The impact of academic motivation on university students’ autonomy support and self-regulated learning

Purpose This study explores academic motivation as a mediating psychological process linking lecturer autonomy support and students’ self-regulated learning (SRL) in Indonesian higher education. Design/methodology/approach The study employed a qualitative design informed by self-determination theory. Data were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews with 25 undergraduate students at a public university in North Sumatra, Indonesia. Participants were purposively selected based on their experience of autonomy-supportive learning practices. Data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke’s six-phase approach. Findings Three interconnected themes emerged. First, students experienced autonomy support as trust, intellectual recognition and guided freedom rather than unrestricted independence. Second, these relational experiences fostered autonomous motivation characterized by emotional comfort, psychological ownership and sustained engagement. Third, motivation functioned as a psychological bridge through which autonomy-supportive practices were internalized and translated into SRL behaviors, including planning, monitoring, time management, persistence and reflective evaluation. The findings indicate that autonomy support becomes behaviorally consequential when students internalize academic goals as personally meaningful. Originality/value This study extends self-determination theory by conceptualizing academic motivation not simply as a statistical mediator but as a lived psychological bridge between autonomy-supportive pedagogy and SRL. It also provides culturally contextualized qualitative evidence showing that autonomy in Indonesian higher education may be experienced as entrusted responsibility within respectful lecturer–student relationships.