Relationships among goal orientations, motivational climate and flow in adolescent athletes: differences by gender

"Male athletes play well to feel good, and female athletes feel good to play well": Attitudes, beliefs, and practices pertaining to perceived sex-related differences in communication and interpersonal approach of strength and conditioning coaches in international women's rugby union

Effective communication and rapport building with athletes are key tenets of coaching. As the majority of empirical evidence to date has adopted an androcentric view of strength and conditioning, a potential knowledge gap exists regarding sex-related differences in physical preparation and coaching approaches. Therefore, this study explored the attitudes, beliefs and practices of strength and conditioning coaches (n = 8; M/F, 6/2) in elite level (international) women's rugby union using semi-structured interviews (mean ±standard deviation duration 59 ± 15 min). The interviews explored differences in coaching practices for elite female rugby players compared to males, with a specific focus on the interpersonal aspects of the athlete-coach relationship. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to generate a rich qualitative dataset. The analysis resulted in the identification of higher order themes: athlete engagement, and interpersonal approach. The coaches in this study consistently perceived important differences between male and female players in factors related to engagement and interpersonal approach. Coaches adopted differing coaching practices for male and female athletes. This study provides important contextual evidence for the understanding of differences in the interpersonal relationships of female rugby players compared to male athletes from the perspective of elite-level strength coaches.

Beyond physical ability—predicting women’s football performance from psychological factors

Introduction

Even though there is a clear agreement among researchers that psychological factors are a vital part of a football player’s performance, the topic has not been investigated thoroughly. The present study aimed to examine the predictive value of psychological factors on female football players’ match performance.

Methods

A sample of 156 players from the top two leagues in Norway completed the following questionnaires: Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire 2 (PMCSQ-2), Big Five Inventory (BFI-20), Self-Regulated Learning questionnaire, and Grit-S and Sport Mental Toughness Questionnaire (SMTQ). Match performance data were collected from the online database of the performance analysis company InStat.

Results

Results from a linear mixed model analysis showed that perceived mastery climate and extraversion were the only significant predictors of performance. Other relevant indicators, such as mental toughness, self-regulated learning, and grit, did not predict performance.

Discussion

These findings suggest that the team climate facilitated by coaches may be more important for predicting match performance than individual psychological factors.

Sport Motivation from the Perspective of Health, Institutional Embeddedness and Academic Persistence among Higher Educational Students

Regular physical activity from an early age is an important part of a healthy life because if we incorporate exercise early into our lifestyle, we are more likely to maintain our commitment to sport into adulthood and even throughout our lives. In our research, we used the PERSIST 2019 database, which contains data from students at higher education institutions in Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, Ukraine, and Serbia. We used factor analysis to isolate four sports motivation factors (intrinsic, introjected, extrinsic, and amotivation). Factors influencing the different types were measured using linear regression analysis, involving the variables in four models. The results show that the effects of the sociodemographic variables are significant for gender, country, and mother’s job, especially in terms of intrinsic, introjected, and extrinsic motivation. The role of coping is salient for health awareness factors, with a positive effect on intrinsic motivation and a negative effect on the other types. The impacts of quality of education and support are typically negative, while the positive effect of satisfaction with infrastructure is noteworthy. The effect of persistence in sport on intrinsic and introjected motivation is positive. Frequency of training increases intrinsic motivation, while practical sport embeddedness generates extrinsic motivation. In terms of relationships, a mainly teacher-oriented network within the institution typically has a negative effect on intrinsic motivation, while peer relationships outside the institution typically increase intrinsic and extrinsic sport motivation. Academic persistence has a positive effect on intrinsic motivation and a negative effect on introjected motivation. Our research highlights the complexity of factors influencing sport motivation and the role of coping, which typically remains strong when relationship-related variables are included. In addition, we must emphasise the dominant role of relationship network patterns, which may even reduce commitment to sport.

A Scoping Review of Flow Research

Flow is a gratifying state of deep involvement and absorption that individuals report when facing a challenging activity and they perceive adequate abilities to cope with it (EFRN, 2014). The flow concept was introduced by Csikszentmihalyi in 1975, and interest in flow research is growing. However, to our best knowledge, no scoping review exists that takes a systematic look at studies on flow which were published between the years 2000 and 2016. Overall, 252 studies have been included in this review. Our review (1) provides a framework to cluster flow research, (2) gives a systematic overview about existing studies and their findings, and (3) provides an overview about implications for future research. The provided framework consists of three levels of flow research. In the first “Individual” level are the categories for personality, motivation, physiology, emotion, cognition, and behavior. The second “Contextual” level contains the categories for contextual and interindividual factors and the third “Cultural” level contains cultural factors that relate to flow. Using our framework, we systematically present the findings for each category. While flow research has made progress in understanding flow, in the future, more experimental and longitudinal studies are needed to gain deeper insights into the causal structure of flow and its antecedents and consequences.

