title: Goal orientations of health profession students throughout the undergraduate program: a multilevel study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The achievement goal theory defines two major foci of students' learning goals (1) primarily interested in truly mastering a task (mastery orientation), and (2) striving to show ones competences to others (performance orientation). The present study is undertaken to better understand if and how health profession students' goal orientations change during the undergraduate program and to what degree gender, academic achievement, and self-efficacy are associated with mastery and performance orientation between students and within students over time.
  
  
  METHODS
  By means of an online questionnaire, students of medical, pharmaceutical, and veterinary sciences (N = 2402) were asked to rate themselves on mastery orientation, performance orientation, and self-efficacy at the beginning of five consecutive semesters. Data on grades and gender were drawn from university's files. Multilevel analyses were used for data analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Students' goal orientations showed relative stability over time, but substantial fluctuations within individual students were found. These fluctuations were associated with fluctuations in self-efficacy. Students' gender, high school grades, study grades, and self-efficacy were all associated with differences in mastery or performance orientation between students. Self-efficacy was the strongest predictor for mastery orientation and grades for performance orientation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The relatively strong association between the goal orientations and students' self-efficacy found in this study emphasizes the potential of enhancing self-efficacy in health profession students. Also, for educators and researchers, fluctuations of both goal orientations within individual students are important to consider.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80140, 3508 TC, Utrecht, Netherlands. a.kool@uu.nl.
authors.forename: Ada
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kool
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80140, 3508 TC, Utrecht, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mainhard
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80140, 3508 TC, Utrecht, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Mieke
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Brekelmans
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: van Beukelen
authors.affiliation: Center for Research and Innovation in Medical Education, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Debbie
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jaarsma
mesh_terms: D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009426:Netherlands; D020377:Self Efficacy; D013336:Students, Health Occupations / Q000523:psychology; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*; D013339:Students, Pharmacy / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014730:Veterinary Medicine / Q000706:statistics & numerical data