Determinants of Perceived Well-being in Friendship Relationships during Emerging Adulthood: Testing a Structural Model Based on Self-Determination Theory

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the critical determinants of perceived well-being in friendship relationships during emerging adulthood. Methodology: A sample of 726 undergraduate students at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad was selected during the Fall semester of 2021-2022 through the convenience sampling method.They completed the Interpersonal Behaviors Questionnaire (IBQ; Rocchi et al., 2017), the Compassionate and Self-image Goals Scale (CSIGS; Crocker Canevello, 2008), the Basic Need Satisfaction in Relationships Scale (BNS-RS; La Guardia et al., 2000), the Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire (INQ-10; Bryan., 2011), the Friendship Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SRQ-F; Ryan Connell, 1989), Interpersonal Behaviors Questionnaire-Self (IBQ-self; Rocchi et al., 2017), the State Level Subjective Vitality Scale (SVS-SL; Ryan Frederick, 1997), the Perceived Relationship Quality Component (PRQC; Fletcher et al., 2000), and the The Basic Empathy Scale (BES; Jolliffe Farrington, 2006). Data analysis was conducted using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling. All statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS.25, AMOS.24, and SmartPLS 3.3.3. Findings: The perceived support of basic psychological needs by friends (β=.204), the perceived thwarting of basic psychological needs by friends (β=-.147), the goal in friendship relationships (β=.234), the satisfied basic psychological needs (β=.124), the frustrated psychological needs (β=-.116), and the friendship self-regulation (β= .023) had significant indirect effects on perceived well-being in friendship relationships (p 0.05). Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that self-determination theory provides a coherent framework for explaining perceived well-being in friendships.