The DOI matches its Crossref record; 55 of the 57 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
A self-determination theory approach to psychotherapy: The motivational basis for effective change.
Abstract
The application of self-determination theory (SDT) to psychotherapy is particularly relevant because a central task of therapy is to support the client to autonomously explore, identify, initiate, and sustain a process of change. In this article, the authors discuss the experimental work, field studies, and clinical trials representing the application of SDT to the domain of psychotherapy. Evidence supports the importance of client autonomy for the attainment and maintenance of treatment outcomes. In addition, intervention studies suggest that therapist autonomy support enhances the likelihood that treatment gains will be achieved and maintained. The authors discuss some of the processes involved in enhancing autonomy, including the role of awareness, the importance of exploring and challenging introjects and external regulations, attention to need-related goal contents, and therapist attitudes required for a therapy approach that is process- rather than outcome-focused.
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“Empirical findings have supported SDT’s claim that the provision of effective need support predicts treatment engagement and outcomes in healthcare [10, 11] and psychotherapy [12].”
From Suicide attempt survivors’ recovery-related agency in the relational context of services: a qualitative analysis (2024) · cites this paper as [12]
In the citing paper
“An understanding of recovery as co-created is in line with both the SDT [10, 12] and recovery models of suicidality [18, 19].”
From Suicide attempt survivors’ recovery-related agency in the relational context of services: a qualitative analysis (2024) · cites this paper as [12]
Citations
Cites
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000) · American Psychologist · doi:10.1037//0003-066x.55.1.68 · Cited by 54,599
Self-citationThe "what" and "why" of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000) · Psychological Inquiry · doi:10.1207/s15327965pli1104_01 · Cited by 34,210
Self-citationIntrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Human Behavior
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Self-citationThe benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being
Brown, K. W., & Ryan, R. M. (2003) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.84.4.822 · Cited by 13,448
Self-citationOn Happiness and Human Potentials: A Review of Research on Hedonic and Eudaimonic Well-Being
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.141 · Cited by 11,567
Self-citationHuman agency in social cognitive theory.
Bandura, A. (1989) · American Psychologist · doi:10.1037/0003-066x.44.9.1175 · Cited by 8,263
Handbook of Competence and Motivation
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Perceived locus of causality and internalization: Examining reasons for acting in two domains.
Ryan, R. M., & Connell, J. P. (1989) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.57.5.749 · Cited by 3,311
Self-citationToward a hierarchical model of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
Vallerand, R. J. (1997) · Advances in experimental social psychology · doi:10.1016/s0065-2601(08)60019-2 · Cited by 3,198 · cited 1×
“These motives, with corresponding regulatory processes, vary along a continuum of relative autonomy (Ryan & Connell, 1989; Vallerand, 1997), and people typically have varied degrees of each type of motive.”
BackgroundFacilitating optimal motivation and psychological well-being across life's domains.
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2008) · Canadian Psychology / Psychologie canadienne · doi:10.1037/0708-5591.49.1.14 · Cited by 2,900
Self-citationFurther Examining the American Dream: Differential Correlates of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Goals
Kasser, T., & Ryan, R. M. (1996) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167296223006 · Cited by 2,745
Self-citationControl and information in the intrapersonal sphere: An extension of cognitive evaluation theory.
Ryan, R. M. (1982) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.43.3.450 · Cited by 2,721
Self-citationA motivational approach to self: integration in personality.
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1990) · PubMed · Cited by 2,718
Self-citationFacilitating Internalization: The Self‐Determination Theory Perspective
Deci, E. L., Eghrari, H., Patrick, B. C., & Leone, D. R. (1994) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1994.tb00797.x · Cited by 2,627
Self-citationPsychological Needs and the Facilitation of Integrative Processes
Ryan, R. M. (1995) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1995.tb00501.x · Cited by 2,245
Self-citationResearch design in clinical psychology
Kazdin, A. E. (1952) · Journal of Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1002/1097-4679(195201)8:1 · Cited by 2,153
Daily Well-Being: The Role of Autonomy, Competence, and Relatedness
Reis, H. T., Sheldon, K. M., Gable, S. L., Roscoe, J., & Ryan, R. M. (2000) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167200266002 · Cited by 2,067 · cited 1×
“It is a client-centered (Rogers, 1951) method that neither persuades nor coerces patients to change, but instead attempts to explore and resolve their ambivalence, allowing them to decide for themselves whether to change. Markland, Ryan, Tobin, and Rollnick (2005) pointed out that SDT provides a meaningful framework f…”
BackgroundSelf-citationMotivational predictors of weight loss and weight-loss maintenance.
