“Be proud of me”: scholastic motivation of high-achieving students with migration backgrounds

Declining school performance has fueled public debate in Sweden, with a particular focus on students with migration backgrounds, who are often perceived as underachievers in the Swedish educational system. Using the self-determination theory as a framework, this study shifts the spotlight onto high-achieving students with migration backgrounds. The aim was to explore how they describe and make sense of their academic motivation. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 36 students aged 15-18 years and analyzed using thematic analysis. The main theme in the results was "familial collectivist motivation", a motivation derived from a sense of mutual obligation to their parents and their parents' sacrifices to provide better life conditions through immigration. This academic motivation reflected a "generational effort continuity" while also embodying a "burden of gratitude." It could be understood as a blend of external, introjected, and autonomous forms of regulation, revolving around the desire to make their parents proud.