Teacher–child interactions: relations with children's self‐concept in second grade

This study examined whether teacher–child interactions characterized by teacher involvement, structure, and autonomy support at the beginning of second grade predicted children's global, academic, social, and behavioural self‐concept at the end of second grade. The study was conducted in 30 second grade classrooms with 570 children and their teachers. Data included teacher reports of teacher–child interactions and child reports of self‐concept. Results showed that, when controlling for the initial level of self‐concept, children's social self‐concept was predicted by teacher involvement, structure, and autonomy support. In addition, teacher autonomy support predicted high academic self‐concept. Finally, these teacher–child interaction characteristics did not contribute to the behavioural and global self‐concept. The results were similar for boys and girls. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The relationships among parental psychological control/autonomy support,self‐trouble,and internalizing problems across adolescent genders

This study aimed to explore the relationships among early adolescents’ perceived parental psychological control/autonomy support, self‐trouble, and internalizing problems as well as the potential gender differences in these relationships. Multiple‐group path analysis was performed on the data collected from 1,089 adolescents in Beijing junior high schools. Results revealed that parental psychological control (autonomy support) was associated with adolescents’ more (fewer) internalizing problems, and self‐trouble acted as a mediator in these two relationships. Moreover, only the indirect relationship between parental autonomy support and internalizing problems via self‐trouble was moderated by gender, with girls showing a little stronger indirect effect than boys, and specifically, it was the relationship between autonomy support and self‐trouble that existed gender differences, with girls showing higher coefficient than boys. The relationship between parental psychological control/autonomy support and early adolescents’ internalizing problems was discussed with regard to self‐trouble and gender differences.     

The effects of different learning environments on students’ motivation for learning and their achievement

Background. Research in higher education on the effects of student‐centred versus lecture‐based learning environments generally does not take into account the psychological need support provided in these learning environments. From a self‐determination theory perspective, need support is important to study because it has been associated with benefits such as autonomous motivation and achievement. Aim. The purpose of the study is to investigate the effects of different learning environments on students’ motivation for learning and achievement, while taking into account the perceived need support. Sample. First‐year student teachers (N= 1,098) studying a child development course completed questionnaires assessing motivation and perceived need support. In addition, a prior knowledge test and case‐based assessment were administered. Method. A quasi‐experimental pre‐test/post‐test design was set up consisting of four learning environments: (1) lectures, (2) case‐based learning (CBL), (3) alternation of lectures and CBL, and (4) gradual implementation with lectures making way for CBL. Results. Autonomous motivation and achievement were higher in the gradually implemented CBL environment, compared to the CBL environment. Concerning achievement, two additional effects were found; students in the lecture‐based learning environment scored higher than students in the CBL environment, and students in the gradually implemented CBL environment scored higher than students in the alternated learning environment. Additionally, perceived need support was positively related to autonomous motivation, and negatively to controlled motivation. Conclusions. The study shows the importance of gradually introducing students to CBL, in terms of their autonomous motivation and achievement. Moreover, the study emphasizes the importance of perceived need support for students’ motivation.     

Improving self‐regulated learning of preschool children: Evaluation of training for kindergarten teachers

Background In the context of lifelong learning, self‐regulated learning is an important competence. Children between 4 and 6 years of age are at a crucial step in their life to develop self‐regulatory competence. That is why their kindergarten teachers play an important role as instructors as well as role models. Aim This study tested the effects of self‐regulation training for kindergarten teachers concerning their own self‐regulation and methods to foster self‐regulation in children at preschool age whom they were teaching. Sample In this study, 35 German kindergarten teachers and 97 children participated. All adult participants were graduated kindergarten teachers. Method The kindergarten teachers were tested with a questionnaire 2 weeks before and after the training. At the same time, the preschoolers were interviewed. A waiting control group design was applied. Results and conclusions The results obtained by means of analyses of variance show that the self‐regulation of the kindergarten teachers as well as the self‐regulated learning of preschoolers whose kindergarten teachers took part in the training improved significantly. The results indicate that it is possible to improve self‐regulated learning of preschool children by a training programme for kindergarten teachers.     