Williams, G. C., Grow, V. M., Freedman, Z. R., Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (1996) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.70.1.115 · Cited by 1,610
Self-citationLa Guardia, J. G., Ryan, R. M., Couchman, C. E., & Deci, E. L. (2000) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.79.3.367 · Cited by 1,571
Self-citationWesten, D., Novotny, C. M., & Thompson-Brenner, H. (2004) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.130.4.631 · Cited by 1,212
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Self-citationOlding, A. (1983) · Theoria · doi:10.1111/j.1755-2567.1983.tb00176.x · Cited by 755
Nix, G. A., Ryan, R. M., Manly, J. B., & Deci, E. L. (1999) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1006/jesp.1999.1382 · Cited by 749
Self-citation(1995) · Cited by 745
Self-citationPelletier, L. G., Séguin-Lévesque, C., & Legault, L. (2002) · Journal of Educational Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-0663.94.1.186 · Cited by 741
Motivational Interviewing and Self–Determination Theory
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“Yet research in SDT suggests that structure can be implemented in either controlling or autonomysupportive ways (e.g., Grolnick, 2003; Koestner et al., 1984), and this strongly moderates the likelihood of promoting proactivity and internalization.”
BackgroundSelf-citationSelf-concordance, goal attainment, and the pursuit of happiness: Can there be an upward spiral?
Sheldon, K. M., & Houser-Marko, L. (2001) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.80.1.152 · Cited by 663
Autonomous regulation and long-term medication adherence in adult outpatients.
Williams, G. C., Rodin, G. C., Ryan, R. M., Grolnick, W. S., & Deci, E. L. (1998) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037//0278-6133.17.3.269 · Cited by 642
Self-citationThe Emotional Costs of Parents' Conditional Regard: A Self‐Determination Theory Analysis
Assor, A., Roth, G., & Deci, E. L. (2003) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.0022-3506.2004.00256.x · Cited by 635
Self-citationChoice and Ego-Depletion: The Moderating Role of Autonomy
Moller, A. C., Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2006) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167206288008 · Cited by 596
Self-citationWilliams, G. C., McGregor, H. A., Sharp, D. L., Levesque, C. S., Kouides, R. W., Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2006) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/0278-6133.25.1.91 · Cited by 579
Self-citationEfficacy, Agency, and Self-Esteem
Kernis, M. H. (1995) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4899-1280-0_12 · Cited by 536
Attaining personal goals: Self-concordance plus implementation intentions equals success.
Koestner, R., Lekes, N., Powers, T. A., & Chicoine, E. (2002) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.83.1.231 · Cited by 526
Reeve, J., Nix, G., & Hamm, D. (2003) · Journal of Educational Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-0663.95.2.375 · Cited by 520
Kasser, T., Ryan, R. M., Zax, M., & Sameroff, A. J. (1995) · Developmental Psychology · doi:10.1037/0012-1649.31.6.907 · Cited by 518
Self-citationThe Significance of Autonomy and Autonomy Support in Psychological Development and Psychopathology
Ryan, R. M., Deci, E. L., Grolnick, W. S., & Guardia, J. G. L. (2015) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9780470939383.ch20 · Cited by 460
Self-citationExtrinsic Life Goals and Health‐Risk Behaviors in Adolescents1
Williams, G. C., Hedberg, V. A., Cox, E. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2000.tb02466.x · Cited by 423
Self-citationEffects of performance standards on teaching styles: Behavior of controlling teachers.
