# Fueling AI literacy through school support: unveiling the mediating role of basic psychological need satisfaction in Chinese university English teachers

## TL;DR

This study shows how school support helps Chinese university English teachers develop AI literacy by satisfying their basic psychological needs.

## Contribution

The study introduces a validated model linking school support, psychological need satisfaction, and AI literacy in higher education.

## Key findings

- School support enhances teachers' basic psychological need satisfaction, which in turn boosts AI literacy.
- Institutional strategies addressing autonomy, competence, and relatedness promote AI literacy development.
- Quantitative and qualitative methods confirmed the mediating role of psychological needs in AI literacy.

## Abstract

Although the growing importance of AI integration in education is widely acknowledged, limited empirical research has explored how school support addressing teachers’ basic psychological needs fosters AI literacy, especially in Chinese higher education. Grounded in Self-Determination Theory (SDT), this study investigated how school support influences the development of AI literacy among university English teachers in China, focusing on the roles of autonomy, competence, and relatedness. In this study, AI literacy involves understanding, application, evaluation, and ethical reflection on AI technology—key factors in educational technology integration. Through survey data from 412 teachers and semi-structured interviews with 23 teachers, the study developed and validated a model linking school support, basic psychological need satisfaction (BPNS), and AI literacy. Quantitative analysis indicated that school support enhances teachers’ BPNS, which in turn mediates the impact of school support on AI literacy. Qualitative findings identified several key institutional strategies that address teachers’ autonomy, competence, and relatedness, promoting AI literacy development. Together, these findings highlight the pivotal role of school support and teachers’ BPNS in fostering AI literacy, providing insights for educational policy and teacher professional development.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40359-025-03949-6.