Probing the Underlying Structure of Modern Expectancy-Value Theory in Multicultural Education: A Bayesian Exploratory Factor Analysis

Abstract

Expectancy-Value (EV) theory has been widely used in a plethora of domains except for multicultural education, a distinct and critical field in many countries due to increasing student diversity. In light of the domain-specific nature of the EV theory and the discrepancy between the theoretical framework and empirical models found in previous studies, the purpose of the present study was to explore the factors of the EV theory in multicultural education. Participants were 187 college students who completed the Multicultural Expectancy-Value Scale (EVS). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with Bayes estimation and GEOMIN rotation resulted in two factors: Value and Expectancy. The two factors had a positive significant correlation of .42, p<.001. Participants with a Master’s or Doctoral degree had significantly higher Expectancy beliefs in multicultural education than those with a Bachelor’s degree (t(47.727)=-2.90, p<.01). Although our finding was consistent with the major tenets of the theory that expectancy and value beliefs are two primary motivating factors, it did not fully support the theoretical model, indicating a more parsimonious factor structure may be more appropriate. The distinct factor model in our study suggests a need for further research in examining the structural validity of the EV theory in multicultural education