WHAT MOTIVATES CHILDRENS BEHAVIOR AND EMOTION - JOINT EFFECTS OF PERCEIVED CONTROL AND AUTONOMY IN THE ACADEMIC DOMAIN

This study examined the contribution of perceived control and autonomy to children's self-reported behavior and emotion in the classroom (N= 246 children ages 8-10 years). Multiple regression analyses revealed unique effects of autonomy over and above the strong effects of percei ved control. In addition, both sets of perceptions(and their interacti on) were found to distinguish children who were active but emotionally disaffected from those who were active and emotionally positive. Spec ific predictions were also tested regarding the effects of(a) control attributions to 5 causes and (b) 4 reasons for task involvement that d iffered in degree of autonomy on children's active (vs. passive) behav ior and 4 kinds of emotions: boredom, distress, anger, and positive em otions. Implications of the findings for theories of children's motiva tion are discussed, as well as for diagnostic strategies to identify c hildren at risk for motivational problems.