Personality and Individual Differences 50 (2011) 387–391

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Personality and Individual Differences

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/paid

Psychological needs, motivation, and well-being: A test of self-determination

theory across multiple domains
Marina Milyavskaya ⇑, Richard Koestner
Department of Psychology, McGill University, 1205 Dr. Penfield Avenue, Montréal, QC, Canada H3A 1B1

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The present investigation examined the associations between psychological need satisfaction, autono-
Received 19 August 2010 mous motivation, and subjective well-being simultaneously across multiple domains. Two hundred
Received in revised form 27 October 2010 and three adults completed questionnaires about important life domains in which they were involved,
Accepted 31 October 2010
resulting in ratings of over 800 domains. Results show that need satisfaction is strongly related to both
autonomous motivation and well-being in multiple domains. Additionally, we demonstrate that motiva-
tion acts as a partial mediator of the path between need satisfaction and well-being. By using an idio-
Keywords:
graphic approach, this study looks at the differences and similarities between the many important life
Self-determination theory
Psychological needs
domains in which individuals are involved. The current paper also supports the universality of SDT pro-
Motivation cesses by assessing need satisfaction, motivation and well-being simultaneously in multiple life domains.
Well-being Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Multiple domains

1. Introduction across people and cultures and applicable throughout all aspects
of a person’s life. Autonomy refers to the experience of choice
Throughout their lives, people enact various roles and pursue and volition in one’s behaviour and to the personal authentic
various goals through their engagement in a multitude of impor- endorsement of one’s activities and actions. Competence involves
tant life domains. However, not all these domains are experienced the ability to bring about desired outcomes and feelings of effec-
in the same way – some may be fulfilling whereas others are tiveness and mastery over one’s environment. Finally, relatedness
depleting. What determines whether one feels happy or energetic reflects feelings of closeness and connection in one’s everyday
in a given domain? Research on self-determination theory (SDT; interactions (Deci & Ryan, 2000).
Deci & Ryan, 2000, 2008) has shown the importance of basic psy- Many studies have examined the relation of psychological need
chological need satisfaction for well-being and other positive out- satisfaction directly to well-being, both in general and in specific
comes (e.g., Reis, Sheldon, Gable, Roscoe, & Ryan, 2000). However, contexts. General need satisfaction has been shown to predict
few studies have examined the relation of need satisfaction to well-being outcomes both between-persons, with people who
well-being simultaneously across multiple life domains, or investi- report greater overall need satisfaction also reporting greater
gated a potential mechanism for this relation. In the present study, well-being (Reis et al., 2000; Véronneau, Koestner, & Abela,
we assess whether the association of need satisfaction to well- 2005), and within-person on a day to day basis, with daily
being is consistent across important life domains, and test the fluctuations in need fulfillment predicting daily fluctuations in
proposition that autonomous motivation may act as a mediator well-being (Reis et al., 2000). Domain-specific need fulfillment
of the path between need satisfaction and well-being. has also been linked to positive outcomes in a variety of settings
including greater vitality and lower exhaustion and burnout in
1.1. Basic psychological needs sports (e.g., Gagné, Ryan, & Bargmann, 2003), persistence in school
(Ratelle, Larose, Guay, & Senecal, 2005), job performance (Baard,
Self-determination theory conceptualizes psychological needs Deci, & Ryan, 2004), involvement in volunteer work (Gagné,
as essential nutrients that are required for optimal psychological 2003), and relationship satisfaction (Patrick, Knee, Canevello, &
growth and well-being (Deci & Ryan, 2000). The needs for auton- Lonsbary, 2007), among others.
omy, competence and relatedness are thought to be universal

⇑ Corresponding author. Address: Department of Psychology, McGill University, 1.2. Autonomous motivation as mediator
Stewart Biology Building, 1205 Dr. Penfield Avenue, Montréal, QC, Canada H3A 1B1.
Tel.: +1 514 398 8219; fax: +1 514 398 4896. While it is reasonable to expect that the experience of auton-
E-mail address: [email protected] (M. Milyavskaya). omy, competence and relatedness leads directly to well-being, it

