Abstract
A self-determination theory perspective on motivation assumes that basic need support is a prerequisite for motivation, achievement, and well-being in several domains of life. In the present cross-sectional study, a representative sample of 2.594 Norwegian students in their final year of lower secondary education and their first year of upper secondary education responded to a survey measuring the students’ perceptions of their teachers’ autonomy support, the students’ personal achievement goals, perceived school performance, and life satisfaction. The purpose was to investigate the structural relation between these variables, as well as grade level and gender differences. The results showed that all achievement goals (mastery, performance approach and performance avoidance) were positively predicted by autonomy support. Perceived school performance and life satisfaction were predicted by autonomy support and achievement goals, but there were some grade and gender specific relations. Furthermore, students in their first year of upper secondary education had a higher mean level of all motivational variables. Finally, mastery goals were more important for girls than boys, whereas performance goals were more important for boys than girls. In conclusion, both academic achievement (perceived school performance) and life satisfaction may be considered as important indicators of adjustment to life, and they are related to the students’ perception of teachers’ autonomy support as well as the students’ own motivation for learning. However, the mean level of these variables is partly accounted for by grade level and gender.
![](https://cdn.statically.io/img/media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11218-013-9244-4/MediaObjects/11218_2013_9244_Fig1_HTML.gif)
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alsaker, F. D. (1989). School achievement, perceived academic competence and global self- esteem. School Psychology International, 10, 147–158.
Bagøien, T. E., Halvari, H., & Nesheim, H. (2010). Self-determined motivation in physical education and its links to motivation for leisure-time physical activity, physical activity, and well-being in general. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 111, 407–432.
Barber, B. K., & Olsen, J. A. (2004). Assessing the transitions to middle and high school. Journal of Adolescent Research, 19, 3–30.
Barrett, M., & Boggiano, A. K. (1988). Fostering extrinsic orientations: Use of reward strategies to motivate children. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 6, 293–309.
Black, A. E., & Deci, E. L. (2000). The effects of instructors’ autonomy support and students’ autonomous motivation on learning organic chemistry: A self-determination theory perspective. Science Education, 84, 740–756.
Bong, M. (2001). Between- and within-domain relations of academic motivation among middle and high school students: Self-efficacy, task-value, and achievement goals. Journal of Educational Psychology, 93, 23–34.
Bru, E., Stornes, T., Munthe, E., & Elin, Thuen. (2010). Students’ perceptions of teacher support across the transition from primary to secondary school. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 54, 519–533.
Byrne, B. M. (2011). Structural equation modelling with AMOS. Basic concepts, applications, and programming. London: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Chirkov, V. I., & Ryan, R. M. (2001). Parent and teacher autonomy support in Russian and U.S. adolescents: Common effects on well-being and academic motivation. Journal of Cross Cultural Psychology, 32, 618–635.
Ciani, K. D., Sheldon, K. M., Hilpert, J. C., & Easter, M. A. (2011). Antecedents and trajectories of achievement goals: A self-determination theory perspective. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 81, 223–243.
Covington, M. V. (1992). Making the grade: A self-worth perspective on motivation and school reform. Cambridge University Press.
Danielsen, A. G., Wiium, N., Wilhelmsen, B. U., & Wold, B. (2010). Perceived support provided by teachers and classmates and students’ self-reported academic initiative. Journal of School Psychology, 48, 247–267.
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior. New York: Plenum.
Deci, E., Ryan, R. M., & Williams, G. C. (1996). Need satisfaction and the self-regulation of learning. Learning and Individual Differences, 8, 165–183.
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The “what” and “why” of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11, 227–268.
Diener, E. (1994). Assessing subjective well-being: Progress and opportunities. Social Indicators Research, 31, 103–157.
Diseth, Å., & Kobbeltvedt, T. (2010). A mediator analysis of achievement motives, goal orientations, learning strategies and academic achievement. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 80, 671–687.
Diseth, Å., Danielsen, A. G., & Samdal, O. (2012). A path analysis of basic needs support, self-efficacy, achievement goals, life satisfaction and academic achievement level among secondary school students. Educational Psychology, 32, 335–354.
Donner, A., & Klar, N. (2000). Design and analysis of cluster randomization trials in health research (pp. 81–82). London: Arnold Publishers.
Elliott, E. S., & Dweck, C. S. (1988). Goals: An approach to motivation and achievement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54, 5.
Elliot, A., & Harackiewicz, J. (1996). Approach and avoidance achievement goals and intrinsic motivation: A mediational analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70, 461–475.
Felder-Puig, R., Griebler, R., Samdal, O., King, M. A., Freeman, J., & Duer, W. (2012). Does the school performance variable used in the international health behavior in school aged children (HBSC) study reflect students’ school grades? Journal of School Health, 82, 404–409.
Galton, M., Morrison, I., & Pell, T. (2000). Transfer and transition in English schools. International Journal of Educational Research, 33, 341–363.
Gillet, N., Vallerand, R. J., & Lafrenière, M.-A. K. (2012). Intrinsic and extrinsic school motivation as a function of age: The mediating role of autonomy support. Social Psychology of Education, 15, 77–95.
