Recently, the lack of physical activity and increasing rates of childhood obesity have received a great deal of attention in the United States. One way to combat inactivity in children is to utilize physical education programs as a means to promote active lifestyles. There is not, however, a consensus concerning how physical education programs can achieve the goal of increasing children’s physical activity patterns. The purpose of this review is to examine motivational constructs that can provide a theoretical framework to identify strategies that can be used in physical education classes to promote engagement in physical activity. Self-determination theory is offered as a framework that has the potential to integrate these motivational constructs and provide a more complete understanding of how practitioners can structure learning environments to foster motivation and engagement in activity. Suggestions are made for implementing the research into practice, as well as future research directions.
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Self-Determination in Physical Education: Designing Class Environments to Promote Active Lifestyles
Charity L. Bryan and Melinda A. Solmon
Assessing Youth Sport Burnout: A Self-Determination and Identity Development Perspective
Brandonn S. Harris and Jack C. Watson II
The utility of Deci and Ryan’s self-determination theory (1985) and Coakley’s unidimensional identity model (1992) has yet to be adequately assessed in understanding youth athlete burnout. This may be due to a lack of measures available to assess these relevant constructs in a youth athlete sample. Having such inventories would likely enhance practitioners’ ability to identify, prevent, and treat this phenomenon more effectively in young children. Therefore, the current study assessed the psychometric properties for modified burnout, motivation, and athletic identity inventories for a youth athlete sample. Participants included 88 youth swimmers ranging in age from 7 to 12 years, who completed measures assessing burnout, motivation, and athletic identity. Internal consistencies and exploratory factor analyses provided preliminary psychometric support for the use and continued evaluation of these revised measures with young athletes.
Physical Education Lessons and Physical Activity Intentions Within Spanish Secondary Schools: A Self-Determination Perspective
David Sanchez-Oliva, Pedro Antonio Sanchez-Miguel, Francisco Miguel Leo, Florence-Emilie Kinnafick, and Tomás García-Calvo
Grounded in Self-Determination Theory, the purpose of this study was to analyze how motivational processes within Physical Education classes can predict intention to participate in sport or physical activity outside of the school curriculum. Participants included 1,692 Spanish students aged 12–16 years (M = 13.34; SD = .76) who participated in Physical Education lessons at 32 secondary schools. Structural equation modeling was used for analysis, and showed that perception of basic psychological need (BPN) support from teachers predicted autonomous and controlled motivation through BPN satisfaction. Furthermore, autonomous motivation positively predicted enjoyment, perceived importance of Physical Education, and intention to participate in sport or physical activity outside of school. Controlled motivation negatively predicted enjoyment, and amotivation positively predicted boredom. Finally, enjoyment and perceived importance of Physical Education positively predicted intention to participate in sport or physical activity outside of what was required in school. Results emphasize the importance of school based Physical Education to promote sport and physical activity participation among adolescents.
High Resolution Determination of Body Segment Inertial Parameters and Their Variation Due to Soft Tissue Motion
Matthew T.G. Pain and John H. Challis
This study had two purposes: to evaluate a new method for measuring segmental dimensions for determining body segment inertial parameters (BSIP), and to evaluate the changes in mass distribution within a limb as a consequence of muscular contraction. BSIP were calculated by obtaining surface data points of the body under investigation using a sonic digitizer, interpolating them into a regular grid, and then using Green’s theorem which relates surface to volume integrals. Four skilled operators measured a test object; the error was approximately 2.5% and repeatability was 1.4% (coefficient of variation) in the determination of BSIP. Six operators took repeat measures on human lower legs; coefficients of variation were typically around 5%, and 3% for the more skilled operators. Location of the center of mass of the lower leg was found to move up 1.7 cm proximally when the triceps surae muscles went from a relaxed state to causing plantar flexion. The force during an impact associated with such motion of the soft tissue of the lower leg was estimated to be up to 300 N. In summary, a new repeatable and accurate method for determining BSIP has been developed, and has been used to evaluate body segment mass redistribution due to muscular contraction.
African American Women’s Self-Determination across the Stages of Change for Exercise
Joan B. Landry and Melinda A. Solmon
Physical inactivity is a major health risk factor in our society, and older women and minority populations are especially at risk in this regard. Many earlier studies that have addressed physical inactivity, however, focused primarily on European-American males. Although recent research has begun to include more diverse populations, there continues to be a need for further study of specific at-risk populations. This study examined self-determination in the regulation of exercise behavior in a sample of 105 African American women. They completed the Stages of Exercise Scale and the Behavior Regulation Exercise Questionnaire. Consistent with theoretical predictions, individuals who had been active over a period of time were more self-determined in their behavior regulation. Exercising to achieve an outcome emerged as the most influential factor in discriminating active participants from inactive ones. This study supports the use of this theoretical approach in gaining an understanding of the types of motivation most likely to contribute to the initiation and maintenance of exercise behavior change in African American women.
