Esther Tamara Canrinus

• Denfeld, Annette-Pascale & Canrinus, Esther T. (2027). Between rights and realities: Teachers' perspectives on ensuring a safe school environment, Teachers in a World in Transition. Routledge. ISSN 9781003678885. s. 117–131. doi: 10.4324/9781003678885-9. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  This chapter discusses teachers’ responses to changes to the Norwegian Education Act that strengthened pupils’ right to a safe and good environment. Teachers face a duty to act if a pupil subjectively perceives, for example, bullying or social exclusion. The law is accompanied by extended documentation, control mechanisms, and complaint procedures, constituting a shift toward juridification in education. Comments of 19 teachers left in two quantitative studies were analyzed, and the teachers’ views are presented as three overarching themes: unintended consequences for pupils, consequences for teachers, and collaboration with other stakeholders.

• Roorda, Berber D.; Langeloo, Annegien; Vugteveen, Jorien; Kamans, Elanor & Canrinus, Esther Tamara (2026). What motivates students to participate in honors programs: A fine-grained exploration of honors students’ motivational profiles in the Netherlands. Social Sciences & Humanities Open (SSHO). 14. doi: 10.1016/j.ssaho.2026.103542. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Honors programs are extracurricular programs designed to provide talented and ambitious students with academic challenges beyond the standard curriculum. While honors students are generally highly motivated to participate in their honors program, students might be driven by different motives. By incorporating the full motivational spectrum as described by the Self-Determination Theory, this study aimed to understand what motivational profiles could be distinguished in an honors population and how students’ background characteristics were associated with these profiles. To this end, we employed a cross-sectional observational study design to examine seven motivational constructs through a survey administered to four successive cohorts comprising a total of 360 students. These constructs included amotivation, three forms of extrinsic motivation (external regulation, introjected regulation, and identified regulation), and three forms of intrinsic motivation (to know, to accomplish, and to experience stimulation). Three motivational profiles emerged from our honors population, which we called ‘Overall High’, ‘Knowledge oriented’, and ‘Controlled’. Furthermore, our results show that honors students with different characteristics were not evenly distributed across the profiles. Male students and international students were more likely to belong to profiles characterized by more controlled motivation, whereas female students and domestic students were more likely to belong to profiles with stronger intrinsic motivation. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

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• Senden, Bas; Martinussen, Liva Jenny & Canrinus, Esther Tamara (2026). Student teachers’ motivation to complete their studies: Exploring institutional and practicum-related experiences. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv
• Nydahl, Adina Marie; Brehmer, Mareike & Canrinus, Esther Tamara (2026). Studentenes opplevelse av de to første studieårene i lærerutdanningene. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv
• Canrinus, Esther Tamara; Turcotte, Julianne; Lawford, Heather & Aylward, Lynn (2026). Generativity and educational choice: An analysis of student motivations in caring professions. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  This study uses generativity as a lens to investigate students’ motives for choosing their educational program. Generativity refers to behaviours and motivations aimed at guiding the next generation, caring individuals, and the larger social system (Erikson, 1950). Professions such as teaching, nursing, and social work are inherently generative as contribute to future generations and society. Generativity in an interaction of agentic motives—developing competence and skills—and communal motives—serving others and fostering growth (McAdams et al., 1998). In the context of educational choice, students may prioritize self-development to help others or focus primarily on supporting others while developing skills along the way. As such, these students bring different kinds of drives to the table when learning about and practicing with their profession. Previous research has shown that the type of motivation for choosing an educational program relates to outcomes such as self-efficacy (Calkins et al., 2024; Thornberg et al., 2023) and commitment to the program (Bergmark et al., 2018; Fokkens-Bruinsma & Canrinus, 2011). Similarly, the extent to which students experience a sense of purpose, particularly an altruistic purpose, is related to the strength of their commitment to their degree (Sharma & Yukhymenko-Lescroart, 2018). However, these motives have not been studied through a generativity lens. The extent to which students in helping professions aim to contribute to future generations—and whether this differs across programs—remains unclear To address these questions, we analysed data from 2000 students enrolled in various caring professions (e.g., nursing [N=909], social work [N=199], primary teacher education [N=312]) and in their first (N=1494) to third (N=180) year. Students answered: “What motivated you to choose the study program you are currently attending?” Responses were coded using a scheme validated by McAdams and colleagues (1993) assigning scores for three possible components of generativity, for a total possible score of 3: (a) involvement in next generation (“I want to help children who need help”), (b) general care towards others ("a desire to help others”), and (c) creative expression or societal change ("a fight for justice”). Responses not meeting generativity criteria (e.g., “to have a fulfilling workday”) scored 0. All responses were coded by the second author; 20% were double-coded, achieving >80% agreement. Preliminary results show that, across programs, about 52% of students expressed at least some form of generative motivation in their response. Furthermore, differences emerged between the programs in total generativity, F(2,718) = 8.14, p<.001. Tukey’s test revealed that nursing students scored significantly lower (M=.56, SD=.59) than Education (M=.75, SD=.84) or Social Work students (M=.84 SD=.79). Chi-square analyses revealed that 80% of “next generation” responses came from education students, compared to 3% from nursing. Furthermore, for “caring,” 47% were nursing students, while 57% were social work students. Finally, very few of the total sample demonstrated creative or societal change (8%) and scores were not different across program. Generativity has generally been studied related to parenting, work, and life satisfaction (McAdams et al., 1998). More recently, research has shown that generativity is important for youth as well (Lawford & Shulman, 2024). It is not only older, adult people that influence future generations, youth and young people have an influence as well and bring to the table their ideas and perspectives on how to help and how to contribute to democratic societies. Generativity is an essential component to sustain democratic culture practice full participation. Understanding the degree to which students choose their educational program with the intent to contribute to the next generation may offer fruitful avenues for the further development and design of educational programs as well as promote individual success in the programs.