Gilman, R., Easterbrooks, S. R., & Frey, M. (2004). A preliminary study of multidimensional life satisfaction among deaf/hard of hearing youth across environmental settings. Social Indicators Research, 66, 143–164.
Gottfried, A. E., Fleming, J. S., & Gottfried, A. W. (2001). Continuity of academic intrinsic motivation from childhood through late adolescence: A longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Psychology, 93, 3–13.
Greene, B. A., Miller, R. B., Crowson, H. M., Duke, B. L., & Akey, K. L. (2004). Predicting high school students’ cognitive engagement and achievement: Contributions of classroom perceptions and motivation. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 29, 462–482.
Hedges, L. V., & Hedberg, E. C. (2007). Intraclass correlation values for planning group randomized trials in education. Education Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 29, 60–87.
Hox, J. (2002). Multilevel analysis techniques and applications. London: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Huebner, E. S. (1991). Initial development of the student’s life satisfaction scale. School Psychology International, 12, 231–240.
Huebner, E. S., Suldo, S. M., Smith, L. C., & McKnight, C. G. (2004). Life satisfaction in children and youth: Empirical foundations and implications for school psychologists. Psychology in the Schools, 41, 81–93.
Huebner, E. S., Valois, R. F., Paxton, R. J., & Drane, J. W. (2005). Middle school students’ perceptions of quality of life. Journal of Happiness Studies, 6, 15–24.
Hulleman, C. S., Schrager, S. M., Bodmann, S. M., & Harackiewicz, J. M. (2010). A meta- analytic review of achievement goal measures: Different labels for the same constructs or different constructs with similar labels? Psychological Bulletin, 136, 422–449.
IBM SPSS 20.0.0.1 (2011). IBM Corporation.
IBM SPSS AMOS 20.0.0.1 (2011). IBM Corporation.
Kahneman, D., Diener, E., & Schwarz, N. (1999). Well-being. The foundations of hedonic psychology. New York: Russel Sage Foundation.
Kaplan, A., & Maehr, M. L. (1999). Achievement goals and student well-being. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 24, 330–358.
Kasser, T. (2004). The good life or the goods life? Positive psychology and personal well being in the culture of consumption. In P. A. Linley & S. Joseph (Eds.), Positive psychology in practice (pp. 55–67). Holboken, NJ: Wiley.
Koch, G. G. (1982). Intraclass correlation coefficient. In S. Kotz & N. L. Johnson (Eds.), Encyclopedia of statistical sciences (pp. 213–217). New York: Wiley.
Koivumaa-Honkanen, H., Honkanen, I. R., Viinamäki, H., Heikkilä, I. K., Kaprio, J., & Koskenvuo, M. (2000). Self-reported life satisfaction and 20-year mortality in healthy finnish adults. American Journal of Epidemiology, 152, 983–991.
Levesque, C., Zuehlke, A. N., Stanek, L. R., & Ryan, R. M. (2004). Autonomy and competence in German and American university students: A comparative study based on self- determination theory. Journal of Educational Psychology, 96, 68–84.
Linnenbrink-Garcia, L., Tyson, D. F., & Patall, E. A. (2008). When are achievement goal orientations beneficial for academic achievement? A closer look at moderating factors. International Review of Social Psychology, 21, 19–70.
MacKinnon, D. P., Krull, J. L., & Lockwood, C. M. (2000). Equivalence of the mediation, confounding and suppression effect. Prevention Science, 1, 173–181.
Maehr, M. L. (1989). Thoughts about motivation. In C. Ames & R. Ames (Eds.), Research on morivation in education: Goals and cognirions (pp. 299–315). New York: Academic Press.
Messick, S. (1995). Validity of psychological assessment: Validation of inferences from persons’ responses and performances as scientific inquiry into score meaning. American Psychologist, 50, 741–749.
Midgley, C., Maehr, M. L., Hruda, L. Z., Anderman, E., Anderman, L., Freeman, K. E., et al. (2000). Patterns of adaptive learning survey (PALS). Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan.
Motl, R. W., & DiStefano, C. (2002). Longitudinal invariance of self-esteem and method effects associated with negatively worded items. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 9, 562–578.
Perceived Autonomy Support: The Climate Questionnaires (2012) Self-determination theory. http://www.psych.rochester.edu/SDT/measures/paslearning.php.
Proctor, C. L., Linley, P. A., & Maltby, J. (2009). Youth life satisfaction: A review of the literature. Journal of Happiness Studies, 10, 583–630.
Reeve, J., Jang, H., Carrell, D., Jeon, S., & Barch, J. (2004). Enhancing students’ engagement by increasing teachers autonomy support. Motivation and Emotion, 28, 147–169.
Reeve, J. (2006). Teachers as facilitators: What autonomy-supportive teachers do and why their students benefit. Elementary School Journal, 106, 225–236.
Roberts, C., Freeman, J., Samdal, O., Schnohr, C. W., de Looze, M. E., Gabhainn, N., et al. (2009). The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study: Methodological developments and current tensions. International Journal of Public Health, 54, 140–150.