Positive and negative spontaneous self-talk and performance in gymnastics: The role of contextual, personal and situational factors

The purpose of this study was to analyse whether contextual (perception of motivational climate and positive and negative spontaneous self-talk in sports), personal (positivity) and situational variables (positive and negative spontaneous self-talk employed in competition and precompetitive anxiety) predict performance in a competition of ensembles of rhythmic gymnastics. 258 female gymnasts between ages14 and 20 (M = 15.24, SD = 1.46) participated in the study, completing pre- and post-competition measures. The results of the path-analysis showed that both the task-involving climate and positivity predicted positive self-talk in sport. This predicted self-confidence which, in turn, positively predicted positive situational self-talk in competition. For its part, the perception of an ego-involving climate positively predicted the use of both negative and positive self-talk in sport. Negative self-talk in sports predicted negative situational self-talk in competition and somatic and cognitive anxiety. In turn, cognitive anxiety positively predicted negative situational self-talk. Finally, performance was positively predicted by positive situational self-talk and negatively by negative situational self-talk. These results explain the functioning of spontaneous self-talk at different levels of generality and its relationship with sports performance.

Predictive Strength of Contextual and Personal Variables in Soccer Players' Goal Orientations

Psychological variables, such as perceived motivational climate, goal orientation, self-determined motivation, and personality, have an influence on sports success performance. This study aimed to examine the relationships among a set of psychological variables (perceived motivational climate, goal orientation, self-determined motivation, and personality) in male and female footballers. Participants were 167 footballers (106 male, 61 female), aged 12 to 26, competing with clubs in the Spanish Football League. They all took four questionnaires aimed at evaluating motivational climate, goal orientations, self-determined motivation, and personality. The analyses of correlation and regression showed statistically significant relations among the variables. Neuroticism and psychoticism negatively relate to mastery motivational climate, the best predictor of self-determined motivation. It was concluded that contextual variables carry more weight in predicting goal orientations and self-determined motivation among participant footballers.

Perfectionism, Self-Esteem, and the Will to Win Among Adolescent Athletes: The Effects of the Level of Achievements and Gender

This study examined the relationships between perfectionism, self-esteem, and the will to win and the effects of gender and the level of achievement on these variables. A total of 318 adolescents in the age group of 12–19 years (M = 16.10 ± 1.01) completed the self-esteem questionnaire, the will-to-win questionnaire, and the perfectionism inventory. Interstate level (ISL) athletes obtained higher scores than interdistrict level (IDL) athletes on the following variables: self-esteem, the will to win, and four of the eight dimensions of perfectionism (i.e., concern over mistakes, the need for approval, organization, and planfulness). Further, male athletes obtained higher self-esteem and perfectionism (i.e., the need for approval and rumination) scores than female athletes. Self-esteem, the will to win, and the dimensions of perfectionism were positively and significantly interrelated. However, one dimension, namely, perceived parental pressure, was unrelated to any factor except striving for excellence. Further, the will to win, concern over mistakes, high standard for others, and planfulness were unrelated to striving for excellence. The results of the discriminant analysis revealed that there was no significant difference between ISL and IDL athletes (variance explained = 9.480%). Finally, using path analysis showed that Model 3 (perfectionism self-esteem will-to-win) has provided good model fit such as Bentler's comparative fit index (CFI) (0.987), Tucker-Lewis index (TLI) (0.876), normed fit index (NFI) (0.973), and the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) (0.097).

Differentiating Flow Experiences in Physical Versus Mental Activities: A Sequential Explanatory Study

Flow is a desirable state of consciousness and absorption in an optimally challenging activity. Prior research has investigated individual differences in flow. The present study investigates flow by contrasting physical versus mental activities, using a mixed-methods, sequential explanatory design. The sample from the quantitative phase included 205 undergraduate university students assessed on measures of personality, difficulties in emotion regulation, and flow. The big-five traits intellect and conscientiousness, as well as the emotion regulation subscale “lack of emotional clarity” predicted flow during mental activities, but unexpectedly no variables significantly predicted physical flow activities. The second phase used semi-structured interviews with 10 participants. Analyses of the interviews helped further explain the statistical findings, revealing four main themes: role of stress, source of guilt, presence of others, and satisfaction and fulfillment. We conclude that flow is especially relevant in physical activities which have advantages over mental activities in opportunities to experience flow.

