Happiness is one of the most important parenting goals in today's modern society. To promote a happy childhood, we need to understand what happiness means to children. Contrary to the view that young children may equate happiness with satisfying material desires and experiencing simple pleasures, in this article, I review recent developmental…

Prior studies showed that general basic psychological need satisfaction or social support affected academic engagement. However, it remains unknown how the mutual reinforcement between the perception of internal needs and external support influences adolescents' academic engagement, as well as whether academic engagement can shape psychological…

The study examined the psychometric structure of Basic Needs Satisfaction in General Scale (BNSG-S) with a sample of 495 college students. It compared the original 21-item version (Gagné, 2003) with the shortened 16-item version (Johnston & Finney, 2010), both with and without method effects. A series of confirmatory factor analyses (CFA)…

Given the demands of revised student learning standards, today's teachers face mounting pressure for their students to produce content knowledge and skills ensuring a successful transition to college and careers. An emphasis on teacher learning and professional development has been at the forefront of this transition to best prepare teachers to…

According to self-determination theory, frustration of basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness) leads to ill-being and negatively affects the learning process. The present study aimed to analyze the effects of a gamified creativity-based teaching method of human anatomy on basic psychological needs frustration compared…

Psychological problems are prevalent among adolescents, and previous studies have robustly demonstrated that individual and family factors play a role in the formation and maintenance of these problems. On the other hand, not all adolescents show the same characteristics in terms of these factors and can be categorized into different groups.…

This study aimed to explore the direct effect of emotional intelligence on the meaning in life from the positive psychology perspective and to verify whether the sense of security and self-esteem can improve the meaning in life based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory. It involved 599 undergraduates selected randomly from four universities…

Students' strongly positive STEM interest and identity predict their future study and career choices in a STEM field. STEM education studies addressing multiple disciplines together are insufficient, as they have produced mixed findings and inadequate direction for advancing integrated STEM education. Self-determination theory (SDT) provides an…

Objective: We examined how attributions of broad ambiguous desire symptoms (eg, irritability) and elaborations on specific substances (ie, caffeine/food) influence subsequent self-reported cravings for these substances. Participants: 346 undergraduates were randomized to attribute their ambiguous desire symptoms to a lack of caffeine, food, or a…

Childhood and adolescence are pivotal developmental stages for psychological health. An understanding of psychological mechanisms related to well-being is important for promoting positive life outcomes for youth. Research generally shows that the basic psychological need for autonomy is significantly associated with well-being. To examine the…

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of basic psychological need satisfaction and motivation on students' use of deep and surface learning strategies across undergraduate kinesiology courses. This study used a survey consisting of demographic questions and three self-report questionnaires assessing basic need satisfaction,…

Building upon the circumplex approach to (de)motivating styles defined by self-determination theory, this research aimed: (a) to analyse the extent to which physical education (PE) teachers' (de)motivating teaching approaches differ across gender, school level, and years of teaching experience, and (b) to test paths from PE teachers' need-based…

Higher-level questioning is an instructional method often recommended to challenge cognitively gifted students. However, professional development is needed to help teachers improve their ability to ask higher-level questions. Therefore, we developed an intervention based on Bloom's taxonomy, consisting of a 2-h session in which teachers learn how…

Background: Consistent with self-determination theory (SDT), teachers may differ in the motivating style used to motivate students in physical education (PE). When relying on need-supportive behaviors, teachers attempt to provide students with opportunities for choices and initiative (autonomy support), valuable information and feedback…

The impact of evolving technologies, including in education, has prompted researchers to enhance the educational process through flow experience in technology-enhanced learning environments in Informatics in Education. This study investigates the effects of a gamified educational environment with competition and collaboration elements on students'…