Misconceptions about thermal energy are particularly difficult to change. Building on the Cognitive Reconstruction Knowledge Model (Dole & Sinatra in Educational Psychologist 33:2–3, https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.1998.9653294 . 1998), this study examines how configurations of motivation profiles formed by mastery goals, performance-approach goals, self-efficacy, and situational interest relate to student engagement and conceptual change. The study was conducted with high school physics students ( N = 251) in Senegal. The students completed a questionnaire on motivational variables and student engagement, and a test on conceptual understanding of thermal energy before and after the calorimetry unit. Latent profile analyses identified six distinct motivation profiles: Confident , Performance-driven , Confident Mastery Interested , Mastery Interested , Confident Performance-driven , and High All . Mediation analysis indicated that student engagement significantly mediated the relationship between motivation profiles and conceptual change, but only for the Confident Mastery Interested and Performance-driven profiles relative to the High All profile. These findings emphasize the importance of considering the interplay between motivation profiles and student engagement when designing personalized interventions to promote conceptual change.
Thiam et al. (Thu,) studied this question.