ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychol.
Sec. Educational Psychology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1571559
This article is part of the Research TopicPhysical Education for Holistic Educational DevelopmentView all 9 articles
Self-determination in secondary school students and their relationship with emotional intelligence and support for autonomy
Provisionally accepted
- 1University of Murcia, Murcia, Murcia, Spain
- 2European University of Madrid, Villaviciosa de Odón, Madrid, Spain
- 3University of Almeria, Almería, Andalusia, Spain
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In secondary education, a period characterized by multiple psychological, behavioral, and social changes in young people, academic motivation tends to decrease. This study focuses on Physical Education (PE) classes as a key space to positively influence students' motivation and emotional development, based on the Self-Determination Theory (SDT). This theory emphasizes the importance of satisfying three basic psychological needs: competence, autonomy, and social relationships, which in turn favor intrinsic motivation and emotional well-being. The study included 502 students (11-18 years old) and explored the relationship between motivational profiles high profile (19,7%), low profile (29,3%) and moderate profile (51%) and emotional intelligence and the perception of autonomy. The results revealed that high self-determination profiles were associated with higher levels of intrinsic motivation, satisfaction of basic needs, and emotional well-being, while low self-determination profiles showed amotivation and negative consequences such as dissatisfaction and lower performance. In addition, it was observed that girls tended to present profiles of greater self-determination compared to boys (residual effect = 4,1), and that extracurricular sports practice was positively related to more selfdetermined motivational profiles (residual effect 7,7 and 7,5 in high and moderate self-determination profiles). The findings highlight the need for adapted pedagogical strategies that promote autonomy, a positive climate and gender equity to maximize the positive impact of PE classes on the integral development of adolescents. In conclusion, PE classes can play a crucial role in improving student motivation and well-being if they are structured in a way that supports basic psychological needs and fosters an inclusive and motivating learning environment.
Keywords: Physical Education, autonomy support, Psychology, Emotions, cluster profiles
Received: 05 Feb 2025; Accepted: 17 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 GÓMEZ-LÓPEZ, Mendoza Castejón, Frías-López and Manzano-Sánchez. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: David Manzano-Sánchez, University of Almeria, Almería, 04120, Andalusia, Spain
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