0191-8869/$ - see front matter Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.paid.2010.10.029
388 M. Milyavskaya, R. Koestner / Personality and Individual Differences 50 (2011) 387–391

is also possible that some intervening variable is mediating the ef- SDT expects that need thwarting in any social environment will
fect. One potential mediator which may link need satisfaction in a lead to negative outcomes (Deci & Ryan, 2008), the magnitude of
particular domain to well-being in that domain is the reason for the effects across environments or domains has not been thor-
which this domain is pursued – i.e., the motivation. Self-determi- oughly examined. Two studies which assessed need satisfaction
nation theory often considers the role of motivation as predictor in separate contexts examined their effects on general well-being
of important outcomes, and has also frequently linked motivation outcomes (Milyavskaya et al., 2009; Véronneau et al., 2005). Addi-
with need satisfaction. It is therefore reasonable to explore the tionally, one study examined need satisfaction with diverse rela-
possible mediating relations between need satisfaction, motivation tional partners (i.e., mother, father, best friend, roommate, etc.;
and well-being outcomes in an effort to unify these separate as- La Guardia, Ryan, Couchman, & Deci, 2000), linking need satisfac-
pects of the theory. tion in each relationship to attachment security in that relation-
In SDT, motivation is conceptualized as a continuum ranging ship. While participants in that study reported significantly
from a motivation that is autonomous, originating within the self, different levels of need satisfaction and attachment across relation-
to one which is controlled and stems from outside pressure (Deci & ships, the authors did not investigate whether the strength of the
Ryan, 2008). Moreover, the extent to which an activity is integrated association between need satisfaction and attachment differed
into the self is influenced by experiences of need satisfaction or across relationships.
need thwarting (Deci & Ryan, 2000). A domain in which a person
experiences adequate support for autonomy, competence and
1.4. Present study
relatedness should thus be associated with more autonomous
motivation for participating in that domain, whether it is a hobby,
In the present study we sought to address the aforementioned
a relationship, school, work, or any other area in which a person
questions regarding need satisfaction in various life contexts and
may be involved. Previous research has examined this proposition
the mechanism through which need satisfaction can impact do-
in some specific domains, showing that parental support for psy-
main well-being. Over two hundred participants indicated be-
chological needs was positively associated with children’s autono-
tween 3 and 6 domains in which they were involved and rated
mous motivation for schoolwork (Grolnick & Ryan, 1989), and
each domain on measures of need satisfaction, motivation and
teachers’ support of these needs was linked to more autonomous
well-being. We first tested the strength of the relation of need sat-
motivation in medical students (Williams & Deci, 1996).
isfaction to motivation and well-being and whether these relations
Autonomous motivation has in turn been associated with
vary across domains. While previous studies have shown need sat-
numerous positive outcomes, including greater creativity
isfaction in different domains to be differentially associated with
(Koestner, Ryan, Bernieri, & Holt, 1984), persistence at school
well-being outcomes (e.g., Milyavskaya et al., 2009), those studies
(Vallerand, Fortier, & Guay, 1997), healthier lifestyles and eating
examined general rather than domain-specific well-being. As pre-
behaviour (Pelletier, Dion, Slovenic-D’Angelo, & Reid, 2004) and
dicted by SDT, we hypothesized that need satisfaction in a domain
more positive psychotherapy outcomes (Zuroff et al., 2007). There
would be strongly associated to both motivation and well-being in
is thus ample evidence suggesting both that need satisfaction leads
that domain and that this would be true across all domains. Sec-
to autonomous motivation, and, in a separate set of studies, that
ondly, based on the theoretical link between need satisfaction,
autonomous motivation leads to positive outcomes.
motivation and well-being described above, we hypothesized that
Some researchers have begun to test this idea of mediation in
motivation for each domain mediates the relationship between
specific domains. For example, in the sports domain, motivation
need satisfaction and well-being.
has been shown to mediate (at least partially) the link between
need satisfaction and a variety of outcomes including affect, effort,
further participation intentions, and drop-out (Ntoumanis, 2005; 2. Method
Sarrazin, Vallerand, Guillet, Pelletier, & Cury, 2002). In the relation-
ship domain, Patrick and colleagues (2007, study 3) tested a medi- 2.1. Participants and procedure
ation model where relationship motivation mediated the path
between need satisfaction within the relationship and relationship Participants were recruited through online classified ads and
satisfaction and commitment after disagreements, and found evi- through a Facebook event, and offered a 10$ gift card to amazon.ca
dence for full mediation. While these studies represent an impor- for completing an online survey about important life domains. Two
tant contribution to understanding the mechanism through hundred and eighteen adults responded to the survey. As the sur-
which need satisfaction leads to positive outcomes, it was only vey was expected to take approximately 30–45 min, we removed
examined separately in each of these domains. Our research ex- all respondents who completed the survey in less than 20 min
tends these studies by examining this path simultaneously in mul- (N = 10). We also removed five participants who either rated the
tiple contexts to test the hypothesis that these processes operate in same domains twice or left some of the measures entirely blank.
a similar fashion in a variety of important life domains. The final sample consisted of 203 adults (62.6% female; two partic-
ipants did not indicate gender) ages 18–71 (M = 24.55, SD = 7.03).
1.3. Multiple domains Under occupation, 50% of the sample indicated they were students;
8% were graduate students, 35% indicated a job, and 8% did not
One of the basic premises of SDT is that it applies universally indicate an occupation.
across cultures and domains. Previous research has confirmed that Participants completed some general questionnaires and then
the key processes theorized by SDT are universal across cultures were asked to think about 3–6 domains: ‘‘For the next set of ques-
(e.g., Sheldon et al., 2004). However, in order to be truly universal, tions, you will be asked about some life contexts, or domains in
a theory needs to apply not only across multiple cultures, but also which you spend your time. Examples of a life domain can include
across multiple contexts. While research on self-determination school, work, family, a relationship, friends, sports (e.g., basketball,
theory has been conducted in numerous domains including rela- yoga, skiing, going to the gym, golf, etc.), hobbies (e.g., playing a
tionships, sports, school, work, leisure, and many others, virtually musical instrument, painting, gardening, etc.), religious or commu-
no studies have examined multiple domains simultaneously, com- nity organizations, volunteering, etc.’’ Participants were then asked
paring the strength of the links between need satisfaction, autono- to name the domains in which they were involved and completed
mous motivation and positive outcomes across domains. Although measures for each of these domains.
M. Milyavskaya, R. Koestner / Personality and Individual Differences 50 (2011) 387–391 389

