Since the beginning of the 21st century, higher education has changed drastically with instructional technology. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to investigate the perceived lived experiences among ten adult learners and how academic motivation influenced their learning in a technology-based learning environment. The participants were recruited from a public Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in New Orleans, Louisiana. Academic motivation in this study was conceptualized as the actions of students. Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews guided by the MUSIC Model of Motivation themes and questionnaire. The themes included; Empowerment, Usefulness, Success, Interest, Caring, and the researcher added Academic Motivation. The main subthemes of self-paced learning, learning content relevant to career goals, face-to-face contact with the instructor and peers, and receiving feedback from instructors, were revealed. Self-paced learning was a significant reason why participants felt empowered in a course. Participants expressed being able to control the amount of time needed to absorb new information and material they consumed. Learners' acknowledged having a sense of autonomy, which allowed them to maintain a job and take care of their family--getting general feedback promptly from the instructor-facilitated increased interest, and students believed that they would succeed with the guided feedback. Participants' learning content relevant to their career and face-to-face contact were two central subthemes that emerged, most corroborated when participating in experiential activities such as role-plays, discussions, and collaborative projects; they were academically stimulated. Overall these two subthemes primarily influenced students' academic motivation. This researcher revealed that online instructors play a vital role in adult learners' success or failure. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]