{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,22]],"date-time":"2026-07-22T06:06:25Z","timestamp":1784700385719,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":36,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,22]],"date-time":"2026-07-22T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1784678400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Psychol."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Academic burnout is a persistent concern in doctoral education, but the associations among doctoral students' motivation, resilience, stress, and burnout may depend on how motivational resources operate under demanding conditions. Drawing on Self-Determination Theory and Conservation of Resources theory, this study examined whether academic resilience statistically mediated the association between academic motivation and academic burnout, and whether perceived stress moderated the motivation\u2013resilience association.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A cross-sectional online survey was completed by 525 currently enrolled doctoral students in China. Academic motivation was operationalized as a nine-item composite reflecting intrinsic interest, instrumental reasons for doctoral study, and clarity of purpose\/low amotivation. Academic resilience, perceived stress, and academic burnout were assessed with context-adapted self-report measures. Regression models corresponding to PROCESS Models 4 and 7 were estimated with 5,000 bootstrap resamples while controlling for gender, training stage, discipline, and marital status.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Academic motivation was negatively associated with burnout (total effect\n                      <jats:italic>B<\/jats:italic>\n                      = \u22120.956,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      &amp;lt; 0.001) and positively associated with resilience (\n                      <jats:italic>B<\/jats:italic>\n                      = 0.951,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      &amp;lt; 0.001). Resilience was negatively associated with burnout after motivation was controlled (\n                      <jats:italic>B<\/jats:italic>\n                      = \u22120.446,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      &amp;lt; 0.001), and the indirect association was significant [effect = \u22120.424, 95% bootstrap CI (\u22120.504, \u22120.344)]. The motivation \u00d7 stress interaction was significant but opposite to the hypothesized attenuation pattern (\n                      <jats:italic>B<\/jats:italic>\n                      = 0.173,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      &amp;lt; 0.001): the positive motivation\u2013resilience association was stronger, not weaker, at higher perceived stress. The index of moderated mediation was \u22120.077, 95% bootstrap CI [\u22120.113, \u22120.043].\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Stronger academic motivation and resilience were associated with lower reported burnout, and the indirect association through resilience was statistically significant. The motivation\u2013resilience association also varied across levels of perceived stress, although the observed direction differed from the original hypothesis. Given the cross-sectional design, adapted self-report measures, and very high intercorrelations among the focal variables, these findings should be regarded as preliminary evidence of conditional associations rather than as evidence of a distinct psychological process.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1783669","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,22]],"date-time":"2026-07-22T05:52:32Z","timestamp":1784699552000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Academic motivation and burnout among Chinese doctoral students: the mediating role of academic resilience and the moderating role of perceived stress"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Geng","family":"Zhao","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Education, Henan Normal University","place":["Xinxiang, China"]},{"name":"Department of Public Order, Henan Police College","place":["Zhengzhou, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,22]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","first-page":"389","article-title":"\u201cTranslation and content analysis of oral and written materials,\u201d","volume-title":"Handbook of cross-cultural psychology","author":"Brislin","year":"1980"},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1787","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2016.01787","article-title":"The academic resilience scale (ARS-30): a new multidimensional construct measure","volume":"7","author":"Cassidy","year":"2016","journal-title":"Front. Psychol."},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"337","DOI":"10.22555\/joeed.v8i2.41","article-title":"Academic resilience: the ultimate thriving constituent toward persistence in doctoral studies","volume":"8","author":"Chamadia","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Educ. Educ. Dev."