The Effects of Autonomy on Motivation and Performance in the College Classroom

The goals of this study were to extend the literature about classroom autonomy in several ways. First, since previous research on autonomy has tended to focus on younger learners, we examined whether the positive effects of autonomy on motivation and performance would be replicated in a college sample. Second, we tested to see whether the well-established links between intrinsic motivation and autonomy would also be found using motivational constructs that play key roles in learning (specifically, task value, self-efficacy, and test anxiety). Third, we sought to trace the effect of autonomy on changes in student motivation over the course of a semester. Finally, we examined the role of autonomy on course performance. We found that experiences of classroom autonomy in the college classroom were more closely related to motivational factors than to performance. While the immediate experience of autonomy may not be directly facilitative of high course grades, autonomy does seem to foster intrinsic goal orientation, task value, and self-efficacy, all of which are critical components of "continuing motivation." The data presented here lend further support for the benefits of fostering autonomy within academic settings.