Self Determination Theory is focused on the development of intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic (also known as autonomous) motivation refers to "A psychological desire to enact behaviors for the pleasure, satisfaction, or excitement associated with enacting the behavior itself." (Howard et al., 2021).
Now we can take a look at how developing intrinsic motivation influences learning and achievement in the classroom.
Autonomous types of motivation have been shown to get more desired results in regards to the following (Howard et al., 2021).
Academic performance
A student that is intrinsically motivated will be more willing to put effort into their academics, which will result in better academic performance.
Example: A student that wants to achieve straight A's, solely because it will make them feel proud, is going to make a greater effort toward their academic performance than a student that does not care about school.
Goal orientations
How: A student that is intrinsically motivated is going to be more persistent to achieve their specific goal.
Example: A student that dreams of becoming a doctor is going to be sure to take all of the necessary steps to achieve that, despite the rigor of that path. Graduating high school, going to college, going to medical school, etc. Whereas someone who doesn't have this goal is not going to make the same effort.
Self evaluation
How: A student that is intrinsically motivated is more likely to take the initiative to evaluate themselves and be more open to constructive criticism in order to better their performance.
Example: A student loves to sing and they take voice lessons to help them improve. This student is much more likely to take their teacher's critiques to heart and independently evaluate how they can improve their singing, as opposed to a student who is taking voice lessons because their mom is forcing them.
Wellbeing:
How: A student that is intrinsically motivated to do something is inevitably experiencing positive emotions while doing it. This can help to support a student's wellbeing, this in turn can support a students success in other areas of life.
Example: A student loves to play basketball; they join a team and play in their free time and work hard to improve their skills. Doing this makes them feel fulfilled, and as a result, they excel not only in basketball but also in all areas of their life. However, if a student that didn't like basketball did this it may have the opposite effect.
References:
Howard, J.L , Bureau, J., Guay, F., Chong, J.X.Y., & Ryan, R.M. (2021). Student motivation and associated outcomes: A meta-analysis from self-determination theory. Association for Psychological Science, (1-24)
https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691620966789
Santana‐Monagas, E., Núñez‐Regueiro, F., & Núñez, J. L. (2025). Does motivation lead to academic success, or conversely? Reciprocal relations between autonomous and controlled motivation, and mathematics achievement. British Journal of Educational Psychology.
https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12736
Zhu, Y., Dolmans, D., S. Eleonore Köhler, Kusurkar, R. A., Abidi, L., & Savelberg, H. (2024). Paths to Autonomous Motivation and Well-being: Understanding the Contribution of Basic Psychological Needs Satisfaction in Health Professions Students. Medical Science Educator.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-024-02106-9