The Role of Students’ and Teachers’ Ratings of Autonomous Motivation in a Self-Determination Theory Model Predicting Participation in Physical Education

This study uses Self-Determination Theory as a theoretical framework to test the hypotheses that students self-reports of their motivational regulations would predict teachers' perception of students' motivational regulations, even after controlling for performance. An additional aim was to test a process model in which students' perceived autonomy support from teachers would positively predict students' need satisfaction, which would positively predict students' self-report of autonomous motivation and teachers' perceptions of students' autonomous motivation, which both in turn would positively predict students' participation in Physical education. Results from regression analyses and multilevel modeling showed that teachers' and students' ratings of the students' motivation were congruent only for intrinsic and identified regulation. Structural equation model results supported the process model just specified above.