Levels of Physical Activity Are Associated With the Motivational Climate and Resilience in University Students of Physical Education From Andalucía: An Explanatory Model

Background

The practice of Physical Activity (PA) is a key factor for the improvement of physical and mental health, making the study of the motivational processes that take part in the development of active lifestyles of interest.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted on 775 university students of Physical Education (PE) from Spain. This research aims to develop an explanatory model for the relationships between motivational climate and resilience according to the level of PA, using structural equations analysis. The main instrument used were the Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport (PMCSQ-2) and the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC).

Results

A negative relationship was observed between task-oriented climate (TC) and ego-oriented climate, which acquired greater correlation strength in the respondents who did less PA. Likewise, a positive relationship was obtained between TC and resilience, which was higher in participants who did more than 3 h of weekly PA. Finally, it was observed that resilience was highly correlated with personal competence, tenacity and control capacity in the most active respondents.

Conclusion

The importance of promoting task-oriented motivational climates in PA is highlighted, since this could develop a better resilience capacity in university students and will favor the tolerance to adversity and the positive acceptance of changes.

What About the Girls? Exploring the Gender Data Gap in Talent Development

Although there is an extensive literature about talent development, the lack of data pertaining to females is problematic. Indeed, the gender data gap can be seen in practically all domains including sport and exercise medicine. Evidence-based practice is the systematic reviewing of the best evidence in order to make informed choices about practice. Unfortunately, it may be that the data collected in sport is typically about male experiences, and not female; a rather unfortunate omission given that approximately half of the population is made up of women. When female athletes are underrepresented in research there are issues when making inferences about data collected in male dominated research domains to inform practice and policy for female athletes. In parallel, female sport participation is continually increasing worldwide. Recognizing the importance of evidence-based practice in driving policy and practice, and reflecting the gender data gap that is a consistent feature of (almost) all other domains, we were interested in examining whether a gender data gap exists in talent development research. The results suggest that a gender data gap exists in talent development research across all topics. Youth athlete development pathways may be failing to recognize the development requirements of females, particularly where female sports may be borrowing systems that are perceived to work for their male counterparts. In order to ensure robust evidence based practice in female youth sport there is a need to increase the visibility of female athletes in talent development literature.

Flow and Satisfaction With Life in Elite Musicians and Top Athletes

Although flow has been studied extensively in music and sport, there is a lack of research comparing these two domains. With the aim of filling this gap, elite musicians and top athletes in Slovenia were contrasted in the current study. Differences for flow and satisfaction with life between elite musicians and top athletes were explored. Individual versus group performance setting and gender differences were considered. 452 participants; 114 elite Slovenian musicians (mean age 23.46 years) and 338 top Slovenian athletes (mean age 22.40 years) answered questions about flow and satisfaction with life measures. The results show differences between elite musicians and top athletes in four flow dimensions: transformation of time and autotelic experience were higher in musicians while clear goals and unambiguous feedback were higher in athletes. However, differences in global flow were not confirmed. Elite musicians and top athletes experienced flow more often in group than in individual performance settings and surprisingly it was experienced more in male than in female top performers. Satisfaction with life has a positive correlation with all nine dimensions of flow, but only challenge-skill balance was a significant predictor for satisfaction with life.

Analysis of the Prediction of Motivational Climate in Handball Players' Fear of Failure

Sports can at times become a negative socializing agent for athletes. The objectives here were to analyse the relationship between motivational climates (involving coaches and peers) and fear of failure in players according to gender and sports experience, and also to control for the extent to which these motivational climates predict the different aversive causes of fear of failure. To this aim, a non-experimental, descriptive, and sectional design was used in which participants answered the Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire, the Peer Motivational Climate in Youth Sports Questionnaire, and the Performance Failure Appraisal Inventory. The sample included 479 handball players aged 16⁻17 years old (mean = 16.60; standard deviation = 0.50) who were playing in Spanish regional youth category handball teams. The results revealed that the task-involving training climate predominates in both genders over the ego-involving training climate, particularly in girls and in less experienced players. The peer ego-involving climate also predominates with respect to the peer task-involving climate in both genders, but this is particularly so for boys and in more experienced players. Furthermore, except for fear of feeling shame, which was predicted by the peer ego-involving climate, all the aversive causes of fear of failure are predicted mainly by the coach climate. The immediate environment was proved to be determinant in avoidance behaviours and fear of failure.

