I am reading Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. I know I have posted a comment about Pink’s motivation writing and interviews being eerily similar to Self-Determination Theory (SDT). Well, he does give reference to Deci’s early work. But at least so far he hasn’t mentioned the large research knowledge base that has been built up since Deci & Ryan (2000) conceptualized SDT. I can’t believe he is not aware of the hundreds of empirical studies so I really hope that I’m just jumping the gun here. Anyone who is interested in the research behind Pink’s autonomy, mastery, and purpose (SDT calls them autonomy, competency, relatedness) you can find it at http://www.selfdeterminationtheory.org/ where Deci, Ryan and many others at the University of Rochester and beyond have compiled an impressive body of research. At this site they also make available many of the instruments used in the research.
What is SDT?
SDT posits that humans have three basic psychological needs, whose satisfaction is critical to well being, health, and personal growth. These needs are innate and universal. Human beings strive consciously or unconsciously toward situations that support the satisfaction of these needs. The three needs are: autonomy – feeling ownership for choices and behaviors, competence- feeling effective, and relatedness – feeling connected to others. To the extent an environment satisfies these needs, it supports engagement in and mastery of skills and concepts within it (Deci & Ryan, 2000).
SDT & Education
Substantial research has linked basic needs satisfaction to student behavior in the classroom, academic achievement, cognitive learning, and persistence in school (Brokelman, 2009; Hardre & Reeve, 2003; Ryzin, Gravely, & Roseth, 2007). This is true across gender, age, and cultures (Chirkov, 2009; Guay, Ratelle, & Chanal, 2008; Jang, Reeve, Ryan, & Kim, 2009; Sheldon, Abad, & Omolie, 2009; Shih, 2008). Support of these basic psychological needs has been correlated to intrinsic motivation, which in turn has been linked to student engagement and academic achievement (Niemiec & Ryan, 2009; Ryzin, Gravely, & Roseth, 2007). Particular emphasis has been placed on support for autonomy. Specific teacher and administrator behaviors have been shown to either support or hinder student perceived autonomy satisfaction and intrinsic motivation (Niemiec & Ryan, 2009). Teacher support for student autonomy has been correlated to the autonomy support they receive (Roth, Assor, Kanat-Maymon, & Kaplan, 2007) providing an avenue for improving instructional environments.
References Cited:
Brokelman,
K. F. (2009). The interrelationship of self-determination, mental illness, and
grades among university students. Journal of College Student Development, 50(3),
271-286.
Chirkov,
V. I. (2009). A cross-cultural analysis of autonomy in education: A
self-determination theory perspective. Theory
and Research in Education, 7(2), 253-262. doi:10.1177/1477878509104330
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. (2000). The
“what” and “why” of goal pursuits: Human
needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4),
227-268. doi:10.1207/S15327965PLI1104_0
Guay,
F., Ratelle, C. F., & Chanal, J. (2008). Optimal learning in optimal
contexts: The role of self-determination in education. Canadian
Psychology/Psychologie canadienne, 49(3), 233-240. doi:10.1037/a0012758
Hardre,
P. L., & Reeve, J. (2003). A motivational model of rural students'
intentions to persist in, versus drop out of, high school. Journal of
Educational Psychology, 95(2), 347-356. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.95.2.347
Jang,
H., Reeve, J., Ryan, R. M., & Kim, A. (2009). Can self-determination theory
explain what underlies the productive, satisfying learning experiences of
collectivistically oriented Korean students? Journal of Educational
Psychology, 101(3), 644-661. doi:10.1037/a0014241
Niemiec,
C. P., & Ryan, R. M. (2009). Autonomy, competence, and relatedness in the
classroom: Applying self-determination theory to educational practice. Theory
and Research in Education, 7(2), 133-144. doi:10.1177/1477878509104318
Roth,
G., Assor, A., Kanat-Maymon, Y., & Kaplan, H. (2007). Autonomous motivation
for teaching: How self-determined teaching may lead to self-determined
learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99(4), 761-774.
doi:10.1037/0022-0663.99.4.761
Ryzin,
M. J., Gravely, A. A., & Roseth, C. J. (2007). Autonomy, belongingness, and
engagement in school as contributors to adolescent psychological well-being. Journal
of Youth and Adolescence, 38(1), 1-12doi:10.1007/s10964-007-9257-4
Sheldon,
K. M., Abad, N., & Omoile, J. (2009). Testing self-determination theory via
Nigerian and Indian adolescents. International Journal of Behavioral
Development, 33(5), 451-459.
Shih,
S. (2008). The relation of self- determination and achievement goals to
Taiwanese eighth graders. The Elementary School Journal, 108(4),
313-334. doi:10.1086/528974
I can live with autonomy, competence, and relatedness. I am a believer in both Pink and SDT!! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteShulman (2003) suggests a model or looking at teacher autonomy or ways to support teachers acting upon their learning. Shulman’s Table of Learning includes the following overarching components:
ReplyDelete• Engagement and Motivation
• Knowledge and Understanding
• Performance and Action
• Reflection and Critique
• Judgment and Design
• Commitment and Identity
The complex planning process extends from an analysis of how teachers are engaged in learning about their profession. Analysis uses what teachers know and provide them the opportunity to put that into practice. When teachers are supported by the administration in the school a learning community exists in which everyone has a supportive role. Teachers and students care (Ladson-Billings, 1994; Gay 2000) and pedagogy empowers the entire community.
Knowledge and understanding about teaching occurs when teachers have opportunities to construct knowledge and talk about teaching in “one’s own words” (Shulman, 2003) or “in other words” (Orellana, Reynolds, Dorner & Meza , 2003). Performance and practice lead to action, a commitment to change the world and the things in it, starting with the corner of the world in which teachers reside. Sometimes action occurs before complete understanding (Shulman, 2003) and that might happen as educators encounter opportunities to plan and use teaching methods based on research and monitor the results of their pedagogy over time.
Shulman, L. (2003) Making differences: A table of learning. Carnegie Foundation
e Library. http://www.carnegiefoundation.org/elibrary/docs/printable/makingdifferences.htm.ss.