Are there gender differences in computer performance? If so, can motivation explain them?

Building on previous research which suggests that females are at a disadvantage when working with computers, the current paper investigates possible explanations. We used the cognitive-motivational process model (Vollmeyer & Rheinberg, 1999, 2000) to explore if motivation can account for the performance differences between male and female students. The model assumes that initial motivation affects strategies and motivation during learning which then influence performance. Male and female students from an introductory statistics class (N = 40), had to solve four statistics tasks with SPSS in 30 minutes. Measurements included initial motivation, functional state (i.e., flow) during task performance, navigation style, and task performance. Results show that males outperform females in terms of time needed for task completion and performance level. Male students displayed more solution-oriented navigation traces than female students. In a tentative exploratory path model, flow-experience and navigation style could be identified as mediating variables. The findings are interpreted in terms of a more effective use of trial-and-error strategies and a preference for tinkering behavior by males.