Testing the Effects of a Self-Determination Theory-Based Intervention with Youth Gaelic Football Coaches on Athlete Motivation and Burnout
Edel Langan, John Toner, Catherine Blake, and Chris Lonsdale
We conducted a cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT) to test the effects of a self-determination theory-based intervention on athlete motivation and burnout. In addition, we examined the feasibility and acceptability of the intervention. We randomly assigned youth Gaelic football coaches (N = 6) and their teams to an experimental or a delayed treatment control group (n = 3 each group). We employed linear mixed modeling to analyze changes in player motivation and burnout as a result of their coach participating in a 12-week SDT-based intervention. In addition, we conducted a fidelity assessment to examine whether the intervention was implemented as planned. The findings demonstrated the feasibility and acceptability of implementing a self-determination theory-based intervention in the coaching domain. In addition, this study demonstrated favorable trends in the quality of player motivation and burnout symptoms as a result of an SDT-based intervention.
Erratum. Predicting Accelerometer-Assessed Estimates of Adolescent’s Multidimensional Physical Activity: A Self-Determination Theory Approach
Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology
TO OUR READERS: An error appeared in the ahead-of-print version of the following article: Emm-Collison, L.G., Standage, M., Gillison, F.B., & Curran, T. Predicting accelerometer-assessed estimates of adolescents’ multidimensional physical activity: A self-determination theory approach. Journal of
Motivational Factors in Young Spanish Athletes: A Qualitative Focus Drawing From Self-Determination Theory and Achievement Goal Perspectives
Bartolomé J. Almagro, Pedro Sáenz-López, Juan A. Moreno-Murcia, and Chris Spray
This study qualitatively examined how athletes perceive their coach’s support for autonomy, as well as athletes’ motivation, satisfaction of basic psychological needs, and the 2 × 2 achievement goal framework of young Spanish athletes. Fifteen Spanish athletes (six females and nine males) between 13 and 16 years of age were interviewed from various sporting contexts. Content analysis of the interviews revealed: the coexistence of various types of motivation for the practice of these sports by the athletes that were interviewed; the presence of integrated regulation among some of these young athletes; the importance of autonomy support and the satisfaction of basic psychological needs for motivation and athletic commitment. The results are discussed on the basis of self-determination and achievement goal theory. Strategies are proposed for improving motivation and adherence to athletic practice in young athletes.
Does Exercise Motivation Predict Engagement in Objectively Assessed Bouts of Moderate-Intensity Exercise?: A Self-Determination Theory Perspective
Martyn Standage, Simon J. Sebire, and Tom Loney
This study examined the utility of motivation as advanced by self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000) in predicting objectively assessed bouts of moderate-intensity exercise behavior. Participants provided data pertaining to their exercise motivation. One week later, participants wore a combined accelerometer and heart rate monitor (Actiheart; Cambridge Neurotechnology Ltd) and 24-hr energy expenditure was estimated for 7 days. After controlling for gender and a combined marker of BMI and waist circumference, results showed autonomous motivation to positively predict moderate-intensity exercise bouts of ≥10 min, ≥20 min, and an accumulation needed to meet public health recommendations for moderate-intensity activity (i.e., ACSM/AHA guidelines). The present findings add bouts of objectively assessed exercise behavior to the growing body of literature that documents the adaptive consequences of engaging in exercise for autonomous reasons. Implications for practice and future work are discussed.
A Three-Wave Longitudinal Test of Self-Determination Theory’s Mediation Model of Engagement and Disaffection in Youth Sport
Thomas Curran, Andrew P. Hill, Nikos Ntoumanis, Howard K. Hall, and Gareth E. Jowett
Research adopting self-determination theory (SDT) supports a mediation model whereby coach motivational styles (autonomy support and interpersonal control) predict athletes’ engagement and disaffection in youth sport via the satisfaction and frustration of psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness). Our study extends this research by examining SDT’s mediation model longitudinally with three waves of data. Two hundred fifty-two youth sports participants (M age = 12.98; SD = 1.84; range = 11–17; female n = 67) completed measures of study variables at the start, middle, and end of a competitive soccer season. Cross-lagged path analyses revealed that associations between the two coach motivational styles and athletes’ engagement were mediated by psychological need satisfaction. Furthermore, a positive reciprocal association between psychological need satisfaction and engagement emerged over time. This study therefore supports the temporal assumptions underpinning SDT’s mediation model but, importantly, evidences a mutually reinforcing interplay between athletes’ psychological needs and their engaged behavior.
