The Relationship between Self-Esteem and Academic Motivation among Postgraduate Nursing Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

Among different variables affecting students' performance, academic motivation is one of the most vital factors. This study was carried out to investigate the relationship between self-esteem and academic motivation in postgraduate nursing students.

A total of 220 postgraduate nursing students were selected from 10 nursing schools in a cross-sectional study using multistage randomized sampling with replacement in 2014-2015. The Rosenberg Self-esteem Questionnaire and the Academic Motivation Scale of Vallerand were the data collection tools. A hierarchical regression model was used in seven blocks for evaluating the demographic, educational, familial, social, and spiritual well-being course characteristics.

According to the results, postgraduate students in nursing had low self-esteem (13.968) and moderate academic motivation (128.318). The correlation between self-esteem and academic motivation was 0.313 with a t-statistic of 4.874 at a significant positive level (p <0.001). The spiritual well-being course (P <0.0001) (as an educational variable) had a significant impact on academic motivation with an average increase in self-esteem.

Self-esteem should be considered as a criterion for screening applicants for master's degrees given the sensitivity of nursing postgraduate students' personal and occupational performance. Since the spiritual well-being course affects self-esteem, introducing cultural patterns and interventions in this field can be associated with increasing students ’self-esteem.