Student Perceived Agency in Higher Education

Abstract

Student agency is an essential component in active learning and in coping with uncertainty, contributing to success in studies and well-being. However, agency has rarely been studied multidimensionally or using repeated measures. Purpose of this study was to examine higher education (HE) students’ perceptions of their agency and associations between agency and background characteristics. In addition, the study explored the temporal stability and changes of agency during one course. Total of 309 HE undergraduate students answered a quantitative agency questionnaire, from which 16 participated in the repeated measures (t = 3) during one course, and three of them were interviewed. Utilizing the Agency of University Student (AUS) Scale, the average level of relational resources for agency were perceived high, whereas participatory resources varied. However, differences in agency especially by gender and field of study were revealed by the analysis of variance. Additionally, significant individual temporal changes in agency were found during one course. In the interviews, students linked the stability and changes in their agency to perceived support and sense of capability, but the interpretations were highly individual and situational. Understanding this variability in student agency can inform educational practices and contribute to implications supporting learning and well-being.