A recent study has revealed that teachers’ intrinsic motivation is the key driver behind adopting educational innovations in higher education, with institutional factors and dissemination activities playing a secondary role. The research, conducted among academic staff at public Norwegian universities, provides insights into the factors that influence how teachers engage with innovative teaching practices. The findings were published in the journal Innovative Higher Education.
The study analysed how three main factors – motivation, dissemination activities, and institutional support – impact teachers’ use of educational innovations. These innovations were primarily developed as part of the Norwegian Centres for Excellence in Education (CEE) initiative, which aims to improve teaching quality through research-based approaches. Despite the significant funding and support from the initiative, researchers found that teachers’ internal drive to enhance their teaching was the most crucial factor for adopting these practices.
The findings of the study indicate that intrinsic motivation, such as teachers’ desire to try new approaches and improve their skills, significantly influences their adoption of educational innovations. Teachers who placed high value on educational enhancement and had a personal interest in improving their teaching were more likely to adopt new practices. Conversely, extrinsic motivations, such as incentives or external pressure from colleagues, had little effect on teachers’ adoption of innovations. This highlights the importance of fostering a culture where teachers feel motivated from within, rather than relying solely on external incentives or rewards.
The results align with previous studies that suggest teachers are more willing to innovate when they work in an environment that supports their autonomy. Moreover, intrinsic motivation proved to be a strong predictor of whether teachers actively adopted innovations or merely adapted them to suit their own needs.
The study also examined how dissemination activities, including exposure to information about educational innovations, influence teachers’ adoption of new practices. It found that frequency of contact with dissemination activities had a positive impact, but this effect was only significant for a small group of teachers identified as “adopters”. For others, simply being aware of these innovations was insufficient to drive adoption.
In fact, teachers who identified as “adapters” were more likely to use the innovations as inspiration, modifying them to fit their specific context rather than fully adopting them as initially intended. The researchers concluded that dissemination activities must be carefully tailored to address teachers’ uncertainties and concerns to effectively encourage adoption.
When considering institutional characteristics, such as leadership support and availability of resources, the study found that these factors had a limited direct impact on teachers’ innovative behaviour. While institutional support, such as the provision of time and funding, was found to be available, it did not appear to significantly influence teachers’ decision to adopt educational innovations.
This finding suggests that while institutional measures are important, they must align with teachers’ intrinsic motivations to be truly effective. Teachers seemed more influenced by their own determination to improve their teaching than than institutional strategies aimed at encouraging innovation.
