The aim of this study was to investigate the mediating role of academic motivation in self-directed learning and academic vitality. The research method was descriptive-correlational (path analysis of structural equations). The statistical population included all students of Shahid Madani University of Azerbaijan in the academic year 2019-2020, whose number was 8000, of which 244 students (172 girls and 72 boys) were selected as a sample by multi-stage cluster sampling were examined. In the present study, self-directed learning questionnaires of Fisher et al. (2001), academic motivation of Leper et al. (2005) and academic vitality of Hossein Chari and Dehghanizadeh (2012) were used as data collection tools. Structural equation method and Emos software were used to analyze the data. The results of path analysis showed that in the proposed model, the assumed model fits with the research data. The direct effect of self-directed learning on academic motivation and the direct effect of academic motivation on academic vitality were both significant at the level (P <0.01). Also, the indirect effect of self-directed learning on academic vitality (P <0.05) was significant. Self-directed learning explains 0.26 percent of motivation changes and 0.16 percent of vitality variance. Therefore, paying attention to self-directed learning has an important role in students' academic motivation and academic vitality.