},{"key":"B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"385","DOI":"10.2307\/2136404","article-title":"A global measure of perceived stress","volume":"24","author":"Cohen","year":"1983","journal-title":"J. Health Soc. Behav."},{"key":"B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"76","DOI":"10.1002\/da.10113","article-title":"Development of a new resilience scale: the connor\u2013davidson resilience scale (CD-RISC)","volume":"18","author":"Connor","year":"2003","journal-title":"Depress. Anxiety"},{"key":"B6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"997","DOI":"10.1111\/medu.13074","article-title":"Motivation to learn: an overview of contemporary theories","volume":"50","author":"Cook","year":"2016","journal-title":"Med. Educ."},{"key":"B7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"593","DOI":"10.28945\/4867","article-title":"Interest, burnout, and drop-out intentions among finnish and danish humanities and social sciences Ph.D","volume":"16","author":"Corn\u00e9r","year":"2021","journal-title":"Int. J. Dr. Stud."},{"key":"B8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"227","DOI":"10.1207\/S15327965PLI1104_01","article-title":"The \u201cwhat\u201d and \u201cwhy\u201d of goal pursuits: human needs and the self-determination of behavior","volume":"11","author":"Deci","year":"2000","journal-title":"Psychol. Inq."},{"key":"B9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"123","DOI":"10.7334\/psicothema2023.156","article-title":"Mental health in doctoral students: individual, academic, and organizational predictors","volume":"36","author":"Estupi\u00f1\u00e1","year":"2024","journal-title":"Psicothema"},{"key":"B10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"282","DOI":"10.1038\/nbt.4089","article-title":"Evidence for a mental health crisis in graduate education","volume":"36","author":"Evans","year":"2018","journal-title":"Nat. Biotechnol."},{"key":"B11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"218","DOI":"10.1037\/0003-066X.56.3.218","article-title":"The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions","volume":"56","author":"Fredrickson","year":"2001","journal-title":"Am. Psychol."},{"key":"B12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1334","DOI":"10.1177\/0149206314527130","article-title":"Getting to the \u201cCOR\u201d: understanding the role of resources in Conservation of Resources theory","volume":"40","author":"Halbesleben","year":"2014","journal-title":"J. Manage."},{"key":"B13","volume-title":"Introduction to Mediation, Moderation, and Conditional Process Analysis: A Regression-Based Approach 2nd Edn.","author":"Hayes","year":"2018"},{"key":"B14","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"197","DOI":"10.1186\/s13643-020-01443-1","article-title":"Understanding the mental health of doctoral researchers: a mixed methods systematic review with meta-analysis and meta-synthesis","volume":"9","author":"Hazell","year":"2020","journal-title":"Syst. Rev."},{"key":"B15","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"513","DOI":"10.1037\/0003-066X.44.3.513","article-title":"Conservation of resources: a new attempt at conceptualizing stress","volume":"44","author":"Hobfoll","year":"1989","journal-title":"Am. Psychol."},{"key":"B16","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"116","DOI":"10.1111\/j.2044-8325.2010.02016.x","article-title":"Conservation of resource caravans and engaged settings","volume":"84","author":"Hobfoll","year":"2011","journal-title":"J. Occup. Organ. Psychol."},{"key":"B17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"103","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev-orgpsych-032117-104640","article-title":"Conservation of resources in the organizational context: the reality of resources and their consequences","volume":"5","author":"Hobfoll","year":"2018","journal-title":"Annu. Rev. Organ. Psychol. Organ. Behav."},{"key":"B18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"394","DOI":"10.2466\/PR0.105.2.394-408","article-title":"The factorial validity of the maslach burnout inventory\u2013student survey in China","volume":"105","author":"Hu","year":"2009","journal-title":"Psychol. Rep."},{"key":"B19","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.28945\/5137","article-title":"What does it mean to be a resilient student? An explorative study of doctoral students' resilience and coping strategies using grounded theory as the analytic lens","volume":"18","author":"Kokotsaki","year":"2023","journal-title":"Int. J. Dr. Stud."},{"key":"B20","author":"Lazarus","year":"1984"},{"key":"B21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"868","DOI":"10.1016\/j.respol.2017.02.008","article-title":"Work organization and mental health problems in PhD students","volume":"46","author":"Levecque","year":"2017","journal-title":"Res. Policy"},{"key":"B22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"218","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cedpsych.2015.03.004","article-title":"Dropout intentions in PhD studies: a comprehensive model based on interpersonal relationships and motivational resources","volume":"41","author":"Litalien","year":"2015","journal-title":"Contemp. Educ. Psychol."