Contribution of Basic Psychological Needs to Students' Well-Being Through Positive and Negative Affect

Students' well-being is a critical concern due to its significant implications for university adjustment and long-term outcomes. Recurrent results of low well-being levels highlight the need for comprehensive research to uncover its psychological mechanisms. This study examines the relationship between basic psychological needs fulfillment and affective states in explaining subjective well-being, grounded in a novel framework: the macro-theory of positive functioning. A sample of 1552 French students (1209 women) aged 18 to 25 completed an online questionnaire assessing well-being, positive and negative affect, and satisfaction/frustration related to the needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Path analyses supported the theoretical hypotheses: satisfaction of the three basic psychological needs positively predicted well-being via positive affect, while their frustration did so through negative affect. Only satisfaction and frustration of autonomy exhibited direct paths to well-being. Gender comparisons revealed that these pathways differed between men and women, a finding reinforced by strict measurement invariance. The discussion explores the integration of positive functioning and self-determination theory, emphasizing their interconnectedness and outlines practical implications for enhancing students' well-being.