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Human Agentic Theories and the Development of Self-Determination

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Development of Self-Determination Through the Life-Course

Abstract

Self-determination theories are housed within theories of human agentic behavior. Human agency refers to the sense of personal empowerment involving both knowing and having what it takes to achieve goals. Human agentic theories share the meta-theoretical view that organismic aspirations drive human behaviors. An organismic perspective of self-determination portrays people as active contributors to, or “authors” of their behavior, where behavior is defined in terms of self-regulated and goal-directed actions. This chapter will review the major theories of human agentic behavior and will examine the role of self-determination in each.

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Correspondence to Karrie A. Shogren .

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Shogren, K.A., Little, T.D., Wehmeyer, M.L. (2017). Human Agentic Theories and the Development of Self-Determination. In: Wehmeyer, M., Shogren, K., Little, T., Lopez, S. (eds) Development of Self-Determination Through the Life-Course. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1042-6_2

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