Self-Regulation, Co-Regulation, and Socially Shared Regulation of Motivation for Collaborative Activity: Comparison Between University Students and Working Adults1

Self-regulated learning theory assumes that self-regulated learning appears as a socially shared phenomenon with collaborative processes, but there is little research focused on self-regulation, co-regulation, and socially shared regulation of “motivation for collaborative activity.” This study aimed to examine how previous performance level and motivational antecedent factors (i.e., self-efficacy, task values) influence the three modes of regulation of intrinsic motivation, by comparing university students with working adults. Participants—397 university students and 380 working adults—completed questionnaires. Multigroup structural equation modeling revealed that previous performance level, self-efficacy, and utility value positively predicted the three modes of regulation in both groups. In addition, previous performance level positively influenced self-efficacy and task values. Interest value, which refers to the belief about interest in the task, positively predicted all three modes of regulation in working adults. In addition, the path coefficient of previous performance level to self-regulation in university students was significantly higher than in working adults. We discuss possible reasons for the significant differences in regulation of motivation for collaborative activity between university students and working adults.