Learning and Instruction
102
s. 102306-102306
Doi:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2025.102306
Background
Accountability-based education systems have increasingly emphasized performance monitoring through key performance indicators (KPIs), especially after the so-called “PISA shock” in 2001. While such indicators aim to raise standards, they may also lead educators to perceive goals as rigid and non-negotiable—referred to as Perceiving Goals as Invariable (PGI). Despite growing concern, empirical research on the motivational and psychological consequences of PGI in education remains limited.
Aims
This study investigates whether PGI is associated with burnout, turnover intention, and intrinsic motivation, and whether these associations are mediated by autonomy satisfaction, autonomy frustration, and self-efficacy.
Sample
Two large-scale cross-sectional samples were used: 3178 Norwegian teachers (Study 1) and 461 principals (Study 2, replication).
Methods
Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to test direct and indirect associations between PGI and key motivational outcomes. Both models controlled for demographic and school-level covariates. Mediating pathways through autonomy satisfaction, autonomy frustration, and self-efficacy were tested to examine underlying mechanisms.
Results
PGI was positively associated with burnout and turnover intention, and negatively associated with intrinsic motivation in both samples. Mediation analyses showed full indirect effects: PGI predicted lower autonomy satisfaction and self-efficacy, and higher autonomy frustration, which in turn predicted worse motivational outcomes.
Conclusions
This study underscores the potential psychological costs of rigid goal perceptions in accountability-driven school systems. PGI appears to undermine educators’ motivation and well-being through its detrimental effects on basic psychological needs and perceived competence. These findings highlight the importance of designing goal structures that promote autonomy and self-efficacy in educational settings.