This is a systematic review of empirical studies on graduate students’ research motivation, a key factor for improving their research performance. A total of 57 articles and conference papers between 1993 and 2023 were identified through the thorough search process and quality assessment, and their research categories and themes, theories, and methodologies were synthesized. Based on this review, a Graduate Students’ Research Motivation Model (GSRMM) was constructed, highlighting three main categories: antecedents, consequences, and mediating roles of graduate students’ research motivation. The results of the study showed that manipulable antecedents have been extensively explored, but immutable antecedents, consequences, and the mediating roles of research motivation remain underexplored. Self-efficacy theory emerged as the dominant framework in the existing studies. Quantitative research design by means of self-report questionnaires dominated the current studies, which warrants a move towards alternative research measurements. This comprehensive review provides a deeper understanding of graduate students’ research motivation and also suggests new avenues for further exploration in this field.

这是对研究生研究动机的实证研究的系统回顾，而研究动机是提高研究生研究绩效的关键因素。通过彻底的检索过程和质量评估，共确定了 1993 年至 2023 年期间的 57 篇文章和会议论文，并综合了它们的研究类别和主题、理论和方法。在此基础上，构建了研究生研究动机模型（GSRMM），强调了研究生研究动机的三个主要类别：前因、后果和中介作用。研究结果表明，可操纵的前因已被广泛探索，但不可改变的前因、后果以及研究动机的中介作用仍未得到充分探索。自我效能理论成为现有研究的主导框架。通过自我报告问卷进行的定量研究设计在当前研究中占主导地位，这需要转向替代研究测量方法。这次全面的回顾提供了对研究生研究动机的更深入的了解，也为该领域的进一步探索提出了新的途径。