Predicting Academic Motivation Based on Maher Intelligence, Emotional Stability, and Family Resilience in University Students

Abstract

Purpose: The present study aimed to predict academic motivation based on Maher intelligence, emotional stability, and family resilience among university students.

Methods and Materials: This study was conducted using a descriptive–correlational design with a predictive approach. The statistical population included university students in Tehran during the 2025 academic year, from which 410 participants were selected through multistage cluster random sampling based on the Krejcie and Morgan table. Data were collected using the Academic Motivation Scale (Vallerand et al., 1992), the Maher Intelligence Scale, the Emotional Stability subscale of the Big Five Inventory, and the Family Resilience Assessment Scale (Sixbey, 2005). The validity and reliability of all instruments had been confirmed in previous studies. Data analysis was performed using IBM SPSS version 27, including descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficients, and multiple linear regression analysis. Assumptions of regression analysis, including normality, independence of errors, and absence of multicollinearity, were examined and confirmed.

Findings: The results of Pearson correlation analysis indicated that Maher intelligence (r = 0.48, p < 0.001), emotional stability (r = 0.41, p < 0.001), and family resilience (r = 0.52, p < 0.001) were positively and significantly correlated with academic motivation. Multiple regression analysis revealed that the three predictors jointly explained 48% of the variance in academic motivation (R² = 0.48, F = 124.83, p < 0.001). Among the predictors, family resilience (β = 0.35, p < 0.001) had the strongest effect, followed by Maher intelligence (β = 0.32, p < 0.001) and emotional stability (β = 0.21, p < 0.001), indicating that all variables significantly contributed to predicting academic motivation.

Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that academic motivation is significantly influenced by an integrated set of cognitive, emotional, and familial factors, with family resilience playing a particularly prominent role. Enhancing Maher intelligence, strengthening emotional stability, and promoting resilient family environments can contribute to improving students’ academic motivation.