• Brehmer, Mareike; Canrinus, Esther Tamara & Nydahl, Adina Marie (2026). Paths to belongingness: roles of peers, faculty, and digital resources in higher education. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Higher education is a social environment in which students must form new relationships. Research shows that around one third of students in European countries feel lonely or socially excluded (e.g. ​Goldrick et al., 2023​; ​Sivertsen & Johansen, 2022​). Compared to peers who experience belongingness, they are more likely to report anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, low self-esteem, sadness, shame, anger, and reduced motivation to complete their studies. Although direct human interaction is essential for developing a sense of belonging, students increasingly rely on digital resources because of their convenience and flexibility. While such resources may support academic performance, they can reduce opportunities for human interaction and weaken students’ sense of belongingness. To identify factors promoting belongingness, our research project follows 254 teacher students (aged 18-33, Mage=20.38, SDage=2.04; 71.6% female, 27.9% male, 0.5% other) over their first two years of study. It examines how loneliness, belongingness, and social networks develop over time. This paper investigates how loneliness and belongingness relate to how intensively students consult peers, faculty, and other (digital) information sources when they have questions about academic content. Longitudinal data are collected in September 2025, April 2026, and April 2027 using electronic surveys measuring loneliness (Cronbach’s α=.815; ​Sivertsen & Johansen, 2022​), belongingness to peers (Cronbach’s α=.841; adapted from ​Slaten et al., 2018​), number and frequency of peer contacts, and how often students consult peers, faculty, and different digital resources when seeking academic information. We hypothesise that students who: H1) frequently contact peers for general purposes report more belongingness and less loneliness H2) frequently consult peers academically report more belongingness and less loneliness H3) frequently consult the learning platform, Google, or generative artificial intelligence (AI) experience more loneliness and less belongingness Preliminary bivariate correlation analyses based on the first data collection provide initial insights into these relationships. By June 2026, data from two time points will be available, allowing for causal inferences. Regarding background variables, preliminary results indicate that older students reported less contact with peers in general (β=—.301, p<.001) and in academic matters (β=—.227, p=.001). They contacted library services more often (β=.146, p=.041) and consulted Google less frequently (β=—.164, p=.021). Male students reported less contact with peers (β=—.189, p=.029), but more contact with faculty (β=.204, p=.002) and library services (β=.155, p=.002) in academic contexts. Students reporting a higher number of peer contacts also reported more frequent peer contact (β=.340, p<.001), less loneliness (β=—.230, p<.001), greater belongingness to peers (β=—.347, p<.001), and more academic contact with peers (β=.260, p<.001) and faculty (β=.186, p=.001). Those who reported frequent peer contact experienced less loneliness (β=—.207, p=.015), greater belongingness (β=.370, p<.001), and more frequent academic consultation with peers (β=.208, p=.015). Loneliness and belongingness to peers were negatively related (β=—.463, p<.001). More academic contact with peers was associated with less loneliness (β=—.317, p<.001) and greater belongingness (β=.441, p<.001). Academic contact with faculty was positively related to belongingness to peers (β=.141, p=.034), academic peer contact (β=.171, p=.010), and consulting library services (β=.327, p<.001). Contrary to our hypothesis, students who consulted generative AI for academic purposes also reported higher belongingness to peers (β=.156, p=.019). Overall, these preliminary findings suggest that older and male students may be at greater risk of reduced peer contact, lower belongingness, and increased loneliness. Peer contact appears crucial for fostering belongingness and reducing loneliness. Faculty may play a connecting role by linking students to peers and library services, which offer human interaction through in-person support. The use of generative artificial intelligence does not seem to undermine belongingness in this dataset, and longitudinal data will provide more insights into this relationship by the time of the conference.