Do Some People Need Autonomy More Than Others? Implicit Dispositions Toward Autonomy Moderate the Effects of Felt Autonomy on Well‐Being

The present studies examined whether implicit or explicit autonomy dispositions moderate the relationship between felt autonomy and well‐being. Study 1 (N = 187 undergraduate students) presents an initial test of the moderator hypothesis by predicting flow experience from the interaction of autonomy need satisfaction and autonomy dispositions. Study 2 (N = 127 physically inactive persons) used vignettes involving an autonomy (un)supportive coach to test a moderated mediation model in which perceived coach autonomy support leads to well‐being through basic need satisfaction. Again, the effects of need satisfaction on well‐being were hypothesized to be moderated by an implicit autonomy disposition. Study 1 showed that individuals with a strong implicit autonomy (but not power or achievement) motive disposition derived more flow experience from felt autonomy than individuals with a weak implicit autonomy disposition. Study 2 revealed that perceived autonomy support from sports coaches, which we experimentally induced with a vignette method, leads to autonomy satisfaction, leading in turn to positive effects on well‐being. This indirect effect held at high and average but not low implicit autonomy disposition. The results indicate that the degree to which people benefit from autonomy need satisfaction depends on their implicit disposition toward autonomy.     

Motivational predictors of learning strategies,participation, exertion,and performance in physical education: A randomized controlled trial

Teachers’ support of student autonomy in physical education (PE) is believed to be important for students’ motivation and outcomes in PE. We tested the hypothesis that an intervention designed to help teachers to be more autonomy supportive in teaching their students to use learning strategies (relative to standard teaching) would increase students’ perceived autonomy support from the teachers, perceived competence, autonomous motivation, use of learning strategies and their exertion, participation, and grades in PE over a school year. We also tested a self-determination theory (SDT) process model. Experimental effects of the intervention yielded significant positive effects on changes in perceived autonomy support, learning strategies defined as absorption and effort regulation, as well as for performance (i.e., grades). In testing the SDT process model with SEM, most of the predicted paths were significantly supported.     

Self‐managed learning groups in higher education: Students' perceptions of process and outcomes

Background. Self‐managed learning groups are increasingly used in higher education. There is a need for more systematic investigation of university students' perceptions of the processes and outcomes of this learning method. Aims. This study aimed to identify the domains of process issues that students perceive as relevant to their participation in self‐managed learning groups, and how these processes are perceived to influence group outcomes. Sample. Participants were undergraduate psychology students who were members of self‐managed learning groups. Method. The first study employed qualitative methods (namely, students' written accounts, interviews, and observation) to study learning groups (N =180 students) and identify the process domains. In the second study, first and second year students (N =207) used a questionnaire (based on the domains identified in Study 1) to evaluate the processes and outcomes of their learning groups. Results. Analysis of qualitative data (Study 1) identified seven process domains: task focus, staff support, process learning, environmental fit, managing differences, equity and responsibility, and collaboration and cooperation. Factor analysis of students' responses (Study 2) identified an underlying structure of two process factors: personal responsibility and collaborative climate, and staff support and environmental fit. Both process factors were associated with the self‐reported satisfaction and productivity of this group of students. Conclusions. University students' perceptions of the processes of self‐managed learning groups have a clear structure. These process factors are associated with perceived group outcomes in systematic and theoretically consistent ways.     

A Critical Test of Self‐Enhancement,Exposure, and Self‐Categorization Explanations for First‐ and Third‐Person Perceptions

The third‐person perception is the tendency for people to believe that others are more influenced by media content than themselves (W. P. Davison, 1983 ). The current study provides a critical test of self‐enhancement, exposure, and self‐categorization explanations for first‐ (i.e., self more influenced than others) and third‐person perceptions. Male and female participants (N = 323) judged the extent to which pornography elicited“aroused and excited” (i.e., male normative) versus“repulsed and offended” (i.e., female normative) reactions in themselves relative to average men and women. Men perceived an average woman to be more repulsed and offended by pornography than themselves, and women perceived an average man to be more aroused and excited than themselves (i.e., large third‐person perceptions). Further, men perceived themselves to be more aroused and excited by pornography than an average woman (independent of the degree to which pornography was judged as antisocial), and women perceived themselves to be more repulsed and offended than an average man (i.e., large first‐person perceptions). There were relatively small effects for same sex comparisons independent of norm. The pattern and magnitude of first‐ and third‐person perceptions are consistent with self‐categorization theory, irreconcilable with the exposure hypothesis, and difficult to reconcile with the self‐enhancement explanation.     

