The Compensatory Association of Autonomy and Relatedness Satisfaction on Affect and Aggressive Feelings

Abstract

This article presents the results of an examination of self-determination theory; in this examination, the theory is extended through deeper insight into the compensatory association between autonomy and relatedness satisfaction. This study is designed to investigate whether the mutual influence of autonomy satisfaction and relatedness satisfaction on positive affect (PA), negative affect (NA), and aggressive feelings is best described as compensatory. The results of two laboratory studies verify a compensatory relationship and confirm a mediation by meaningful existence. The results verify the compensation effects of high relatedness satisfaction on NA and aggressive feelings when autonomy satisfaction is low. With role-playing and nonrole-playing digital game manipulation, the results are stronger when the participants were being themselves rather than playing a character.