An investigation into academic burnout among Taiwanese adolescents from the self-determination theory perspective

The present study attempted to explore the relations among Taiwanese eighth graders' perceptions of teachers' autonomy support versus psychological control, satisfaction of need for autonomy, work engagement, and academic burnout. Four hundred and seven eighth-grade Taiwanese students completed a self-reported survey assessing the variables described above. Results of this study indicated that students' perceived autonomy support versus psychological control in the classroom environment, satisfaction of need for autonomy, and work engagement all had significant influences on their experienced academic burnout. In addition, autonomy need satisfaction, vigor, and dedication mediated the relations between perceived autonomy support provided by teachers and student burnout. This study also documented profiles of students with different types of academic burnout. Well-functioning students were the most engaged group characterized by the highest levels of vigor, dedication, and absorption. In contrast, distressed students obtained the lowest scores across all the dimensions of work engagement. Implications for educational practices are discussed.