Autonomy-Supportive and Controlling Styles of Teaching Opposite or Distinct Teaching Styles?

Autonomy-supportive and controlling styles of teaching are usually considered to be the opposite ends of a single continuum. An alternative view, however, is that individuals can perceive both styles simultaneously, which suggests that they are different constructs (Bartholomew, Ntoumanis, Ryan, Bosch, & Thogersen-Ntoumani, 2011). Using cluster analysis, Study 1 (N = 160) confirmed that both teaching styles were perceived by students. Four clusters appeared depending on the student’s score on the measures of autonomy and controlling styles (high autonomy–high control; low autonomy–low control; high autonomy–low control; low autonomy–high control). Participants in the high autonomy–low control cluster reported the highest self-determined motivation in their studies. Using path analysis and mediational analyses, Study 2 (N = 127) tested the independence of the two styles by studying the process through which they influenced motivation. The results showed that need satisfaction (specifically, the need for au...