Applying a three-component approach to motivational regulation: Relations of frequency, situation-specific fit and application quality of motivational regulation strategies with students' well-being

While motivational regulation has been shown to predict study motivation and success, its relations with student well-being have received little attention. The few studies available indicate an interplay between motivational and emotional processes within self-regulated learning and the importance of motivational regulation for outcomes beyond achievement. Prior research has mostly focused on frequency of strategy use, but recent findings advocate for conceptually broader approaches to self-regulation. We adopted a three-component approach to motivational regulation differentiating between frequency of strategy use, situation-specific fit, and application quality, and examined their relations with perceived regulatory effectiveness as a proximal and well-being as a distal correlate in two studies with university students ( N 1 = 234; N 2 = 890, representatively stratified quota sample). All three components contributed additively and, in part, interactively to effectiveness and well-being. Effectiveness was also related to greater well-being. The findings have implications for motivational regulation theories and well-being interventions. • We conducted two studies with undergraduates' motivational regulation. • Effective regulation comprises frequency, fit, and quality of strategy use. • They contribute additively and interactively to regulatory effectiveness. • All three components are connected to greater affective and cognitive well-being.