Impact of Intrinsic Motivation on Psychological Well-Being of Doctoral Students – A Multivariate Analysis
Authors: Acharya Vrinda , Thomas Gil Mathew , Acharya K Aneesha 
Published: October 2024

Aim/Purpose: This study investigates how personal resources act as moderators and mediators in the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model. The study introduced intrinsic motivation as a personal resource and explored the mediating and moderating role relating to job demands, job strain, and psychological well-being in a doctoral education setting.

Background: Future scholars and professionals are shaped by doctoral education, an essential phase in an academic career. Students’ psychological well-being is negatively impacted by the stress associated with the rigorous demands of the program, such as long hours of study and academic research publications. Understanding the relationship between intrinsic motivation and doctorate students’ mental health has attracted attention recently. Although fostering intrinsic motivation provides positive outcomes, the relationship with overall well-being is still multifaceted.

Methodology: The study collected cross-sectional data from 391 full-time PhD students in India’s social science discipline. The investigation performed direct, moderation and mediation analysis of the study construct.

Contribution: The current findings offer validation for nurturing the psychological well-being of scholars in the stressful doctoral study environment through intrinsic motivation. Furthermore, by emphasizing the scholars’ intrinsic motivation, the current study contributes to the body of literature on how scholars might prioritize their work-life balance and handle the demands of their programs.

Findings: Demands of the doctoral program increase job strain and negatively impact students’ psychological well-being; however, this effect is conditional on the level of intrinsic motivation. This study highlights the significance of intrinsic motivation as a personal resource in the JD-R model that facilitates doctoral students’ psychological well-being.

Recommendations for Practitioners: The study recommends that institutions, supervisors, and practitioners create a learning environment that fosters intrinsic motivation among scholars. The study result highlights interventions to enhance student motivation and psychological well-being to enhance the three psychological needs of scholars, i.e., autonomy, relatedness, and competence. Institutions can enhance the scholar’s autonomy by providing a choice of courses during their coursework stage and by providing an opportunity for research grants and collaboration. Supervisors suggested providing constructive feedback, maintaining open communication, and conducting research writing, methodology and time management skills, and growth mindset workshops for students that foster scholars’ competence. A sense of relatedness can be achieved through shared challenges and successes, peer mentorship programs, study groups, peer reviews, and social events.

Recommendation for Researchers: The researchers should consider other personal resources (for example, self-efficacy, grit, and resilience) that scholars can use to improve psychological well-being. Researchers should broaden their studies and interventions on resources rather than strategies to reduce the PhD program demands to tackle the job strain among scholars.

Impact on Society: Scholars with better mental health may be more productive and resilient and better able to support their communities. We can ensure they build their excellent research results, assist various fields in advance, and engage in social concerns.

Future Research: Researchers can investigate the present relationship using longitudinal studies by tracking students’ well-being over time. Further studies can establish causal links, assess the efficacy of intrinsic motivation interventions, and uncover complex interactions between demands and resources influencing mental health among scholars.