Deci, E. L., Spiegel, N. H., Ryan, R. M., Koestner, R., & Kauffman, M. (1982) · Journal of Educational Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-0663.74.6.852 · Cited by 369
Self-citationPelletier, L. G., Tuson, K. M., & Haddad, N. K. (1997) · Journal of Personality Assessment · doi:10.1207/s15327752jpa6802_11 · Cited by 279
Dienstbier, R. A. (2022) · doi:10.5040/9798216424055.ch-24 · Cited by 256
Autonomous motivation for therapy: a new common factor in brief treatments for depression
Zuroff, D. C., Koestner, R., Moskowitz, D. S., McBride, C., Marshall, M., & Bagby, M. R. (2007) · Psychotherapy Research · doi:10.1080/10503300600919380 · Cited by 233
Shahar, G., Henrich, C. C., Blatt, S. J., Ryan, R. M., & Little, T. D. (2003) · Developmental Psychology · doi:10.1037/0012-1649.39.3.470 · Cited by 194
Self-citationDeci, E. L., & Moller, A. C. (2005) · Cited by 190
Self-citationWild, T. C., Cunningham, J. A., & Ryan, R. M. (2006) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2006.01.002 · Cited by 186
Self-citationWong, P.-M., & Fry, P. S. (1998) · University of Groningen research database (University of Groningen / Centre for Information Technology) · Cited by 165
Motivation, Autonomy Support, and Entity Beliefs: Their Role in Methadone Maintenance Treatment
Zeldman, A., Ryan, R. M., & Fiscella, K. A. (2004) · Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1521/jscp.23.5.675.50744 · Cited by 146
Self-citationRyan, R. M. (2005) · Development and Psychopathology · doi:10.1017/s0954579405050467 · Cited by 118
Self-citationPerson-Centered Personality Theory: Support from Self-Determination Theory And Positive Psychology
Patterson, T. G., & Joseph, S. (2006) · Journal of Humanistic Psychology · doi:10.1177/0022167806293008 · Cited by 105
A Group Motivational Treatment for Chemical Dependency
Foote, J. P. (1999) · Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment · doi:10.1016/s0740-5472(99)00003-3 · Cited by 84
Michalak, J., Klappheck, M. A., & Kosfelder, J. (2004) · Psychotherapy Research · doi:10.1093/ptr/kph017 · Cited by 82
Evidence based psychotherapy: special case or special pleading?
Parry, G. (2000) · Evidence-Based Mental Health · doi:10.1136/ebmh.3.2.35 · Cited by 23
Cicchetti, D. (2016) · Wiley eBooks · Cited by 15
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Self-determination theory: A macrotheory of human motivation, development, and health
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2008) · Canadian Psychology / Psychologie canadienne · doi:10.1037/a0012801 · Cited by 6,664
Self-citationDeci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2012) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780195399820.013.0006 · Cited by 1,476
Self-citationA Meta-analysis of the Effectiveness of Intervention Programs Designed to Support Autonomy
Su, Y.-L., & Reeve, J. (2011) · Educational Psychology Review · doi:10.1007/s10648-010-9142-7 · Cited by 924
Motivation, self-determination, and long-term weight control
Teixeira, P. J., Silva, M. N., Mata, J., Palmeira, A. L., & Markland, D. (2012) · International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity · doi:10.1186/1479-5868-9-22 · Cited by 422
Ryan, R. M., Lynch, M. F., Vansteenkiste, M., & Deci, E. L. (2011) · The Counseling Psychologist · doi:10.1177/0011000009359313 · Cited by 429
Self-citation
Metadata
- Authors
- Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L.
- Affiliations
- University of Rochester (US)
- Venue
- Canadian Psychology / Psychologie canadienne
- Published
- 2008-08
- Volume
- 49
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 186-193
- ISSN
- 0708-5591 (ISSN-L)
- 1878-7304
- OpenAlex
- W2170728205
- Cited by
- 629
- References
- 57
- Citations by year
- 2026: 26 · 2025: 43 · 2024: 48 · 2023: 41 · 2022: 48 · 2021: 33 · 2020: 57 · 2019: 38 · 2018: 36 · 2017: 38 · 2016: 34 · 2015: 37 · 2014: 42 · 2013: 22 · 2012: 34
- FWCI
- 23.18
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Canadian Psychology/Psychologie canadienne (publishedVersion)
- Research Bank (Australian Catholic University) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Motivation and Self-Concept in Sports
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
- Keywords
- self-determination theory, psychotherapy, client autonomy, motivation, treatment modification, maintenance of treatment effects, introjects, external regulation, process-oriented therapy, therapist attitudes
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