The relationship between epistemological beliefs,implicit theories of intelligence,and self‐regulated learning among Norwegian postsecondary students

Background. More empirical work is needed to examine the dimensionality of personal epistemology and relations between those dimensions and motivational and strategic components of self‐regulated learning. In particular, there is great need to investigate personal epistemology and its relation to self‐regulated learning across cultures and academic contexts. Because the demarcation between personal epistemology and implicit theories of intelligence has been questioned, dimensions of personal epistemology should also be studied in relation to implicit theories of intelligence. Aims. The primary aim was to examine the dimensionality of personal epistemology and the relation between those dimensions and implicit theories of intelligence in the cultural context of Norwegian postsecondary education. A secondary aim was to examine the relative contribution of epistemological beliefs and theories of intelligence to motivational and strategic components of self‐regulated learning in different academic contexts within that culture. Samples. The first sample included 178 business administration students in a traditional transmission‐oriented instructional context; the second, 108 student teachers in an innovative pedagogical context. Methods. The dimensionality of the Schommer Epistemological Questionnaire was examined through factor analyses, and the resulting dimensions were examined in relation to implicit theories of intelligence. We performed multiple regression analyses, separately for the two academic contexts, to try to predict motivational (i.e. self‐efficacy beliefs, mastery goal orientation, and interest) and strategic (i.e. self‐regulatory strategy use) components of self‐regulated learning with epistemological beliefs and implicit theories of intelligence. Results. Considerable cross‐cultural generalizability was found for the dimensionality of personal epistemology. Moreover, the dimensions of personal epistemology seemed to represent constructs separate from the construct of implicit theories of intelligence. Differences in the predictability of the epistemological dimensions were found for the two samples. For the student teachers, belief about knowledge construction and modification was a better predictor of self‐regulated learning. For the business administration students, belief about the certainty of knowledge played a more important role in self‐regulated learning. Conclusions. Epistemological beliefs predict self‐regulated learning among Norwegian postsecondary students and play more important roles than implicit theories of intelligence. Relations between epistemological beliefs and self‐regulated learning may vary with academic context.     

The importance of autonomy support and the mediating role of work motivation for well‐being: Testing self‐determination theory in a Chinese work organisation

We examine relations between perceived organisational autonomy support and different types of work motivation and well‐being outcomes in 266 teachers from two government schools in China. We hypothesised that greater autonomy support would be associated with more autonomous forms of employee motivation, and that teacher motivation would in turn mediate the effects of autonomy support on indicators of work well‐being (i.e., job satisfaction, work stress and physical ill symptoms). Results generally supported the hypothesised relations between perceived autonomy support and SDT's five types of motivations. Findings also showed that perceived autonomy support predicted job satisfaction directly and indirectly through the mediating roles of intrinsic motivation, identified regulation, introjected regulation and external regulation. Perceived autonomy support predicted work stress directly and indirectly through the mediating roles of external regulation and amotivation. Autonomy support also predicted illness symptoms via the mediating roles of intrinsic motivation, introjected regulation and amotivation. The current findings highlight how perceived organisational support for autonomy relates to motivational differences in a Chinese work context, and the potential relevance of autonomy support for employee well‐being.     

Thinking styles and teachers' characteristics

This study had two goals. The first was to validate further Sternberg's theory of mental self‐government in a cross‐cultural setting. The second was to investigate the relationship between thinking styles and teachers' characteristics. Research participants were one hundred ninety‐three (65 male and 128 female) in‐service teachers studying in the Bachelor of Education degree program and the Postgraduate Certificate in Education program at the University of Hong Kong. The participants responded to the Chinese version of the Thinking Styles Questionnaire for Teachers (TSQT) that has its theoretical foundation in Sternberg's theory of mental self‐government. They also provided a range of demographic information such as age, gender, family income, and duration of their teaching experience. Furthermore, they rated themselves on a 5‐point Likert scale about their teaching practices and about their perceptions of their school environment. The results of the study showed that the TSQT is a reliable and valid inventory for assessing the thinking styles of primary and secondary school in‐service teachers in Hong Kong. Cronbach's alphas ranged from .58 to .75, with a mean of .68 and a median of .66. A principal‐axis factor analysis followed by an oblique rotation resulted in two factors that accounted for 73.8% of the variance in the data. Moreover, results from stepwise multiple‐regression procedures indicated that six characteristics of teachers were significantly correlated with the thinking styles specified by the theory of mental self‐government. These teacher characteristics are gender, professional work experience outside school settings, the degree of enjoying adopting new teaching materials, a tendency for using group projects in assessing student achievement, perceived autonomy for determining their teaching contents, and their rating of the quality of their students. We discussed seven possibilities for using the knowledge about thinking styles to facilitate an enhancement of teaching and learning.     

