Imagine a triangle: at its corners are your needs for autonomy (feeling in control), competence (feeling capable), and relatedness (feeling connected).
When these needs are met in your academic life, you feel more motivated, experience more positive emotions, and perform better.
This is because basic psychological need satisfaction fuels your drive, makes you feel good about learning, and ultimately helps you succeed.
Dibona, P., Amato, M., & Castillo, R. (2025). Academic performance, self-reported motivation, and affect in higher education: The role of basic psychological need satisfaction. Frontiers in Psychology, 16, 1519454. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1519454
Key Points
- Students reported higher positive affect, lower negative affect, and higher basic psychological need (BPN) satisfaction in courses they perceived as more motivating.
- BPN satisfaction indirectly influenced academic performance, with affect and self-reported motivation acting as mediators.
- A direct link was found between negative affect and academic performance, suggesting that negative emotions can hinder academic success.
- The findings underscore the importance of designing courses that support students’ BPN to improve motivation, positive affect, and academic performance.
Rationale
Higher education is a challenging yet rewarding phase in students’ lives. The transition to higher education can be demanding, and student motivation is crucial for academic success.
Previous research has shown that motivation influences student engagement, self-efficacy, and well-being.
Self-Determination Theory (SDT) provides a framework for understanding how the satisfaction of basic psychological needs (BPN) – autonomy, competence, and relatedness – impacts motivation and academic performance.
BPN satisfaction has been linked to positive educational outcomes, including better academic performance and reduced negative affect.
This study aimed to examine the relationship between BPN satisfaction, affect, self-reported motivation, and academic performance in higher education students in Chile, addressing a gap in understanding how these mechanisms function in Latin America.
By exploring these relationships, the study aimed to provide insights into how to enhance student well-being and academic success in this context.
Method
This was a non-experimental, cross-sectional study.
Procedure
- Participants completed an online survey.
- The survey included demographic questions, a positive and negative affect scale, a BPN satisfaction scale, a question about motivation level, and a question about the average grade obtained in the course.
- Participants completed the scales twice, once for the most motivating course and once for the least motivating course of the last semester.
Sample
- 148 higher education students from Chile.
- The majority were from the Coquimbo region (94%) and were first-year (56.8%) or fourth-year (43.2%) students.
- 37.8% identified as male, 58.8% as female, and 3.4% did not disclose their gender.
- Mean age was 21 years (SD = 3.21).
Measures
- Self-reported motivation: Measured using a single-item scale from 1 to 10, where 1 represented low self-reported motivation and 10 represented high self-reported motivation.
- Affect: Measured using a modified version of the Chilean validation of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). This version included 5 items measuring positive affect and 5 items measuring negative affect.
- BPN satisfaction: Measured using an ad hoc scale developed for the university course setting. The scale included 8 items covering the three BPN: autonomy, competence, and relatedness.
- Academic performance: Assessed by asking participants to report their average grade in each course.
Statistical measures
- Paired sample t-tests were used to compare the variables between the most and least motivating courses.
- Spearman correlations were used to examine the relationship between the variables.
- Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to test the hypothesized model.
Results
- Students reported significantly higher levels of positive affect, basic psychological need satisfaction, and academic performance in courses they perceived as more motivating compared to those they found less motivating.
- Conversely, students experienced significantly higher levels of negative affect in courses they perceived as less motivating.
- The adjusted structural model revealed that basic psychological need satisfaction indirectly influenced academic performance.
- Both positive and negative affect, along with self-reported motivation, mediated the relationship between basic psychological need satisfaction and academic performance.
- Notably, negative affect also had a direct and negative impact on academic performance, indicating that negative emotions can hinder academic success.
Insight
This study is particularly informative because it provides a comprehensive examination of the relationship between BPN satisfaction, affect, motivation, and academic performance in higher education students.
The findings extend previous research by showing that BPN satisfaction not only directly influences academic performance but also indirectly through affect and motivation.
