Abstract

PARADA CONTRERAS, Mariela  and  PEREZ VILLALOBOS, Cristhian Exequel. Relation between Academic Engagement and academic and affective characteristics of dental students. Educ Med Super [online]. 2014, vol.28, n.2, pp.199-215. ISSN 0864-2141.

Given the relationship of engagement - an intensive type of commitment - and the performance in work and educational settings as well as the importance of engagement as a motivational factor for the formation of autonomous students, the present study analyzed the academic and sociodemographic characteristics associated to it. To this end, 109 dentistry students from a private university were surveyed by using Utrech Work Engagement Scale Student, the academic satisfaction questionnaire and a sociodemographic questionnaire in addition to collecting data from their academic records. The results showed that those students with greatest global engagement were women, who entered the university with the highest scores in Mathematics, stayed longer at the university, had better marks in general and were the most satisfied with their career. The relationships in the two factors of this instrument differed from the previous ones, but pointed to the importance of clinical practices and of the student´s experiences for the development of engagement.

Keywords : engagement; motivation for studies; higher education; dentistry students; dental education.

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