College as a Growth Opportunity: Assessing Personal Growth Initiative and Self-determination Theory

Ingrid K. Weigold (), Arne Weigold, Shu Ling and Migyeong Jang
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Ingrid K. Weigold: The University of Akron
Arne Weigold: Kent State University at Geauga
Shu Ling: The University of Akron
Migyeong Jang: The University of Akron

Journal of Happiness Studies, 2021, vol. 22, issue 5, No 9, 2143-2163

Abstract: Abstract Although college presents a time for personal and vocational development, little research has examined individuals’ intentional use of college as a growth opportunity. Consequently, the current study assessed relationships among personal growth initiative (an individual’s active desire to grow in personally relevant domains), basic needs satisfaction at college, and positive outcomes in samples of students from a large, public, predominantly White institution (n = 818) and a small, private, minority-majority college (n = 195). Using structural equation modeling, we examined a hypothesized model in which personal growth initiative was indirectly related to the two outcomes (psychological well-being and vocational commitment) through the satisfaction of the basic needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness; this was compared to a reverse model. The hypothesized model was a better fit for the data in the university sample, and both models had similar fit for the college sample. Tests of indirect effects using the hypothesized model showed evidence of mediation, with similarities and differences between the samples. Finally, the two models were invariant across institutions at the structural level. PGI and basic needs satisfaction explained over half of the variance in psychological well-being and approximately one-quarter of the variance in vocational commitment in both samples.

Keywords: Personal growth initiative; Self-determination theory; College students; Well-being; Vocational commitment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1007/s10902-020-00312-x

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