Autonomy-Supportive Faculty, Students' Self-System Processes, Positive Academic Emotions, and Agentic Engagement: Adding Emotions to Self-System Model of Motivational Development.

Maryam Bordbar

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.727794

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate mediating roles of students' self-system processes and positive academic emotions in a relationship between supporting autonomy and agentic engagement. In This research structural equation modeling was used to analyze a conceptual model. The sample consisted of 452 undergraduate students of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. The research instruments included the autonomy-supportive environment inventory, the self-system processes questionnaire, three questionnaires of academic emotions, and the agentic engagement scale. The findings showed that supporting autonomy had an indirect effect on students' achievement emotions, via self-system processes. Self-system processes had direct and indirect effects on agentic engagement, via positive academic emotions. Supporting autonomy had an indirect effect on agentic engagement by mediating role of self-system processes and positive academic emotions. Accordingly, emotions are proximal determinants of agentic engagement. Supporting autonomy and self-system processes affect agentic engagement from the pathway of academic emotions. Therefore, in addition to environmental factors and self-appraisals, it is necessary to consider students' emotional experiences to promote agentic engagement in learning settings.

Highlights

The ultimate goal of any education system is to promote learners’ academic assets (Skinner and Pitzer, 2012; Skinner et al, 2017)
According to the ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner and Morris, 1998), the root of any development and achievement can be ascribed to complex, progressive and reciprocal interactions between an active, growing, bio-psychological organism and people, objects and symbols in its immediate environment. These persistent forms of interactions are named proximal processes. These processes are a primary engine of individual achievement in the relevant microsystem, meaning that the individual evolves in that environment just through engagement in these interactions (Bronfenbrenner and Morris, 1998)
Confirmatory factor analysis for this paper indicated that all items had a significant factor loading >0.48 and, like the original study, the items were loaded on their relevant factors

Summary

Introduction

The ultimate goal of any education system is to promote learners’ academic assets (Skinner and Pitzer, 2012; Skinner et al, 2017). According to the ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner and Morris, 1998), the root of any development and achievement can be ascribed to complex, progressive and reciprocal interactions between an active, growing, bio-psychological organism (e.g., a learner) and people, objects and symbols (e.g., teachers, classmates, assignments, and goals) in its immediate environment (e.g., academic microsystem; school or university). These persistent forms of interactions are named proximal processes. These processes are a primary engine of individual achievement in the relevant microsystem, meaning that the individual evolves in that environment just through engagement in these interactions (Bronfenbrenner and Morris, 1998)

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Results