Many countries have experienced difficulties in attracting and maintaining effective teachers, for instance, Australia and the United States as well as European and Latin American countries (e.g. Jugović et al., 2012; Lin et al., 2012; Richardson & Watt, 2006; Said-Hung et al., 2017; Watt et al., 2012). In order to improve teacher recruitment efforts, a better understanding of prospective teachers´ motivations and perceptions is needed. Watt and Richardson (2007; Richardson & Watt 2006) developed the FIT-Choice scale, an internationally acknowledged instrument that offers the opportunity to examine teaching motivations and perceptions about the teaching profession.

The scale was applied internationally, translated into several languages and adapted to various cultural contexts. The original English language FIT-Choice scale comprises 58 items that are rated on a 7-point Likert Scale. Measured motivation factors include “social influences”, “positive prior teaching and learning experiences”, “perceived teaching abilities”, “intrinsic career value”, “personal utility values” (“job security”, “time for family”, “job transferability”), “social utility values” (“shape future of children/adolescents”, “enhance social equity”, “make social contribution”, “work with children/adolescents”) and the negative motivation of having chosen teaching as a “fallback career”. Measured perceptions of the profession include perceived “task demand” (“expertise” and “difficulty”) and “task return” (“social status” and “salary”); also assessed are experiences of “social dissuasion” and “satisfaction” with the choice of teaching as a career (Watt & Richardson, 2012).

In cross-cultural studies, including samples from Australia, the United States, Norway, Germany, Austria and Switzerland (König et al., 2013; Watt et al., 2012), motivation factors were found to be more similar than different across countries. Perceptions about the teaching profession showed greater variety, as they tend to reflect objective country differences. However, variations in motivations appeared for individuals from countries with a more distinctive cultural context such as Turkey and Indonesia (Kılınç et al., 2012; Suryani et al., 2016). It is therefore assumed that cultural dimensions produce differences in teaching motivations and perceptions.

Hofstede (Hofstede et al., 2010) developed a model of national culture consisting of six dimensions (individualism, power distance, masculinity, uncertainty avoidance, long-term orientation, indulgence) that can be used to distinguish countries from each other. Each dimension is expressed on a scale that runs from 0 to 100 (Hofstede et al., 2010). The dimension individualism is described as the degree of interdependence a society maintains among its members. Individualism means that a person’s self-image is defined in terms of “I” and that individual choices and decisions are expected. In collectivist societies, life is socially determined and a person’s self-image is defined in terms of “we” (Hofstede, 2011). According to Hofstede Insights Associate Partners (2021), individualism is highest in the United States and Australia. Countries such as Spain, Austria and Iran lie around the middle, and the lowest scores on the individualism dimension are found in Latin American countries.

The present study aims to bring together FIT-Choice findings from around the world and to investigate motivations for teaching and perceptions about the teaching profession in terms of cultural dimensions. The principal question guiding this research is: Are there differences between individualistic and collectivist countries in regard to motivation and perception factors of prospective teachers? It is hypothesised that prospective teachers from collectivist cultures rate the altruistic-type “social utility value” more highly. Also, the motivation factor “social influences” is assumed to be more important for prospective teachers from collectivist than individualistic settings since those living in collectivist societies are more influenced by their fellow citizens (Hofstede, 2011). However, the motivation factor “intrinsic career value” is assumed to be more dominant in individualistic countries, in which individual aims and interests are superior (Kılınç et al., 2012).

The search for FIT-Choice studies began with browsing through the comparative studies of Watt and Richardson (2012), Watt et al. (2012) and Watt et al. (2017). A search in Google Scholar followed, using the search term “FIT-Choice”. Furthermore, the identified studies were screened for the citation of other FIT-Choice studies. The list of studies generated by this process was finally reduced to those studies that met four criteria: (a) The sample size was at least 100; (b) the sample was clearly defined as prospective teachers; (c) the study was not restricted to a subgroup of prospective teachers; (d) means and standard deviations for first-order motivation and perception factors were reported. In all, 19 samples from 19 countries were located and analysed (individualistic scores in brackets): United States (91), Australia (90), the Netherlands (80), Ireland (70), Norway (69), Germany (67), Finland (63), Estonia (60), Austria (55), Spain (51), Iran (41), Turkey (37), Croatia (33), Dominican Republic (30), Serbia (25), China (20), Indonesia (14), Colombia (13) and Cuba. Although Cuba is not listed in the tool for country comparison, it can be categorised as collectivist. Cuba is a communist socialist republic, whose ideology opines that the individual works for the good of the country and not for personal benefit (Schlöglhofer, 2013), The total sample size is 12,524 and the included studies date between 2006 and 2022. In Australia, the United States and Ireland, the original FIT-Choice scale was applied, while in the other countries, translated and culturally adapted scale versions were used. Participants´ characteristics show some variety in the samples. While some studies examined first-year students (e.g. Germany, Spain and Turkey), other studies included data from students of higher semesters (e.g. Norway, Croatia and Cuba). The mean age is 22.53, however, the sample mean age was not reported for Australia, the Netherlands, Iran and the Dominican Republic. In all studies, female prospective teachers dominated, except in the Iranian sample which included slightly more male students. The present research combines FIT-Choice data and also includes a meta-analysis. The samples were divided into two subgroups according to the characteristics of the moderator variable (individualistic vs. collectivist). In order to investigate the influence of the moderator variable, a subgroup analysis was performed including calculations of mean values and Cohen's ds. Differences between the groups indicate the effect of the moderator variable (Döring & Bortz, 2016).

The results obtained support the assumption that teaching motivations transcend cultures that show similarities. In the United States and Australia, which are categorised as highly individualistic, “perceived teaching abilities”, “social utility value” and “intrinsic career value” were the most important factors in deciding to become a teacher. In countries that are in the medium to high range on the individualistic scale (e.g. Spain, Austria, Finland, Norway), “intrinsic career value” consistently came first, followed by “perceived abilities” and “social utility value”. In highly collectivist societies, including China, Indonesia, Colombia and Cuba, the most dominant factor for choosing teaching was constantly “prior teaching and learning experiences”, followed by “social utility value” and “perceived abilities”. Mean comparisons showed that the motivation factors “social utility value” and “social influences” were more important for choosing teaching in collectivist societies than in individualistic countries. While the effect size for “social utility value” was small (Cohen's d = -0.202), a medium effect size for “social influences” was achieved (d = -0.450). This result is in line with other research conducted in collectivist settings indicating that people tend to fulfil the goals and expectations of significant others (Suryani et al., 2016). As expected, “intrinsic career value” was valued higher in individualistic cultures, although the achieved effect size was small (d = 0.270). Interestingly, participants from individualistic societies were less likely to choose teaching as a “fallback career”. A medium effect was obtained for this factor (d = -0.676). In view of the differences in motivations and perceptions between individualistic and collectivist countries, a differentiated approach to teacher recruitment in diverse cultural contexts is needed. Recruitment campaigns in individualistic societies should predominantly focus on students’ intrinsic motivations and perceived abilities, while in highly collectivist countries, positive teaching and learning experiences as well as altruistic motivations should be primarily emphasised.

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