Research on Enhancing English Autonomous Reading Ability of Students in Application-Oriented Universities from the Perspective of Self-Decision Theory

随着经济全球化的发展和世界各地交流的不断加深，英语作为国际通用语言，对应用型高校培养具有全球视野的高素质技术技能人才至关重要。英语阅读能力作为英语听说读写译里面重要的部分，不仅关乎学生的语言应用水平，更直接影响其跨文化沟通能力、行业信息获取能力及终身学习能力的发展。然而，当前应用型高校的英语教学仍面临“重应试、轻应用”“重课堂输入、轻自主拓展”等问题，难以满足社会对复合型人才的英语能力需求。本研究基于自我决定理论和自主学习理论，以“需求–动机–能力”为分析框架，以东莞L大学和佛山D大学为例，通过问卷调查和深度访谈，探究应用型高校学生英语自主阅读的行为特征、动机类型及障碍因素。基于此，本研究提出“三维驱动”提升路径：需求驱动、动机驱动和能力驱动，为提升应用型高校学生英语自主阅读能力提供对策建议。Against the backdrop of economic globalization and deepening international exchanges, English, as a global lingua franca, plays a pivotal role in cultivating high-caliber technical and skilled professionals with a global perspective in application-oriented universities. English reading proficiency, a core component of listening, speaking, reading, writing, and translation skills, not only reflects students’ linguistic competence but also directly influences their development of cross-cultural communication skills, industry information acquisition capabilities, and lifelong learning aptitudes. However, current English teaching in application-oriented universities continues to grapple with challenges such as “overemphasis on exam-oriented instruction over practical application” and “excessive focus on classroom input at the expense of autonomous learning expansion,” failing to adequately meet societal demands for compound talents’ English proficiency. Guided by Self-Decision Theory (SDT) and Autonomous Learning Theory, this study adopts a “Demand-Motivation-Capability” (DMC) analytical framework. Taking Dongguan L University and Foshan D University as cases study, it employs quantitative surveys and qualitative in-depth interviews to investigate the behavioral patterns, motivational types, and barriers to autonomous English reading among students in application-oriented universities. Building on these findings, the study proposes a “Three-Dimensional Driving” (3D) enhancement pathway—Demand-Driven, Motivation-Driven, and Capability-Driven—offering strategic recommendations for improving students’ autonomous English reading abilities in application-oriented institutions.