2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

This work-in-progress paper explores how students express their understanding of torque. Typically introduced in first semester physics, torque is a fundamental concept across many engineering disciplines. However, the transition from physics to engineering mechanics (i.e., statics) appears to be a hurdle for students. Specifics on why students struggle with torque are sparse. Both quantitative and qualitative studies have investigated how students learn torque, but to our knowledge, no study has yet investigated how students conceptualize torque. To address this gap, this qualitative study investigated the research question: What themes emerge when students express their conceptualization of torque? To address the research question, this study adopts a qualitative methodology based on phenomenography. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 students from the engineering technology program at Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU Denver). Students were questioned about torque in different contexts. Data analysis was performed using content analysis techniques, and descriptive coding was used. Topics covered in the interviews included students’ prior knowledge on torque, their perception of torque in proportion to other variables (force, distance, and angle), their ability to estimate the magnitude of torque, and their conceptualization of torque in other formats. Academic experience of each student was tracked by the highest-level class taken: physics, statics, or mechanics of materials. In this work-in-progress paper, we focus on one particularly intriguing result: A rich theme is how students understand torque through one of two forms. In the first form, based on entry-level courses in physics, torque results from external forces applied to an object of interest. In the second form, based on the advanced-level course of statics, torque (sometimes called moment) results from internal forces within the object of interest. Students with less academic experience generally conceptualized torque as an external force, as presented in first-semester physics, corresponding to a dynamic point of view. In contrast, students with more academic experience more often conceptualized torque as internal forces corresponding to a static equilibrium point of view. This work-in-progress paper shows that, in the context of learning torque, the transition from physics to engineering mechanics is not trivial. Focus on the classroom transition between torque with external forces and internal forces should foster improved curricula and pedagogy for improved student learning. Keywords: Higher Education (4.c), Undergraduate (4.f), Engineering Curriculum (5.a), Conceptual Learning (7.a), Interviews (12.a.iii), Phenomenography (12.d.v.7).