},{"key":"B23","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e0189543","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0189543","article-title":"Chinese version of the perceived stress scale-10: a psychometric study in Chinese university students","volume":"12","author":"Lu","year":"2017","journal-title":"PLoS ONE"},{"key":"B24","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"397","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev.psych.52.1.397","article-title":"Job burnout","volume":"52","author":"Maslach","year":"2001","journal-title":"Annu. Rev. Psychol."},{"key":"B25","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"180","DOI":"10.1108\/SGPE-06-2020-0038","article-title":"Enhancing postgraduate researcher wellbeing through support groups","volume":"12","author":"Panayidou","year":"2021","journal-title":"Stud Grad Postdr Educ"},{"key":"B26","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"879","DOI":"10.1037\/0021-9010.88.5.879","article-title":"Common method biases in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies","volume":"88","author":"Podsakoff","year":"2003","journal-title":"J. Appl. Psychol."},{"key":"B27","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"185","DOI":"10.1080\/00273170701341316","article-title":"Addressing moderated mediation hypotheses: theory, methods, and prescriptions","volume":"42","author":"Preacher","year":"2007","journal-title":"Multivariate Behav. Res."},{"key":"B28","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"101860","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cedpsych.2020.101860","article-title":"Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation from a self-determination theory perspective: definitions, theory, practices, and future directions","volume":"61","author":"Ryan","year":"2020","journal-title":"Contemp. Educ. Psychol."},{"key":"B29","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"464","DOI":"10.1177\/0022022102033005003","article-title":"Burnout and engagement in university students: a cross-national study","volume":"33","author":"Schaufeli","year":"2002","journal-title":"J. Cross Cult. Psychol."},{"key":"B30","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"361","DOI":"10.28945\/4113","article-title":"The PhD experience: a review of the factors influencing doctoral students' completion, achievement, and wellbeing","volume":"13","author":"Sverdlik","year":"2018","journal-title":"Int. J. Dr. Stud."},{"key":"B31","first-page":"5373","article-title":"The protective role of motivation and resilience on the effect of student fear of failure on school burnout","volume":"17","author":"Trigueros","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health"},{"key":"B32","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1003","DOI":"10.1177\/0013164492052004025","article-title":"The Academic Motivation Scale: A measure of intrinsic, extrinsic, and amotivation in education","volume":"52","author":"Vallerand","year":"1992","journal-title":"Educ. Psychol. Meas."},{"key":"B33","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"671","DOI":"10.1037\/a0015083","article-title":"Motivational profiles from a self-determination perspective: the quality of motivation matters","volume":"101","author":"Vansteenkiste","year":"2009","journal-title":"J. Educ. Psychol."},{"key":"B34","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"9503","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph19159503","article-title":"Occupational stress in Chinese higher education institutions: a case study of doctoral supervisors","volume":"19","author":"Wang","year":"2022","journal-title":"Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health"},{"key":"B35","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1598722","DOI":"10.1080\/17482631.2019.1598722","article-title":"Towards the contributing factors for stress confronting Chinese PhD students","volume":"14","author":"Wang","year":"2019","journal-title":"Int. J. Qual. Stud. Health Wellbeing"},{"key":"B36","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"486","DOI":"10.2224\/sbp.2007.35.1.19","article-title":"Factor analysis and psychometric evaluation of the connor\u2013davidson resilience scale (CD-RISC) with Chinese people","volume":"15","author":"Yu","year":"2007","journal-title":"Chin. J. Clin. Psychol."}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Psychology"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1783669\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,22]],"date-time":"2026-07-22T05:52:33Z","timestamp":1784699553000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1783669\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,22]]},"references-count":36,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1783669"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1783669","relation":{},"ISSN":["1664-1078"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1664-1078","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,22]]},"article-number":"1783669"}}