students’ psychological needs through case-based instruction for fostering creativity and entrepreneurshipXiaojing Weng0Qi Xia1Thomas K. F. Chiu2Zhihong Wan3Department of Curriculum and Instruction, The Education University of Hong KongDepartment of Higher Education, Zhejiang UniversityDepartment of Curriculum and Instruction, The Chinese University of Hong KongDepartment of Curriculum and Instruction, The Education University of Hong KongAbstract Designing effective strategies for developing higher education students’ competencies, such as creativity and entrepreneurship, is crucial for their survival and self-realization in the technology-rich 21st century. This study is important as it addresses a significant research gap by designing and implementing self-determination theory (SDT)-guided case-based instruction (CBI) to enhance digital learners’ creativity and entrepreneurship. A class of 34 master’s students in a taught programme focused on digital learning and technology at a public university in Hong Kong participated in the study. First, the students took a pre-test to assess their creativity and entrepreneurship. They then experienced a 13-week course designed using SDT-guided CBI. After the intervention, they completed a post-test on their creativity and entrepreneurship. Additionally, the researchers conducted interviews with 10 participants. These processes allowed the researchers to evaluate the effectiveness of the SDT-guided CBI learning activities and to gather participants’ suggestions for improving the design. The results of a repeated measures analysis of variance indicated the feasibility of SDT-guided CBI. Significant improvements in creativity were observed from the pre-test to the post-test, from the pre-test to the mid-test, and from the mid-test to the post-test. Meanwhile, students’ entrepreneurship significantly increased from the pre-test to the post-test, although the increases from the pre-test to the mid-test and from the mid-test to the post-test were slight and did not reach a significant level. From the qualitative data, students provided suggestions such as selecting effective case studies, using entrepreneurs’ stories, supporting entrepreneurial experiences, promoting technology-enhanced learning, and advocating for collaborative learning to improve the design. The findings imply that SDT-guided CBI has the potential to continually enhance students’ creativity and entrepreneurship throughout its implementation, with significant opportunities for improvement based on the implementation experiences.https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-04597-2
spellingShingle Xiaojing Weng
Qi Xia
Thomas K. F. Chiu
Zhihong Wan
Satisfying higher education students’ psychological needs through case-based instruction for fostering creativity and entrepreneurship
Humanities & Social Sciences Communications
title Satisfying higher education students’ psychological needs through case-based instruction for fostering creativity and entrepreneurship
title_full Satisfying higher education students’ psychological needs through case-based instruction for fostering creativity and entrepreneurship
title_fullStr Satisfying higher education students’ psychological needs through case-based instruction for fostering creativity and entrepreneurship
title_full_unstemmed Satisfying higher education students’ psychological needs through case-based instruction for fostering creativity and entrepreneurship
title_short Satisfying higher education students’ psychological needs through case-based instruction for fostering creativity and entrepreneurship
title_sort satisfying higher education students psychological needs through case based instruction for fostering creativity and entrepreneurship
url https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-04597-2
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