Self-determination theory suggest that wellbeing is dependent upon the fulfilment of three fundamental psychological needs - autonomy, competence and relatedness. An autonomy supportive interaction style such as rapport-based communication is an essential part of high quality care and assessing the quality of such provision is possible through the use of The Autonomy Support Questionnaire (ASQ).

Derived from the “Friendship Autonomy Support Questionnaire (FASQ)” developed by Deci, La Guardia, Moller, Scheiner, & Ryan, 2006, the FASQ was used to assess an individual’s perception of the degree to which a close friend is generally autonomy supportive within the relationship.

I am interested in whether this assessment can be used to make informed observations of care practitioners and environments. Carers have different styles of relating to the person they support and the purpose of this assessment is to determine the degree to which a carer supports a person’s need for autonomy, which is essential for wellbeing and growth.are fulfilling the autonomy needs of the person they support. I suggest that the questions below can be used to assess a person’s relationship with their Carer (teacher, teaching assistant, carer, support worker, family member, clinician). The method is to observe interactions between the carer and the person they support and then answer the 10 statements below using following 7-point scale

The carer provides the person with choices and options.
The carer is very understanding of the person.
My carer conveys confidence in the person's abilities.
The carer accepts the person.
The carer trusts the person.
The carer listens to the person’s thoughts and ideas.
The carer encourages the person to express their true emotions.
The carer cares values the personhood of the person they support.
The carer tries to understand how the person see things.
The person seems to be able to share their feelings with the carer.