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Want It Like You Mean It: Revisiting Goal Self-Concordance Through the Dissociation of Autonomous and Controlled Motivation in Relation to Meaning in Life

Le Guellaff Pallin, Liam LU (2026) PSYK12 20252
Department of Psychology
Abstract (Swedish)
Självkonkordansmodellen (The Self-Concordance Model) postulerar att
autonom målsättning är en primär drivkraft för välbefinnande. Standardiserade
mätmetoder sammanblandar dock ofta närvaron av autonomi med frånvaron av
yttre press genom användandet av 'relativa' differenspoäng. Denna studie
använde ett aggregerat dataset (N = 429) för att systematiskt pröva två
konkurrerande modeller: en Balansmodell (där mening uppstår ur totala
resultatet av skillnaden mellan autonom och kontrollerad motivation) och en
Autonom-Primär modell (där mening drivs enbart av autonom riktning).
Genom Bayesiansk strukturell ekvationsmodellering (BSEM) och riktade
acykliska grafer (DAGs) visade analysen att självkonkordanspoängen (GSC)
döljer den sanna... (More)
Självkonkordansmodellen (The Self-Concordance Model) postulerar att
autonom målsättning är en primär drivkraft för välbefinnande. Standardiserade
mätmetoder sammanblandar dock ofta närvaron av autonomi med frånvaron av
yttre press genom användandet av 'relativa' differenspoäng. Denna studie
använde ett aggregerat dataset (N = 429) för att systematiskt pröva två
konkurrerande modeller: en Balansmodell (där mening uppstår ur totala
resultatet av skillnaden mellan autonom och kontrollerad motivation) och en
Autonom-Primär modell (där mening drivs enbart av autonom riktning).
Genom Bayesiansk strukturell ekvationsmodellering (BSEM) och riktade
acykliska grafer (DAGs) visade analysen att självkonkordanspoängen (GSC)
döljer den sanna strukturella relationen mellan motivation och mening.
Resultaten visade att autonom motivation var den enda robusta prediktorn för
meningsbedömningar, medan GSC-poängen inte bidrog med någon unik
varians när båda testades samtidigt. En funktionell dubbel dissociation
framträdde: autonom motivation predicerade mening men inte depression,
medan kontrollerad motivation predicerade depression men inte mening. Den
latenta korrelationen mellan autonom och kontrollerad motivation var nära noll
(r = -.09), vilket stödjer deras status som ortogonala konstrukt snarare än
motsatta ändar av ett kontinuum. Interaktionen mellan autonom och
kontrollerad motivation saknade stöd, vilket indikerar att effekten från
autonomi till mening är konstant oavsett yttre press. Dessa resultat utmanar
den subtraktiva logiken i traditionella mätningar av självkonkordans och tyder
på att mening är en produkt av autonom riktning, inte motivationell balans.
Nyckelord: autonom motivation, mening i livet, självbestämmandeteori,
Bayesiansk strukturell ekvationsmodellering, självkonkordans. (Less)
Abstract
The Self-Concordance Model posits that autonomous goal pursuit is a primary driver of well-being, yet standard measurement practices often conflate the presence of autonomy with the absence of external pressure via 'relative' difference scores. This study utilized a high-powered dataset (N = 429) to systematically test between a Balance Model (where meaning arises from the net difference between autonomous and controlled motivation, operationalized as Goal self-concordance) and an Autonomous-Primary Model (where meaning is driven solely by autonomous direction). Using Bayesian Structural Equation Modeling (BSEM) and Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs), the analysis demonstrated that the Goal self-concordance (GSC) score obscures the true... (More)
The Self-Concordance Model posits that autonomous goal pursuit is a primary driver of well-being, yet standard measurement practices often conflate the presence of autonomy with the absence of external pressure via 'relative' difference scores. This study utilized a high-powered dataset (N = 429) to systematically test between a Balance Model (where meaning arises from the net difference between autonomous and controlled motivation, operationalized as Goal self-concordance) and an Autonomous-Primary Model (where meaning is driven solely by autonomous direction). Using Bayesian Structural Equation Modeling (BSEM) and Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs), the analysis demonstrated that the Goal self-concordance (GSC) score obscures the true structural relationship between motivation and meaning. Results showed that autonomous motivation was the sole robust predictor of meaning in life judgements, while the GSC scores contributed no unique variance when both were tested simultaneously. A functional double dissociation emerged: autonomous motivation predicted meaning but not depression, while controlled motivation predicted depression but not meaning. Notably, the latent correlation between autonomous and controlled motivation was near zero (r = -.09), supporting their status as orthogonal constructs rather than opposite ends of a continuum. The interaction between autonomous and controlled motivation was not credible, indicating that the effect of autonomy on meaning is constant regardless of external pressure. These findings challenge the subtractive logic embedded in traditional self-concordance measurement, and suggest that meaning is a product of autonomous direction, not motivational balance. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Le Guellaff Pallin, Liam LU
supervisor
organization
course
PSYK12 20252
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
autonomous motivation, meaning in life, self-determination theory, Bayesian structural equation modeling, goal self-concordance, autonom motivation, mening i livet, självbestämmandeteori, Bayesiansk strukturell ekvationsmodellering, självkonkordans
language
English
id
9220171
date added to LUP
2026-01-23 15:39:08
date last changed
2026-01-23 15:39:08
@misc{9220171,
  abstract     = {{The Self-Concordance Model posits that autonomous goal pursuit is a primary driver of well-being, yet standard measurement practices often conflate the presence of autonomy with the absence of external pressure via 'relative' difference scores. This study utilized a high-powered dataset (N = 429) to systematically test between a Balance Model (where meaning arises from the net difference between autonomous and controlled motivation, operationalized as Goal self-concordance) and an Autonomous-Primary Model (where meaning is driven solely by autonomous direction). Using Bayesian Structural Equation Modeling (BSEM) and Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs), the analysis demonstrated that the Goal self-concordance (GSC) score obscures the true structural relationship between motivation and meaning. Results showed that autonomous motivation was the sole robust predictor of meaning in life judgements, while the GSC scores contributed no unique variance when both were tested simultaneously. A functional double dissociation emerged: autonomous motivation predicted meaning but not depression, while controlled motivation predicted depression but not meaning. Notably, the latent correlation between autonomous and controlled motivation was near zero (r = -.09), supporting their status as orthogonal constructs rather than opposite ends of a continuum. The interaction between autonomous and controlled motivation was not credible, indicating that the effect of autonomy on meaning is constant regardless of external pressure. These findings challenge the subtractive logic embedded in traditional self-concordance measurement, and suggest that meaning is a product of autonomous direction, not motivational balance.}},
  author       = {{Le Guellaff Pallin, Liam}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Want It Like You Mean It: Revisiting Goal Self-Concordance Through the Dissociation of Autonomous and Controlled Motivation in Relation to Meaning in Life}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}