Relationships among instructor autonomy support, and university students’ learning approaches, perceived professional competence, and life satisfaction

The purpose of this study was to examine relationships among instructor autonomy support for student learning, and students’ motivational characteristics, learning approaches, perceptions of career competence and life satisfaction. Participated 1048 students from Spanish universities with ages between 18, and 57 years. A Structural equation modeling revealed a relationship between instructor autonomy support for student learning with students’ basic psychological need satisfaction. As a result, students’ basic need satisfaction was related to their intrinsic motivation, and to a deeper learning approach. These educational outcomes contributed to explain students’perceived professional competence, and life satisfaction. These findings highlight the importance of student choice, and decision-making in the learning process as a means to facilitating deeper learning, stronger feelings of professional competence, and enhanced well-being.