Goal Motives and Well-Being in Student-Athletes: A Person-Centered Approach

in Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology

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Laura C. Healy Nottingham Trent University

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Nikos Ntoumanis Curtin University

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Calum A. Arthur UK Sport

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DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1123/jsep.2019-0125
Keywords:
dual career; goal pursuit; latent profile analysis; multiple goals; self-concordance
First Published Online:
18 Nov 2020
In Print:
Volume 42: Issue 6
Page Range:
433–442
Restricted access

Using a person-centered approach, the aim of this study was to examine how student-athletes’ motives for multiple-goal pursuit relate to indices of well- and ill-being. Student-athletes (N = 362) from British universities identified the most important sporting and academic goals that they were pursuing over the academic year. The participants rated their extrinsic, introjected, identified, and intrinsic goal motives for each goal and completed measures of well- and ill-being. Latent profile analysis revealed six distinct profiles of goal motives, with variations in both the strength of motives and the motivational quality. Follow-up analyses revealed between-profile differences for well- and ill-being; students with more optimal goal motive profiles reported higher and lower well- and ill-being, respectively, than those with less optimal goal motives. To experience well-being benefits when pursuing multiple goals, student-athletes should strive for their academic and sporting goals with high autonomous and low controlled goal motives.

Healy is with the Sport, Health and Performance Enhancement (SHAPE) Research Group, Dept. of Sport Science, School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, United Kingdom. Ntoumanis is with the Physical Activity and Well-Being Research Group, School of Psychology, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia. Arthur is with UK Sport, London, United Kingdom.

Healy (laura.healy@ntu.ac.uk) is corresponding author.
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