2.2. Measures as work). Table 1 shows the mean need satisfaction, motivation
and well-being by type of domain. Participants reported the high-
2.2.1. Domain need satisfaction est need satisfaction and the most autonomous motivation with
A 24-item scale was adapted from previous scales of need satis- friends and in relationships, and the least need satisfaction, moti-
faction (Gagné, 2003; La Guardia et al., 2000) to assess competence vation and well-being at work and at school.
(e.g., ‘‘In this domain, I feel like a competent person’’), relatedness To account for non-independence of each domain rating, we
(e.g., ‘‘I feel that the other people in this domain sincerely care used hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) for our data analysis.
about me’’), and autonomy (e.g., ‘‘I am free to express my ideas HLM is a technique that takes into account similarities of observa-
and opinions in this domain’’) in each domain. Responses were tions within individuals and allows for a different number of obser-
made on a 7 point scale, ranging from 1 (not at all true) to 7 (com- vations for each individual. The HLM software, version 6.06, was
pletely true). As we were interested in need satisfaction in general, used to conduct these analyses using full maximum likelihood esti-
we averaged all the items to form one measure of overall need sat- mation. To examine the role of each type of domain separately, we
isfaction in the domain. This scale had a high reliability a = .92. dummy-coded each domain type and included the interaction be-
tween the dummy-code and need satisfaction, so that for each do-
2.2.2. Domain motivation main that a person indicated the measure of need satisfaction takes
Respondents’ motivation for participating in each domain was into account the domain type that is represented. All variables
measured using a four-item scale adapted from Sheldon and Elliot were standardized prior to running the central analyses to allow
(1999). Participants were asked to rate the extent to which they are for an easier comparison among variables.
involved in each domain for intrinsic (‘‘Because of the enjoyment To ensure that participants were really responding to each do-
or stimulation that this domain provides me’’), identified (‘‘Because main separately, we computed intraclass correlations (ICC) for
I really identify with this domain’’), introjected (‘‘Because I would our three main variables. The ICC represents the proportion of var-
feel ashamed, guilty, or anxious if I was not involved in this do- iance in outcome between participants (rather than between do-
main’’), and extrinsic (‘‘Because of external rewards such as money, mains). HLM analyses of an empty model predicting need
or because someone else wants me to do it’’) reasons. These items satisfaction, motivation, and well being were, respectively, 0.19,
were combined into a single relative autonomy index by using the 0.03, and 0.16. This means that 81% of the variance in need-satis-
following formula: 2 intrinsic + identified introjected 2 faction, 97% of the variance in motivation, and 84% of the variance
extrinsic (Ryan & Connell, 1989). in well-being was between domains.

