‘Suffering While Enjoying’: Exploring Shanghai Teachers’ Motivation for Formal Professional Development through Self-Determination Theory

Under conditions featuring high levels of accountability, where teachers are constantly evaluated according to top-down criteria, professional development (PD) has become compulsory. External mandates are increasingly defining both the content and expected outcomes of PD. To understand how these requirements influence teachers’ PD experiences and perceptions, this study employed self-determination theory as an analytical framework to investigate the motivations of 36 teachers in Shanghai, China, to participate in formal PD. Although intrinsic motivation is the ideal prototype of human motivation, it is rare in workplaces. The majority of the teachers participated in formal PD for multiple reasons. As a result of the participation, they broadened their subject knowledge and teaching skills, obtained promotions and higher levels of professional status and exhibited self-accomplishment. The value and meaning of top-down requirements were then internalised, which could trigger autonomous motives for PD. While the teachers experienced increased work pressure due to PD, they enjoyed their professional growth and enhanced status. Policymakers and school leaders should acknowledge teachers’ diverse concerns, particularly when intrinsic motivation is low, thus leaving little room for initial policy manipulation.