Motivating Factors Influencing Teacher Educators to Choose Academe as a Career
Kelly M. Carrero
Special Education, College of Education, Texas A&M University - Commerce, 214-264-3069, USA.
Lyndal M. Bullock *
Special Education, University of North Texas, 1155 Union Circle # 311335, Denton, TX 76203; 940-367-3221, USA. (Professor Emeritus).
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The motivations that impelled individuals to pursue careers in Institutions of Higher Education as professors in personnel preparation are examined. Data were collected using Motivations for Choosing Academia as a Profession (MCAP) and a 10-item Big Five Inventory (BFI-10). Two hundred eighty-nine professors of education representing the four U.S. census regions participated in the present study. The MCAP is a 25-item instrument designed to measure retrospective motivation of faculty decisions to enter the professoriate. The development of the MCAP is described and an exploratory factor analysis was employed to examine the psychometric validity of the instrument.
Keywords: Motivation, institutions of higher education, special education faculty, general educators.