This study investigates the relationship between teachers' motivating styles (autonomy-supportive and controlling), college students' self-regulated learning (SRL) ability, and their agentic engagement in online learning. Data from 681 Chinese college students revealed positive correlations between autonomy-supportive teaching and agentic engagement, and between SRL ability and agentic engagement. Autonomy-supportive teaching positively correlated with SRL ability, while controlling teaching negatively correlated with it. SRL ability partially mediated the positive relationship between autonomy-supportive teaching and agentic engagement, and suppressed the unexpected positive relationship between controlling teaching and agentic engagement. The findings suggest that teachers should adapt their motivating styles to students' characteristics and that fostering SRL ability is crucial for enhancing agentic engagement in online learning.

Suqi Li, Kexue Xu, Jun Huang