The correlation between need satisfaction and learning motivation: A self-determination theory perspective

Abstract

To examine the relationship between need satisfaction and learning motivation, a survey was conducted in an engineering college in China. Collected data were processed and analyzed via SPSS software; then a confirmatory factor analysis was performed with SEM method. Outcomes of the research indicated that: 1) satisfaction of autonomy and relatedness contributed to autonomous motivation; 2) satisfaction of competence and relatedness helped shift controlled motivation to autonomous motivation; 3) unexpectedly, satisfaction of competence had negative effect on autonomous regulation, as did satisfaction of autonomy on controlled regulation. The outcomes imply that learners' psychological needs should be satisfied according to their pre-existing types of motivation, and that studies on motivation based on Self-determination Theory (SDT) should take cultural factors into consideration Keywords: SDT, basic psychological needs, self-determined motivation, correlation