The perceived autonomy support scale for exercise settings (PASSES): Development,validity, and cross-cultural invariance in young people

Objective: The study aimed to develop a perceived autonomy support scale for exercise settings (PASSES) in young people.Design: Cross-sectional questionnaire survey.Methods: In Study 1,432 school pupils responded to an initial pool of perceived autonomy support items with physical education (PE) teachers as the source of support. The validity of the initial factor structure of the PASSES was evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis. In Study 2, three versions of the PASSES were developed measuring perceived autonomy support from three sources: PE teachers, parents, and peers. British (N=210), Estonian (N=268), and Hungarian (N=235) school pupils completed each version. The proposed model of perceived autonomy support established in Study 1 was tested for structural invariance and mean differences across the three cultures.Results: In Study 1, the deletion of items contributing to model misspecification produced a final 12-item PASSES which exhibited acceptable fit with the data. The perceived autonomy support factor also demonstrated discriminant and convergent validity with regulation styles from the perceived locus of causality. In Study 2, the hypothesized model exhibited acceptable goodness-of-fit statistics in all samples and for all sources. The structure of the model was found to be invariant across the cultural groups for each source. Contrary to hypotheses, mean levels of perceived autonomy support from parents and peers were found to be higher in Estonian participants relative to their British and Hungarian counterparts.Conclusion: Results support the use of the PASSES as a valid measure of perceived autonomy support in exercise settings for three different sources in young people.     

Ordinary Social Interaction and the Main Effect Between Perceived Support and Affect

Relational regulation theory hypothesizes that (a) the main effect between perceived support and mental health primarily reflects ordinary social interaction rather than conversations about stress and how to cope with it, and (b) the extent to which a provider regulates a recipient's mental health primarily reflects the recipient's personal taste (i.e., is relational), rather than the provider's objective supportiveness. In three round‐robin studies, participants rated each other on supportiveness and the quality of ordinary social interaction, as well as their own affect when interacting with each other. Samples included marines about to deploy to Afghanistan (N = 100; 150 dyads), students sharing apartments (N = 64; 96 dyads), and strangers (N = 48; 72 dyads). Perceived support and ordinary social interaction were primarily relational, and most of perceived support's main effect on positive affect was redundant with ordinary social interaction. The main effect between perceived support and affect emerged among strangers after brief text conversations, and these links were partially verified by independent observers. Findings for negative affect were less consistent with theory. Ordinary social interaction appears to be able to explain much of the main effect between perceived support and positive affect.     

Student autonomy and course value: The unique and cumulative roles of various teacher practices

High school students (N = 278) in 30 classrooms with ten teachers (grades 9 through 12) reported on teacher practices in a single course, autonomy need satisfaction, and value for that course. Using hierarchical linear modeling, results indicated that student perceptions of teachers providing choices and engaging in perspective-taking to a greater extent uniquely related to greater autonomy need satisfaction. Subsequent analyses suggested that students’ autonomy need satisfaction was greatest when they perceived that teachers also identified the importance and usefulness of coursework and considered students’ interests and opinions in course activities. Provision of choice and perspective-taking related to greater course value through autonomy need satisfaction, while identifying the importance and usefulness of course activities had only direct positive effects on course value. The pattern of total, direct, and indirect effects was slightly different depending on the component of course value. Results underscore the importance of including provision of choice in conceptualizations of teacher autonomy support.     

The Role of Unconditional Parental Regard in Autonomy‐Supportive Parenting

Two studies explored the role of parents’ unconditional positive regard (UCPR) as perceived by adolescents and young adults in promoting the effectiveness of specific parenting practices that may support offspring's academic autonomous motivation. Study 1 tested the hypothesis that UCPR predicts rationale‐giving and choice‐provision practices and, at the same time, moderates their relations with adolescents’ autonomous motivation. Study 2 replicated the association between UCPR and the parental practices, and further explored the role of parents’ authenticity as an antecedent of UCPR and parental autonomy support. Study 1 included 125 adolescents and Study 2 considered 128 college‐students and their mothers. The offspring reported on their perceptions of their mothers and on their autonomous motivation, and the mothers reported on their sense of authenticity. Both studies found consistent associations between UCPR and parenting practices that may support autonomous motivation. Moreover, Study 1 demonstrated that the rationale giving and choice provision were more strongly related to adolescents’ autonomous motivation when adolescents perceived mothers as high on UCPR. Finally, Study 2 demonstrated that mothers’ authenticity predicted UCPR, which in turn was related to autonomy‐supportive parenting. Findings support the assumption that parents’ autonomy‐supportive practices are more effective when accompanied by UCPR.     

Parental involvement,adolescents' self‐determined learning and academic achievement in Urban China

Self‐determined learning is essential to academic success. The motivational resources development model argues that parents promote academic success in their children indirectly by nurturing self‐determined learner. In this study, applying a structural equation modelling and using data collected from 8th graders in Zhuhai, China (n = 1009) in 2012, we aim to answer 2 research questions: (a) What forms of parental involvement are highly correlated with self‐determined learning and (b) Can self‐determined learning fully mediate the relationship between parental involvement and students' academic performance? We find that parental leisure involvement is positively and significantly associated with the development of self‐determined learning, which in turn is significantly and positively correlated with academic achievement. Parental provision of structure or parental academic assistance is not significantly associated with students' self‐regulation and students' academic achievement.     

