Autonomous, controlled, and amotivated types of academic motivation: A person-oriented analysis.
Abstract
The authors investigated students ’ profiles regarding autonomous, controlled, and amotivated regulation and tested whether profile groups differed on some academic adjustment outcomes. Studies 1 and 2 performed on high school students revealed 3 profiles: (a) students with high levels of both controlled motivation and amotivation but low levels of autonomous motivation, (b) students with high levels of both controlled and autonomous motivation but low levels of amotivation, and (c) students with moderate levels of both autonomous and controlled motivations but low levels of amotivation. These first 2 studies revealed that students in the high autonomous/high controlled group reported the highest degree of academic adjustment. Study 3 performed on college students revealed 3 profiles: (a) students with high levels of autonomous motivations but low levels of both controlled motivation and amotivation, (b) students with high levels of both autonomous and controlled motivation but low levels of amotivation, and (c) students with low to moderate levels of the various motivational components. Study 3 indicated that students in the autonomous group were more persistent than students in the other groups. Results are discussed in light of self-determination theory (E. L. Deci & R. M. Ryan, 1985).
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These forms of similarity are not inconsistent with the acknowledgement that work motivation can be partly situational or context dependent at the individual level.
“Importantly, these forms of similarity are not inconsistent with the acknowledgement that work motivation can be partly situational (Ratelle, Guay, Vallerand, Larose, & Senécal, 2007) or context dependant (Gagné & Deci, 2005) at the individual level.”
From A test of work motivation profile similarity across four distinct samples of employees (2020) · cites this paper as Ratelle, Guay, Vallerand, Larose, & Senécal, 2007
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“…has been obtained in numerous studies showing that autonomous types of motivation lead to adaptive outcomes such as achievement (e.g., Guay & Vallerand, 1997), whereas controlled types of motivation and AM lead to negative outcomes such as dropping out of school (e.g., Vallerand, Fortier, &…”
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“To accurately assess motivational profiles, we decided to use a statistical method that allows for the detection of heterogeneity in motivational profiles (Nagin, 1999, 2005).”
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- Authors
- Ratelle, C. F., Guay, F., Vallerand, R. J., Larose, S., & Senécal, C.
- Affiliations
- Université Laval (CA)
- Université du Québec à Montréal (CA)
- Venue
- Journal of Educational Psychology
- Published
- 2007-11
- Volume
- 99
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 734-746
- ISSN
- 0022-0663 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-2176
- OpenAlex
- W2100355202
- Cited by
- 754
- References
- 7
- Citations by year
- 2026: 36 · 2025: 36 · 2024: 58 · 2023: 48 · 2022: 57 · 2021: 49 · 2020: 63 · 2019: 40 · 2018: 50 · 2017: 41 · 2016: 52 · 2015: 50 · 2014: 34 · 2013: 32 · 2012: 39
- FWCI
- 19.43
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Educational Psychology (publishedVersion)
- Corpus Université Laval (Université Laval) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Canada Research Chairs
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Motivation and Self-Concept in Sports
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Education, Achievement, and Giftedness
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Innovative Teaching and Learning Methods
- Keywords
- academic motivation, autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, amotivation, motivational profiles, academic adjustment, persistence, self-determination theory, high school students, university students
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