Science interest Conceptualizing the construct and testing its predictive effects on current and future behavior

Science interest is seen as an important educational outcome because it is a predictor of current engagement with science and of future behavior, like choosing a career in a science-related field. This dissertation examines the science interest of teenagers who are currently following mandatory science classes, by (1) introducing and empirically testing a novel conceptualization of science interest – the science interest network model (SINM) and (2) studying science interest in practice – focusing on the watching of science videos. The first part of this dissertation focuses on the definition of science interest by introducing and empirically testing the science interest network model (SINM; Chapter 2 and 3). In the SINM, science interest is conceptualized as a network of interacting interest components and closely related motivational constructs. The findings show structural differences between SINMs across countries (Chapter 2) and that those components central within the SINM predict future behavior (Chapter 3). The second part of the dissertation (Chapters 4 to 6), presents our study of interest in practice, focusing on the relation of science interest with science video watching. Here, we studied the effect of individual interest on science video watching, and how a prior interest affects the triggering of situational interest. Lastly, Chapter 7 zooms out by including other motivational constructs and studying their close relations in a mathematics learning context. The findings point towards the complex interrelations of science interest in specific and motivational constructs in general and once more highlights the importance of interest in predicting both current and future behavior. Whether by showing videos with real-life content or by connecting content with topics students already find interesting, making (science) learning more interesting is thus worth the effort.