Samdal, O., Wold, B., & Bronis, M. (1999). Relationship between students’ perceptions of school environment, their satisfaction with school and perceived academic achievement: An international study. School Effectiveness and School Improvement: An International Journal of Research, Policy and Practice, 10, 296–320.
Schumacker, R. E., & Lomax, R. G. (2004). A beginner’s guide to structural equation modeling (2nd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
Soenens, B., & Vansteenkiste, M. (2005). Antecedents and outcomes of self-determination in 3 life domains: The role of parents’ and teachers’ autonomy support. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 34, 589–604.
Sousa, K. H., & Kwok, O. M. (2006). Putting Wilson and cleary to the test: Analysis of a HRQOL conceptual model using structural equation modeling. Quality of Life Research, 15, 725–737.
Snijders, T. A. B., & Bosker, R. J. (1999). Multilevel analysis: An introduction to basic and advanced multilevel modeling. London: Sage.
Standage, M., Duda, J. L., & Ntoumanis, N. (2003). A model of contextual motivation in physical education: Using constructs from self-determination and achievement goal theories to predict physical activity intentions. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95, 97–110.
Statistics Norway. (2012). Education statistics. Downloaded from http://www.ssb.no/kostra/
Su, Y.-L., & Reeve, J. (2011). A meta-analysis of the effectiveness of intervention programs designed to support autonomy. Educational Psychology Review, 23(159), 188.
Tammemagi, M., Frank, J., & Streiner, D. (1996). Negative values of the intraclass correlation coefficient are not theoretically possible: Response. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 49, 1206.
Torsheim, T., Wold, B., & Samdal, O. (2000). The teacher and classmate support scale: Factor structure, test-retest reliability and validity in samples of 13- and 15 year old adolescents. School Psychology International, 21, 195–212.
Tuominen-Soini, H., Salmela-Aro, K., & Niemivirta, M. (2008). Achievement goal orientations and subjective well-being: A person-centered analysis. Learning and Instruction, 18, 251–266.
Vallerand, R. J., Fortier, M. S., & Guay, F. (1997). Self-determination and persistence in a real-life setting: Toward a motivational model of high school dropout. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 72, 1161–1176.
Waaler, R., Halvari, H., Skjesol, K., & Bagøien, T. E. (2012). Autonomy support and intrinsic goal progress expectancy and its links to longitudinal study effort and subjective wellbeing: The differential mediating effect of intrinsic and identified regulations and the moderator effects of effort and intrinsic goals. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 57, 1–17.
Wheaton, B. (1987). Assessment of fit in overidentified models with latent variables. Sociological Methods and Research, 16, 303–316.
Wolters, C. A. (2004). Advancing achievement goal theory: Using goal structures and goal orientations to predict students’ motivation, cognition, and achievement. Journal of Educational Psychology, 96, 236–250.
Yamauchi, H., & Tanaka, K. (1998). Relations of autonomy, self-referenced beliefs and self regulated learning among Japanese children. Psychological Reports, 82, 803–816.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Appendices
Appendix
1.1 Learning Climate Questionnaire (LCQ)—short version
Original items:
-
1.
I feel that my instructor provides me with choices and options.
-
2.
I feel understood by my instructor.
-
3.
My instructor conveyed confidence in my ability to do well in the course.
-
4.
My instructor encouraged me to ask questions.
-
5.
My instructor listens to how I would like to do things.
-
6.
My instructor tries to understand how I see things before suggesting a new way to do things.
Adapted items:
-
1.
I feel that my teachers provide me with choices and options.
-
2.
I feel understood by my teachers.
-
3.
My teachers show their confidence in my ability to do well in the subject.
-
4.
My teachers encourage me to ask questions.
-
5.
My teachers listen to how I would like to do things.
-
6.
My teachers try to understand how I see things before suggesting a new way to do things.
Achievement goals
1.1 Mastery
-
1.
One of my goals is to master a lot of new skills this year.
-
2.
It’s important to me that I thoroughly understand my class work.
-
3.
It’s important to me that I improve my skills this year.
1.2 Performance approach
-
1.
One of my goals is to show others that I’m good at my class work.
-
2.
One of my goals is to show others that class work is easy for me.
-
3.
One of my goals is to look smart in comparison to the other students in my class.
1.3 Performance avoidance
-
1.
It’s important to me that I don’t look stupid in class.
-
2.
One of my goals is to keep others from thinking I’m not smart in class.
-
3.
It’s important to me that my teacher doesn’t think that I know less than others in class.
-
4.
One of my goals in class is to avoid looking like I have trouble doing the work.
1.4 Life satisfaction
-
1.
Like way things are going for me
-
2.
My life is going well
-
3.
My life is as should be
-
4.
I would like to change many things (omitted)
-
5.
Wish different life (omitted)
-
6.
I have a good life
-
7.
I feel good about what’s happening
-
8.
I have what I want
-
9.
My life is better than for most kids
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Diseth, Å., Samdal, O. Autonomy support and achievement goals as predictors of perceived school performance and life satisfaction in the transition between lower and upper secondary school. Soc Psychol Educ 17, 269–291 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-013-9244-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-013-9244-4