Internal medicine clerks’ motivation in an online course: a mixed-methods study

Purpose At LUMC, a Small Private Online Course (SPOC) was developed complementary to the clinical learning environment of the internal medicine clerkship. The developers used the self-determination theory in the design of the SPOC’s assignments aiming to improve learners’ intrinsic motivation. This...

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Main Authors: Esther C. Hamoen, Floris M. van Blankenstein, Peter G.M. de Jong, Kirsten Langeveld, Marlies E.J. Reinders
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2025-12-01
Series:Medical Education Online
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Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/10872981.2024.2445915
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author Esther C. Hamoen
Floris M. van Blankenstein
Peter G.M. de Jong
Kirsten Langeveld
Marlies E.J. Reinders
author_facet Esther C. Hamoen
Floris M. van Blankenstein
Peter G.M. de Jong
Kirsten Langeveld
Marlies E.J. Reinders
author_sort Esther C. Hamoen
collection DOAJ
description Purpose At LUMC, a Small Private Online Course (SPOC) was developed complementary to the clinical learning environment of the internal medicine clerkship. The developers used the self-determination theory in the design of the SPOC’s assignments aiming to improve learners’ intrinsic motivation. This study investigates the impact of the SPOC and its specific assignments on student motivation.Methods The study uses a mixed-methods approach. The authors describe a quantitative analysis of students’ responses on an intrinsic motivation inventory (IMI), and a qualitative thematic analysis of semi-structured group interviews, respectively.Results Seventy-eight students (response rate 42%) filled out the IMI. Their scores were (7-point Likert scale): interest/enjoyment 3.76, competence 4.02, choice 3.53, value/usefulness 4.20, relatedness 3.85. Thematic analysis of the interviews (14 students) revealed seven themes: collaboration with peers, usefulness, SPOC-related factors, workload, motivation, and performance.Conclusions Motivation could be optimized creating useful, authentic cases that train skills that are directly transferrable to clinical practice. Challenging, interesting and student-generated assignments positively influenced students’ autonomy and motivation. Lack of awareness of online performance negatively affected the feeling of competence. Perceptions of online collaboration were suboptimal. The study can be helpful for other teachers to enhance motivation while developing online courses.
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spelling doaj-art-fe5a898a2bca45b3a8d294d1c56a4b482025-08-20T02:58:07ZengTaylor & Francis GroupMedical Education Online1087-29812025-12-0130110.1080/10872981.2024.2445915Internal medicine clerks’ motivation in an online course: a mixed-methods studyEsther C. Hamoen0Floris M. van Blankenstein1Peter G.M. de Jong2Kirsten Langeveld3Marlies E.J. Reinders4Department of Internal Medicine, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The NetherlandsCenter for Innovation in Medical Education, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The NetherlandsCenter for Innovation in Medical Education, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The NetherlandsPublic Health and Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The NetherlandsDepartment of Internal Medicine, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The NetherlandsPurpose At LUMC, a Small Private Online Course (SPOC) was developed complementary to the clinical learning environment of the internal medicine clerkship. The developers used the self-determination theory in the design of the SPOC’s assignments aiming to improve learners’ intrinsic motivation. This study investigates the impact of the SPOC and its specific assignments on student motivation.Methods The study uses a mixed-methods approach. The authors describe a quantitative analysis of students’ responses on an intrinsic motivation inventory (IMI), and a qualitative thematic analysis of semi-structured group interviews, respectively.Results Seventy-eight students (response rate 42%) filled out the IMI. Their scores were (7-point Likert scale): interest/enjoyment 3.76, competence 4.02, choice 3.53, value/usefulness 4.20, relatedness 3.85. Thematic analysis of the interviews (14 students) revealed seven themes: collaboration with peers, usefulness, SPOC-related factors, workload, motivation, and performance.Conclusions Motivation could be optimized creating useful, authentic cases that train skills that are directly transferrable to clinical practice. Challenging, interesting and student-generated assignments positively influenced students’ autonomy and motivation. Lack of awareness of online performance negatively affected the feeling of competence. Perceptions of online collaboration were suboptimal. The study can be helpful for other teachers to enhance motivation while developing online courses.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/10872981.2024.2445915Clinical learningclerkshipsonline coursemotivationthematic analysis
spellingShingle Esther C. Hamoen
Floris M. van Blankenstein
Peter G.M. de Jong
Kirsten Langeveld
Marlies E.J. Reinders
Internal medicine clerks’ motivation in an online course: a mixed-methods study
Medical Education Online
Clinical learning
clerkships
online course
motivation
thematic analysis
title Internal medicine clerks’ motivation in an online course: a mixed-methods study
title_full Internal medicine clerks’ motivation in an online course: a mixed-methods study
title_fullStr Internal medicine clerks’ motivation in an online course: a mixed-methods study
title_full_unstemmed Internal medicine clerks’ motivation in an online course: a mixed-methods study
title_short Internal medicine clerks’ motivation in an online course: a mixed-methods study
title_sort internal medicine clerks motivation in an online course a mixed methods study
topic Clinical learning
clerkships
online course
motivation
thematic analysis
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/10872981.2024.2445915
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