• Brehmer, Mareike; Canrinus, Esther Tamara & Nydahl, Adina Marie (2026). Belonging matters: The role of program context in students’ loneliness. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  One third of students in Norway feel very or extremely lonely, increasing risks of anxiety, depression, and suicide. Student teachers are no exception in having to find their social environment at the start of their studies. How educational programs are arranged can affect the social environments first year students experience. This study investigates loneliness and sense of belonging in 211 students from three teacher education programs at one university. Survey-data from wave one (September 2025) indicate that the sense of belonging to fellow students (β=-.45, p<.001) and enrolment in the program educating for teaching years 5-10 (β=-.19 p<.05) significantly mitigate loneliness, while having moved to the university’s city from elsewhere significantly contributes to loneliness (β=.16 p<.05). Longitudinal data including wave two (April 2026) will be used to investigate additional contextual factors and students’ development of their social networks during their first year of studies. 

• Canrinus, Esther Tamara; Herlofsen, Camilla; Dalehefte, Inger Marie; Olsen, Anne Karin Vikstøl & García, Nataly (2026). From silos to synergy: Interprofessional education for supporting children at risk. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Addressing interprofessional collaboration (IPC) around children at risk has become a priority. The present study examines 209 2nd and 153 3rd year Norwegian students’ self-perceived IPC skills within an interprofessional educational program on at-risk children and youth. It explores potential differences between the two year groups and between student teachers and students from health and social care disciplines, given the limited inclusion of teacher education in prior IPC research. Students perceive themselves to be between ‘good’ and ‘very good’ at interprofessional collaboration and communication. Furthermore, 57.5% of the students perceived they had improved their ability to collaborate interprofessionally after the seminar. We found significant differences between 2nd and 3rd-year students, but not between student teachers and other students. Thus, the seminar may enable future professionals, including student teachers, to collaborate and communicate in such a way that they truly create a team around the child.

• Roorda, Berber; Langeloo, Annegien; Vugteveen, Jorien; Kamans, Elanor & Canrinus, Esther Tamara (2026). What motivates students to participate in honors programs? Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Honors programs offer ambitious students challenges beyond the standard curriculum. While these students are typically motivated, their underlying motives can vary. This study applied self-determination theory to identify motivational profiles within an honors student population and examined how background characteristics relate to these profiles. We assessed a broad range of motivational constructs, including amotivation, three types of extrinsic motivation (external, introjected, identified regulation), and three types of intrinsic motivation (to know, to accomplish, to experience stimulation). Three distinct profiles emerged: ‘Overall High’, ‘Knowledge-Oriented’, and ‘Controlled’. Notably, student characteristics were unevenly distributed across profiles. Male and international students were more likely to exhibit controlled motivation, while female and domestic students showed stronger intrinsic motivation. These findings offer insights into the diversity of student motivation in honors education and suggest implications for tailoring support and program design.

• Canrinus, Esther Tamara; Dalehefte, Inger Marie; Kvammen, Mette Fløystad; Herlofsen, Camilla & Olsen, Anne Karin Vikstøl (2026). Fostering students’ interprofessional collaboration in higher education – A video study. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Interprofessional collaboration is crucial for providing coherent and effective welfare services. Without it, children and families may experience fragmented and inefficient support with poor flow of information, impeding quality and follow-up (Kjørstad et al., 2025). Therefore, educational programmes need to provide students with conceptual understanding and practical experience with interprofessional collaboration. Recognizing the need for coordinated efforts across health, social care, and education, this project addresses fragmented services by fostering proactive, interdisciplinary collaboration through interprofessional education. At [anonymized], students from several professional programmes meet annually for a joint on-campus seminar with plenary lectures and interprofessional group work. Although much is known about students’ perceptions of such work, gaining more knowledge about how students behave and engage when they practice interprofessional collaboration, can provide insight into possible hindering and facilitating factors during such a learning process. Using video recordings of five interprofessional groups consisting of five students, we observed students’ participation, turntaking, role negotiation, and discussions of professional boundaries while engaging in and applying their professional view on an authentic task from the practice field. These data contribute to further development of interprofessional education ensuring that future professionals are equipped to work effectively across disciplines in supporting vulnerable children and youth.

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