Self determination and thriving at work the influence of heedful interrelating and goal orientation among private university educational professionals in India

Abstract

Educational professionals are increasingly required to engage in autonomous learning, newlineprofessional development, and personal growth while thriving in their work environments. Past research identifies self-determined autonomous motivation to be a central indicator of thriving at work. However, self-determination theory posits a dialectic gap that impedes this forward momentum. This empirical study examines what can be done by individuals to bridge this dialectic gap and whether variations in individual dispositions cause deviance in the organismic growth tendency. The literature points to a knowledge lack in agentic capabilities and behaviors necessary for performance in knowledge-intensive work stating them to be underrated. By integrating self-determination theory with the theories of heedful interrelating and goal achievement, the study examines the mediation effect of heedful interrelating and the moderating role of goal orientation dispositions on the direct effect of selfdetermination and thriving at work. The mediation moderation model was validated newlineusing data collected through stratified random sampling from educational professionals working in private universities in India. Partial least square structural equational modeling showed that variations in goal orientation disposition adopted in an newlineachievement setting did not hinder autonomous motivation while heedful interrelating newlinefunctions as a mediator between self-determined autonomous motivation and thriving newlineat work. Partial causal mediation adds heed as a novel indicator to self-determination newlinetheory s relatedness dimension and validates the role of heedful interrelating in bridging newlinethe dialectic gap. Practical suggestions are recommended to educational professionals newlineand authorities for incrementing self-determined autonomous motivation through newlinesatisfaction of the need for autonomy, competence, and relatedness, for enacting newlineheedful agentic work behaviors and implementing heedful interrelating.