3.2. Predicting motivation from need satisfaction

2.2.3. Domain subjective well-being
Participants completed the seven-item subjective vitality scale
To test our first hypothesis that need satisfaction would be pos-
(Ryan & Frederick, 1997) which assessed the degree to which they
itively associated with autonomous motivation in all domains, we
felt physically and mentally vigorous and alert in that domain (e.g.,
first computed a model which included the type of domain (dum-
‘‘I feel energized in this domain.’’). Additionally, participants com-
my coded for each domain – D1 to D6) and the interaction between
pleted a nine-item scale of affect (Emmons, 1992) which included
each domain type and need satisfaction (ID1NS to ID6NS). The
4 positive (e.g., joyful) and 5 negative (e.g., frustrated) items. Par-
equation of autonomous motivation in each context was as
ticipants rated each item based on how they typically felt when
follows: Domain motivation = b0j + b1(D1j) + b2(D2j) + b3(D3j) +
they were engaged in that particular domain. All responses were
b4(D4j) + b5(D5j) + b6(D6j) + b7(ID1NSj) + b8(ID2NSj) + b9(ID3NSj) +
made on a scale of 1 (not at all true) to 7 (very true). The reliability
b10(ID4NSj) + b11(ID5NSj) + b12(ID6NSj) + eij. As we included all six
for each measure was a = .92 for positive affect, a = .88 for negative
domain dummy-codes in the equation, we removed the fixed por-
affect, and a = .94 for vitality. As subjective well-being is com-
tion of the person-level intercept but allowed the intercept to vary
monly operationalized by aggregating multiple indicators (e.g.,
(b0j = u0j, where u is error). All other effects were fixed.
Reis et al., 2000), a composite measure of domain well being was
Overall, need satisfaction explained 40% of the variance in
created by taking a mean of the standardized scores for each scale
autonomous motivation between domains for each participant.
(with negative affect reverse-scored). The correlation of these mea-
The coefficients for need satisfaction in each domain were signifi-
sures among themselves (.52 to .82, p < .001) was sufficient to war-
cant (see Table 2), although the magnitude appeared to vary some-
rant combining them.
what between domains. To test whether these differences were
statistically significant, we compared the above model to a model
3. Results which constrained all the coefficients of need satisfaction by do-
main to equal each other (b7 = b8 = b9 = b10 = b11 = b12). This model
3.1. Preliminary analyses provided a better fit, suggesting that there were no significant dif-
ferences in the effects of need satisfaction across domains,
Participants indicated 3–6 domains in which they were in-
volved (median = 4; total of 863 domains). These domains were
Table 1
examined and coded into six categories by two independent raters.
Means and standard deviations of study 1 variables across domains.
The categories were family, friends, romantic relationship, work,
school, and activities/leisure. Domains which were unclear or Domain N Need Autonomous Well-being
satisfaction motivation mean mean (SD)
ambiguous (e.g., ‘home’; ‘restaurant’ ‘taking care of others’) and
mean (SD) (SD)
those which were missing ratings on any of the key variables were
Family 96 5.33a (1.16) 5.54a (5.47) .17a (.97)
removed from the analyses, resulting in a final sample of 826 do-
Friends 101 5.80b (.73) 8.38b (3.50) .43b (.51)
mains. Agreement between the two raters was high, j = .99, Relationship 56 5.94b (.85) 8.80b (4.13) .41b (.84)
p < .001, and cases of disagreement were discussed until an agree- School 109 4.48c (.97) 2.64c (5.29) .58c (.87)
ment was reached so that each domain was assigned a category. Work 146 4.52c (.86) .40d (5.06) .59c (.80)
Some participants listed more than one domain which was coded Activities 318 5.02d (.85) 6.98e (4.31) .31b (.66)

in the same category (e.g., playing sports and watching TV both Note: Different subscripts within each column signify that the means are signifi-
coded as activity/leisure; having two part-time jobs both coded cantly different from each other.
390 M. Milyavskaya, R. Koestner / Personality and Individual Differences 50 (2011) 387–391

Table 2
Coefficients of need satisfaction in life domains on study outcomes.