Same but different: Comparative modes of information processing are implicated in the construction of perceptions of autonomy support

An implicit assumption behind tenets of self‐determination theory is that perceptions of autonomy support are a function of absolute modes of information processing. In this study, we examined whether comparative modes of information processing were implicated in the construction of perceptions of autonomy support. In an experimental study, we demonstrated that participants employed comparative modes of information processing in evaluating receipt of small, but not large, amounts of autonomy support. In addition, we found that social comparison processes influenced a number of outcomes that are empirically related to perceived autonomy support such as sense of autonomy, positive affect, perceived usefulness, and effort. Findings shed new light upon the processes underpinning construction of perceptions related to autonomy support and yield new insights into how to increase the predictive validity of models that use autonomy support as a determinant of motivation and psychological well‐being.     

Learning to reflect and to attribute constructively as basic components of self‐regulated learning

Background. Higher education is facing a number of problems: adjusting to larger and more heterogeneous student populations, increasing the number of graduating students, and preparing for lifelong learning. Improving learning competence can make a substantial contribution to solving each of these major concerns. The growing knowledge base on self‐regulated learning was taken as one of the main starting points for our study. Aims. In this article we report on reflection and attribution as basic components of self‐regulated learning. We examine their trainability and their effect on academic performance. This study is part of a wider research project aimed at improving meta‐cognitive knowledge as well as affective, conative and regulation skills. The experimental treatment consisted of an integrated set of instructional conditions, which were operationalized in a series of training sessions, as well as practice and transfer tasks. Sample. The participants in this study were 141 first year students of business economics. The experimental group and both control groups each consisted of 47 students. Method. The effects of the learning environment were investigated using a quasi‐experimental design. To control for unintended effects of the design the experimental and the first control group had the same number of teaching hours (time‐on‐task) and both teachers and students were not informed about the experimental design. Attribution and reflection behaviour was measured through specific assignments; study results during and after the intervention period were taken as indicators of academic performance. To test the hypotheses, t tests and effect‐sizes were calculated. Results. After the intervention the experimental students showed a higher degree of reflective behaviour than the control students. Moreover, their attribution skills had also measurably improved. The experimental students obtained better study results than their peers in the control groups. Conclusions. This intervention study, focused on the combined training of learning to reflect and to attribute constructively, provides evidence of the successful fostering both of meta‐cognitive and of conative learning activities resulting in a positive impact on academic achievement.     

Training self‐assessment and task‐selection skills to foster self‐regulated learning: Do trained skills transfer across domains?

Students' ability to accurately self‐assess their performance and select a suitable subsequent learning task in response is imperative for effective self‐regulated learning. Video modeling examples have proven effective for training self‐assessment and task‐selection skills, and—importantly—such training fostered self‐regulated learning outcomes. It is unclear, however, whether trained skills would transfer across domains. We investigated whether skills acquired from training with either a specific, algorithmic task‐selection rule or a more general heuristic task‐selection rule in biology would transfer to self‐regulated learning in math. A manipulation check performed after the training confirmed that both algorithmic and heuristic training improved task‐selection skills on the biology problems compared with the control condition. However, we found no evidence that students subsequently applied the acquired skills during self‐regulated learning in math. Future research should investigate how to support transfer of task‐selection skills across domains.     

Analysing the Influence of Autonomous and Controlling Social Factors Within the Theory of Planned Behaviour

The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of autonomous (i.e., autonomy support from parents and peers) and controlling (i.e., social physique anxiety) social factors on future intention to exercise, integrating the distal (i.e., basic psychological needs satisfaction and self‐determined motivation) and proximal (i.e., attitudes, perceived behavioural control and subjective norms) determinants of intention defined in self‐determination theory (SDT) and the theory of planned behaviour (TPB). Self‐report questionnaires were distributed to 390 secondary school pupils (male = 218, female = 172, M_age = 15.10, standard deviation = 1.94). The results of path analysis, controlling for past behaviour of physical activity, showed that social factors predicted future intention to exercise through the influence of the distal and proximal determinants. The main contribution of the study was to provide evidence that the proximal determinants of the TPB captured the direct influence of social factors, independent of the mediating effects of psychological needs satisfaction and self‐determined motivation towards exercise. Results supported the integration of the two theories, clarifying the processes of influence of autonomous and controlling social factors within the variables of SDT and the TPB.