Basic Psychological Needs, the Mediators for Motivations in a Chinese University

Abstract This interpretive case study examines Chinese undergraduates’ self-determined and extrinsic motivations to participate in various university activities and academic courses. The study legitimates the application of Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985; 2002) as a useful framework for studying the Chinese university context in showing that implied basic psychological needs for competence and relatedness can mediate such motivation in different ways, based on whether the university environment facilitates their satisfaction or not. Only when undergraduates are self-determined and interpret the university environment as autonomy-supportive do their implied basic psychological needs for competence and relatedness facilitate their self-determined and extrinsic motivation. In such circumstances, students’ participation in university activities and courses can help them achieve their expressed integrated goals, with associated experiences of positive affect. When undergraduates are self-determined but do not interpret the university environment as autonomy-supportive, their implied basic psychological needs for competence and relatedness cannot facilitate their self-determined and extrinsic motivation to participate in activities and courses that would enable them to accomplish their integrated goals. The study outlines the university environmental factors that students interpret as autonomy- or non-autonomy-supportive, in addition to their expectations of factors that should be autonomy-supportive. Given the impact of these factors on the satisfaction of students’ implied basic psychological needs, self-determined and extrinsic motivation, and accomplishment of their integrated goals, the factors that students consider autonomy-supportive are areas where universities could, and should, enhance their provision.