Domain Autonomous motivation Well-being Well-being after controlling for motivation Sobel z
b (SE) t (814) b (SE) t (814) b (SE) t (813)
Family .65 (.05) 12.35 .84 (.05) 16.86 .57 (.05) 11.76 9.04
Friends .52 (.08) 6.32 .56 (.08) 7.23 .35 (.07) 4.95 5.71
Relationship .54 (.09) 5.70 .95 (.09) 10.75 .74 (.08) 9.07 5.24
School .68 (.06) 11.51 .88 (.06) 15.88 .61 (.05) 11.25 8.69
Work .60 (.06) 10.43 .83 (.05) 15.26 .58 (.05) 11.22 8.20
Activities .54 (.04) 13.33 .52 (.04) 13.78 .31 (.04) 8.11 9.40

Note: All coefficients significant, p < .001.

v2(5) = 6.80, p > .2. A non-significant v2 signifies that the simpler being from the model predicting the mediator and the coefficient
model (in this case the second model assessed) was a better fit. of motivation on well-being from the final model. The Sobel test
indicated that the mediation path was statistically significant for
3.3. Predicting well-being from need satisfaction all domains, z’s = 5.24–9.40, all p’s < .001 (see Table 2). This sug-
gests that the effect of need satisfaction on well-being was par-
We next assessed whether need satisfaction is similarly associ- tially mediated by motivation.
ated with well-being across all domains. We estimated the same
model as above to predict domain well-being. All the coefficients 4. Discussion
for need satisfaction in each domain were significant. Results for
this model are shown in Table 2. Overall, need satisfaction ac- Self-determination theory has long recognized that the basic
counted for 51% of the variance in well-being between domains psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness
for each participant. To test whether these coefficients were sig- are necessary for optimal functioning and for the integration of so-
nificantly different from one another we compared the above cial norms and values in all life contexts (Deci & Ryan, 2000). This
model to a model which constrained all the coefficients of need study examined the relation of these needs to autonomous motiva-
satisfaction by domain to equal each other. This model provided tion and well-being in important life domains, finding that need
a worse fit, suggesting that there were significant differences in satisfaction was significantly related to both variables across do-
the effects of need satisfaction across domains, v2(5) = 54.67, mains. Importantly, we used an idiographic approach where par-
p < .001. Additional exploratory analyses showed that need satis- ticipants were asked to name and rate domains important to
faction plays a similar role in family, school, work and relation- them rather than rating categories set by the researcher. The re-
ship domains and a smaller effect in friendship and activity sults thus provide concrete evidence to support SDT’s proposition
domains. that need satisfaction is universally important across domains.
Although such consistency has been previously demonstrated
3.4. Testing for mediation across diverse cultures and developmental periods, our research
is the first to explore SDT’s universality assumption across do-
We next tested our second hypothesis, that the relationship be- mains. It will be important to more carefully explore this issue
tween need satisfaction and well-being in each domain was med- by developing stronger research designs that include peer-report
iated by autonomous motivation. As all our main effects in the measures and prospective longitudinal designs. If the connections
model were fixed, the steps for testing mediation in HLM are between need satisfaction, motivation, and domain well-being
similar to those used to test a traditional mediation model, as can be demonstrated using such designs, this would represent very
described by Baron and Kenny (1986). Since we already showed strong evidence for the universal applicability of this model across
that domain need satisfaction predicted both domain well-being domains. Of course, such rigorous tests of the SDT universality
(our outcome variable) and domain motivation (mediator propositions have not yet been confirmed with regard to cultural
variable), the final step was to test whether autonomous motiva- or developmental variations.
tion predicted well-being even when we controlled for domain Our second hypothesis that motivation mediates the link be-
need satisfaction, and whether the direct path between need satis- tween need satisfaction and well-being was not fully supported,
faction and well-being became non-significant when we included although we did find evidence of partial mediation. This suggests
the mediator in the model. We re-ran the above model with that there are multiple mechanisms through which need satisfac-
well-being as the dependent variable and included domain motiva- tion leads to positive outcomes. Indeed, it is possible that feeling
tion (DMOT). At level one, the following equation was used: that one’s needs are satisfied in an important life domain is ener-
Domain well-being = b0j + b1(DMOTj) + b2(D1j) + b3(D2j) + b4(D3j) + gizing in itself, and thus no mechanism is required to explain this
b5(D4j) + b6(D5j) + b7(D6j) + b8(ID1NSj) + b9(ID2NSj) b10(ID3NSj) + connection. However, as we found the mediation path in our study
b11(ID4NSj) + b12(ID5NSj) + b13(ID6NSj) + eij. All other effects were to be significant, this supports our expectations that in addition to
fixed. being beneficial in its own right, part of the positive effects of need
Analyses showed that autonomous motivation had a significant satisfaction is the role it plays on motivation, which then leads to
effect on domain well-being even when we controlled for need sat- greater well-being. Overall, the partial mediation suggests that
isfaction, b1 = 0.39, t (817) = 13.27, p < .001. However, the direct need satisfaction plays a dual role, acting both directly and indi-
paths of need satisfaction in each domain to well-being were still rectly on well-being outcomes. This fits well with previous theoriz-
significant (see Table 2), showing that these effects were not fully ing on the role of the needs. In their seminal paper, Deci and Ryan
mediated by motivation. Although there was no full mediation, (2000) predicted ‘‘that fluctuations in need satisfaction will di-
since the coefficients of need satisfaction were reduced, we tested rectly predict fluctuations in well-being’’, whereas Vallerand
the mediation path to see whether there was partial mediation. (1997) expected that the needs operate by influencing motivation
Following Krull and MacKinnon (2001), we performed a Sobel test which in turn influences specific outcomes. Our research supports
of mediation using the coefficients of need satisfaction on well- both these arguments.
M. Milyavskaya, R. Koestner / Personality and Individual Differences 50 (2011) 387–391 391

