Abstract
Purpose: To show student nurses' level of motivation to start and maintain friendships based on self-determination theory, and to demonstrate the relationship between student nurses' need for autonomy, their desire become fully competent, and their motivation to learn, so as to gain ideas for educational methods that will stimulate their autonomous motivation.
Method: A self-report questionnaire survey was conducted among student nurses, and the results were analyzed and examined.
Conclusions:
1. Student nurses have more autonomous friendship motivation than university students other than student nurses.
2. Student nurses have more autonomous learning motivation than university students other than student nurses.
3. Autonomous friendship motivation is a factor in autonomous learning motivation.
4. A self-determined need for autonomy, with self-esteem as its antecedent, is a factor in autonomous learning motivation.
5. Autonomous friendship motivation among student nurses in not directly influenced by self-esteem or the need for autonomy.
6. Assumed competence is a factor in decreasing (controlling) both friendship motivation and learning motivation.
7. Assumed competence is an independent antecedent of the need for autonomy.
