Motivation of students to engage in the activities of student governments

The article deals with the motivation of students actively involved in the work of student governments to work for these organizations.Understanding these motivations is crucial to effectively support and mobilize members of the local government to take action in line with the goals of the organization and their own aspirations.Empirical investigations also focus on the assessment of whether work in the student government satisfies the three, indicated by Deci and Ryan, basic for the development of the highest form of motivation -intrinsic motivation, the need for relationships, competence and autonomy.Design/methodology/approach: Qualitative research based on individual interviews was conducted among people who had experience of being active members of student governments.Findings: The analysis of the obtained empirical material emphasizes the importance of intrinsic motivation, both in the context of students' decision to join the student government and in the context of continuing work for the benefit of this organization.The results also indicate that activity in the local government creates the opportunity to meet the needs: relationships, competences and autonomy.Research limitations/implications: The study did not consider contextual variables, such as organizational culture or competencies of people holding managerial positions in local governments, their leadership style, as well as the personality traits of the respondents.All these variables can be important for motivation to work in local governments.To confirm the results obtained, it would be worthwhile to conduct research in a quantitative model. Practical implications:The research presented in the article can contribute to a more effective design of the work of student governments in a way that is conducive to the development of the highest form of motivation and commitment.In the light of the results obtained, it seems crucial to organize the activities of the local government in such a way that they focus on supporting the development of internal motivation by comprehensively taking care of the satisfaction of three needs important for its development: relationships, competences and autonomy.Originality/value: The results indicate intrinsic motivation that is important for building engagement in the work of student organizations.However, the implementation of the SDT theory requires organizational support, which, apart from the spontaneous actions of the members of local governments themselves, would create an opportunity to satisfy the needs that are important for the theory in question: the relationship of competence and autonomy.