An alternative explanation for our findings, which would make Gagné, M. (2003). The role of autonomy support and autonomy orientation in
prosocial behavior engagement. Motivation and Emotion, 27, 199–223.
the directionality of the effects of need satisfaction, motivation and
Gagné, M., Ryan, R. M., & Bargmann, K. (2003). Autonomy support and need
well-being particularly difficult to disentangle, is that these vari- satisfaction in the motivation and well-being of gymnasts. Journal of Applied
ables feed into each other, forming a cycle or spiral. Indeed, it is Sport Psychology, 15, 372–390.
possible that experiencing need satisfaction in a domain leads to Grolnick, W. S., & Ryan, R. M. (1989). Parent styles associated with children’s self-
regulation and competence in school. Journal of Educational Psychology, 81,
more autonomous motivation, and then autonomous involvement 143–154.
in a domain leads to more experiences of need satisfaction and Koestner, R., Ryan, R. M., Bernieri, F., & Holt, K. (1984). Setting limits on children’s
greater well-being. A similar proposal has been made by Sheldon behavior: The differential effects of controlling versus informational styles on
intrinsic motivation and creativity. Journal of Personality, 52, 233–248.
and Houser-Marko (2001), who showed that setting self-concor- Krull, J. L., & MacKinnon, D. P. (2001). Multilevel modeling of individual and group
dant (i.e., autonomous) goals resulted in greater goal attainment, level mediated effects. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 36, 249–277.
which in turn lead people to set and attain more self-concordant La Guardia, J. G., Ryan, R. M., Couchman, C. E., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Within-person
variation in security of attachment: A self-determination theory perspective on
goals in the future, thereby enhancing well-being. attachment, need fulfillment, and well-being. Journal of Personality and Social
Although our model and analysis are theoretically grounded, it Psychology, 79, 367–384.
is important to exercise caution when applying causal models to Milyavskaya, M., Gingras, I., Mageau, G., Koestner, R., Gagnon, H., Fang, J., et al.
(2009). Balance across contexts: The importance of balanced need satisfaction
data collected at a single time point. The mediation pathway spec- across various life domains in adolescence. Personality & Social Psychology
ified in our second hypothesis implies causality (i.e., that need sat- Bulletin, 35, 1031–1045.
isfaction causes autonomous motivation which in turn causes Ntoumanis, N. (2005). A prospective study of participation in optional school
physical education based on self-determination theory. Journal of Educational
well-being), and longitudinal studies need to be conducted to sta-
Psychology, 97, 444–453.
tistically test its validity. The current analyses suggest that the pro- Patrick, H., Knee, C. R., Canevello, A., & Lonsbary, C. (2007). The role of need
posed relationship linking the three variables of interest does exist, fulfillment in relationship functioning and well-being: A self-determination
but further studies are needed to confirm these findings. Addition- theory perspective. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 434–457.
Pelletier, L. G., Dion, S. C., Slovenic-D’Angelo, M., & Reid, R. (2004). Why do you
ally, our measure of well-being consisted of only vitality and affect, regulate what you eat? Relationship between forms of regulation, eating
and the effects may differ on other outcome measures. Another behaviors, sustained dietary behavior change, and psychological adjustment.
important limitation to our study is the classification of the do- Motivation and Emotion, 28, 245–277.
Ratelle, C. F., Larose, S., Guay, F., & Senecal, C. (2005). Perceptions of parental
mains. Participants were not asked to rate each potential domain, involvement and support as predictors of college students’ persistence in a
but only to nominate some that were important to them, with their science curriculum. Journal of Family Psychology, 19, 286–293.
answers later classified to fit six general domains. This is especially Reis, H. T., Sheldon, K. M., Gable, S. L., Roscoe, J., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). Daily well-