The study also highlights the importance of negative affect as a direct predictor of academic performance, suggesting that negative emotions can hinder academic success.
These findings have implications for educators and policymakers, who should consider designing learning environments that support students’ BPN and address negative emotions to improve academic outcomes.
Future research could explore the specific types of negative affect that are most detrimental to academic performance and investigate the effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing negative affect and promoting BPN satisfaction in higher education settings.
Implications
The findings of this study have implications for both practitioners and policymakers in higher education.
Practitioners, such as university instructors and administrators, can use these findings to design learning environments that support students’ BPN and promote positive affect.
This can be achieved through various strategies, such as providing students with more autonomy in their learning, creating opportunities for them to feel competent and successful, and fostering a sense of belonging and connection in the classroom.
Policymakers can use these findings to inform policies and initiatives aimed at improving student well-being and academic success.
This could involve providing funding for programs that support students’ BPN and mental health, and implementing policies that promote active learning and student engagement.
While implementing these findings may present challenges, such as the need for additional resources and training, the potential benefits for students’ academic performance and overall well-being are substantial.
Strengths
This study had several methodological strengths, including:
- The study used validated measures to assess the variables of interest.
- The use of SEM allowed for a comprehensive examination of the relationship between the variables.
- The study included a diverse sample of higher education students.
Limitations
This study also had several limitations, including:
- The study used a cross-sectional design, so it cannot infer causality.
- The study relied on self-reported data, which may be subject to bias.
- The sample was limited to students from Chile, so the findings may not be generalizable to other populations.
References
Primary reference
Dibona, P., Amato, M., & Castillo, R. (2025). Academic performance, self-reported motivation, and affect in higher education: The role of basic psychological need satisfaction. Frontiers in Psychology, 16, 1519454. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1519454
Other references
Schaufeli, W. B., Llorens, S., & Salanova, M. (2019). Satisfaction of Basic Psychological Needs Leads to Better Academic Performance via Increased Psychological Capital: A Three-Wave Longitudinal Study Among High School Students. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 474273. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02113
Chamberlin, K., Yasué, M., & Chiang, C. A. (2018). The impact of grades on student motivation. Active Learning in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787418819728
Del Valle, M., Valenzuela, J., Muñoz, C., Miranda-Ossandón, J., Vergaño-Salazar, J. G., & Precht, A. (2025). Prácticas docentes universitarias y motivación orientada al aprendizaje: efecto mediador de la satisfacción de las necesidades psicológicas básicas. Educación XX1, 235-256. https://doi.org/10.5944/educxx1.38203
Díaz-García, A., González-Robles, A., Mor, S., Mira, A., Quero, S., García-Palacios, A., … & Botella, C. (2020). Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS): psychometric properties of the online Spanish version in a clinical sample with emotional disorders. BMC psychiatry, 20, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-020-2472-1
Fierro-Suero, S., Almagro, B. J., Becker, E. S., & Sáenz-López, P. (2022). Basic psychological needs, class-related emotions and satisfaction with life in Spanish teachers. International Journal of Educational Psychology, 11(2), 153-181.
Florescu, M. C., Bochiș, L. N., Barth, K. M., & Indrieș, M. (2023). Can Dysfunctional Negative Emotions Explain Students’ Level of Academic Motivation in Online Learning at University?. Revista Romaneasca pentru Educatie Multidimensionala, 15(2), 55-72. https://doi.org/10.18662/rrem/15.2/720
Keep learning
- How might the findings of this study differ if the research had been conducted in a different cultural context?
- Can you think of any alternative explanations for the relationship between negative affect and academic performance?
- How could the study’s methodology be improved to address the limitations of self-reported data and the cross-sectional design?
- What are the ethical considerations when designing interventions aimed at influencing students’ affect and motivation in educational settings?
- How can the findings of this study be applied to different educational levels, such as primary or secondary education?
- What are the potential long-term consequences of not addressing students’ BPN needs in higher education?
- How can educational institutions balance the need to support students’ BPN with the demands of a rigorous academic curriculum?
