This meta-analysis aims to shed light on the added value of the complex multidimensional view on motivation of Self-determination theory (SDT). We assess the unique and incremental validity of each of SDT’s types of motivation in predicting organizational behavior, and examine SDT’s core proposition that increasing self-determined types of motivation should have increasingly positive outcomes. Meta-analytic findings (124 samples) support SDT, but also adds precision to its predictions: Intrinsic motivation is the most important type of motivation for employee well-being, attitudes and behavior, yet identified regulation is more powerful in predicting performance and organizational citizenship behavior. Furthermore, introjection has both positive and negative consequences, while external regulation has limited associations with employee behavior and has well-being costs. Amotivation only has negative consequences. We address conceptual and methodological implications arising from this research and exemplify how these results may inform and clarify lingering issues in the literature on employee motivation.

这项荟萃分析旨在阐明关于自决理论（SDT）动机的复杂多维视图的附加价值。我们评估了SDT每种动机类型在预测组织行为方面的独特性和增量有效性，并研究了SDT的核心主张，即越来越多的自我决定的动机类型应该具有越来越积极的结果。荟萃分析的发现（124个样本）支持SDT，但也提高了其预测的准确性：内在动机是员工福祉，态度和行为的最重要动机，而已确定的法规在预测绩效和组织公民意识方面更有效行为。此外，注解会带来正面和负面的影响，而外部法规与员工行为之间的关联有限，并具有幸福感。动机化只会带来负面影响。我们解决了这项研究引起的概念和方法论上的隐患，并举例说明了这些结果如何可能有助于告知和澄清有关员工激励的文献中的遗留问题。