being: The role of autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Personality and
problematic for the resulting category of ‘activities’, which encom- Social Psychology Bulletin, 26, 419–435.
passes such different things as sports, volunteering, or watching Ryan, R. M., & Connell, J. P. (1989). Perceived locus of causality and internalization:
TV, all of which could be experientially different and distinct from Examining reasons for acting in two domains. Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology, 57, 749–761.
each other and could potentially either differ more or be more sim- Ryan, R. M., & Frederick, C. M. (1997). On energy, personality and health: Subjective
ilar to other domain categories. Future research is needed to better vitality as a dynamic reflection of well-being. Journal of Personality, 65, 529–565.
understand the domains that people find important, their experi- Sarrazin, P., Vallerand, R. J., Guillet, E., Pelletier, L. G., & Cury, F. (2002). Motivation
and dropout in female handballers: A 21-month prospective study. European
ences in these domains, and how these activities can be classified.
Journal of Social Psychology, 32, 395–418.
Overall, this study shows that need satisfaction is universally Sheldon, K. M., & Elliot, A. J. (1999). Goal striving, need-satisfaction, and
linked to motivation and well-being across important life domains. longitudinal well-being: The self-concordance model. Journal of Personality
The quality of one’s engagement in important domains, as well as and Social Psychology, 76, 482–497.
Sheldon, K. M., Elliot, A. J., Ryan, R. M., Chirkov, V. I., Kim, Y., Wu, C., et al. (2004).
the affective outcomes in these domains are all associated with the Self-concordance and subjective well-being in four cultures. Journal of Cross-
amount of psychological need satisfaction experienced in these Cultural Psychology, 35, 209–223.
contexts. Sheldon, K. M., & Houser-Marko, L. (2001). Self-concordance, goal-attainment, and
the pursuit of happiness: Can there be an upward spiral? Journal of Personality
and Social Psychology, 80, 152–165.
References Vallerand, R. J. (1997). Toward a hierarchical model of intrinsic and extrinsic
motivation. In M. P. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology
Baard, P. P., Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2004). Intrinsic need satisfaction: A (pp. 271–360). New York: Academic Press.
motivational basis of performance and well-being in two work settings. Journal Vallerand, R. J., Fortier, M. S., & Guay, F. (1997). Self-determination and persistence
of Applied Social Psychology, 34, 2045–2068. in a real-life setting: Toward a motivational model of high school dropout.
Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 72, 1161–1176.
social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical Véronneau, M.-H., Koestner, R., & Abela, J. R. Z. (2005). Intrinsic need satisfaction
considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 1173–1182. and well-being in children and adolescents: An application of the self-
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The ‘‘what’’ and ‘‘why’’ of goal pursuits: Human determination theory. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 24, 280–292.
needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11, Williams, G. C., & Deci, E. L. (1996). Internalization of biopsychosocial values by
227–268. medical students: A test of self-determination theory. Journal of Personality and
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2008). Facilitating optimal motivation and psychological Social Psychology, 70, 767–779.
well-being across life’s domains. Canadian Psychology, 49, 14–23. Zuroff, D. C., Koestner, R., Moskowitz, D. S., McBride, C., Bagby, M., & Marshall, M.
Emmons, R. A. (1992). Abstract versus concrete goals: Personal striving level, (2007). Autonomous motivation for therapy: A new non-specific predictor of
physical illness, and psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social outcome in brief treatments of depression. Psychotherapy Research, 17,
Psychology, 62, 292–300. 137–148.