Abstract
This study aims to examine the role of school atmosphere and socio-demographic variables (gender, class level, place of residence, and owning a computer at home) on the academic motivation of secondary school students. A total of 1014 7th and 8th grade students from 14 public schools in Osmancık district of Çorum participated in the study. We used Academic Motivation Scale, School Atmosphere Scale, and Personal Information Form as data collection tools. Regression analysis and t-test were used in the analysis of the data. According to the study's findings, 14% of the change in academic motivation is explained by the variables of cumulative grade point average, and school atmosphere. These variables significantly predicted academic motivation. Moreover, while there was no significant relationship between female and male students about academic motivation scores, a significant difference was found in terms of academic motivation scores in favor of students who attend 7th grade, live in a village, and do not own a computer. Findings reveal the importance of school atmosphere and environmental factors in increasing students' academic motivation. The scores on academic motivation subscales differed between boys and girls; therefore, future studies should examine the variation of academic motivation by gender in more detail.