The fluidity, variety and high speed of change of the modern world breed uncertainty and ambiguity.
This ambiguity is a consequence of freedom of choice, and the many alternatives with which a
person grapples. Ambiguity is both the condition and the subject matter of research activity. The
aim of the present study was to clarify the associations of tolerance for ambiguity with the type
of motivation (internal or external) for various types of academic activity carried out by doctoral
students in a university. Doctoral students (N = 227) from natural science departments at Kazan
University (Russia) identified their level of ambiguity tolerance (high and low). Results showed a
positive link between ambiguity tolerance and external motivation for various forms of universityrelated
activity and an inverse link with internal motivation. Doctoral students with a lower level of
ambiguity tolerance showed a higher level of internal motivation for their scholarly activities, that
is, avoidance of uncertainty served as a source of internal motivation for research-related activities.
For those with high ambiguity tolerance, more external stimuli (reward, constraint) were needed to
motivate the person for research. Moreover, at high levels of ambiguity tolerance the direction of
the associations changed and becomes a positive link between internal motivation and ambiguity
tolerance. The results should be taken into account in the organization of higher education.