The Importance of the Coach in Predicting Implicit Beliefs about Skill and Beliefs about the Causes of Success in Handball Players

The objective of the present study was to determine the predictive capacity of the motivational climate generated by coaches and perceived by handball players on implicit beliefs about ability and beliefs about the causes of success in sport. The sample consisted of 444 youth handball players. These players completed the Beliefs about the Causes of Success in Sport Questionnaire, the Conceptions of the Nature of Athletic Ability Questionnaire, Version Two, and the Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire. The structural regression model showed that the mastery climate positively predicted the belief in incremental ability and that this in turn positively predicts both belief in athletic success through effort and ability. The results reflected the importance of the coach in the formative process of the player and the search for performance in sport.

Situational and Dispositional Factors that Predict Motivation: a Multilevel Study

This study aimed to test a multilevel mediation model which examined the relationship between the perceived motivational climate created by coaches at team level and motivational regulations towards sport at individual level, as mediated by individual goal orientations. 211 university athletes from 20 teams training in different types of sport completed a battery of instruments that measured the variables included in the model. The statistics significance level was .05. Results of the multilevel mediation model revealed that the task-involving climate at team level positively predicted individual task orientation (γ01 = .77, p .05). The results are in line with previous research that have focused in the study of motivational climate at individual level, but the present study make a novel contribution by providing the perspective of a multilevel mediation model and thereby clarifying the phenomenon at team level.

Behavioral regulations and dispositional flow in exercise among American college students relative to stages of change and gender

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to examine behavioral regulations and dispositional flow in exercise among university students in terms of gender and stage of change.

PARTICIPANTS

Data were collected from American college students (N = 257; M_age ± SD = 23.02 ± 4.05) in Spring 2013.

METHODS

Behavioral regulations and dispositional flow in exercise were assessed, along with stage of change.

RESULTS

Exercisers in the maintenance stage of change displayed significantly more self-determined motivation to exercise and a greater tendency to experience flow than those in preparation and action stages. Significant correlations were observed among behavioral regulations and flow state. Nonsignificant differences were observed for gender on behavioral regulations and dispositional flow in exercise.

CONCLUSIONS

The results suggest that promotion of self-determined motivation and dispositional flow in exercisers may improve the quality of their experiences, as well as to foster their exercise behavior.

Roles of Perceived Motivational Climates Created by Coach, Peer, and Parent on Dispositional Flow in Young Athletes

We investigated the contribution of perceived motivational climates created by coach, peer, and parent on the dispositional flow experience of young athletes. Eighty-six female ( M_age = 14.24, SD = 1.38 years) and 134 male ( M_age = 16.28, SD = 1.17 years) athletes completed questionnaires of perceived motivational climates created by coach, peer, and parent and the Dispositional Flow Scale-2. Results of hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that perceived task-involving coach (β = .40, p < .001) and peer (β = .28, p < .002) motivational climates were the only significant predictors of dispositional flow. These findings suggest that task-involving motivational climates should be strengthened to increase experience of flow.

Training demands on clerk burnout: determining whether achievement goal motivation orientations matter

BACKGROUND

In the education field, learning experiences are considered learners' properties and are viewed as a key determinant in explaining learners' learning processes, especially for training novices such as clerks with varying levels of commitment to the medical profession. This study explored whether clerks' achievement goal motivation orientations might buffer the negative well-being to a certain extent, considering their training demands during clinical training.

METHODS

Ninety-four clerks at a tertiary medical center were longitudinally traced during their 2-year clerkship spanning from September 2013 to April 2015. Web-based, validated, structured, self-administered questionnaires were used to evaluate the clerks' properties of achievement goal motivation orientation and personal background at the beginning of the clerkship. Regular surveys were conducted to evaluate their perceptions of training demands and burnout at each specialty rotation. Overall, 2230 responses were analyzed, and linear mixed-effects models were used to examine the repeated measures of the clerks.

RESULTS

The results revealed that higher perceived psychological and physical demands of training were related to higher perceived burnout during the 2-year clerkship. Although both the clerks' task and ego orientations were related to reduced burnout (direct effects), only task orientation was indicated to exert a buffering effect on their perception of physical demands on burnout in the 1st year of the clerkship.

CONCLUSIONS

Considering the negative effects of training demands (psychological and physical), we observed a limited effect of the task achievement motivation orientation of medical students; therefore, additional studies might focus on strategies to facilitate medical students in clerkships in addressing both the psychological and physical demands inherent in training workplaces to improve their learning experience and well-being.

A Cross-Sectional Survey Study About the Most Common Solitary and Social Flow Activities to Extend the Concept of Optimal Experience

Previous assumptions note that the most powerful experiences of engagement are shared with others. Therefore, in the framework of positive psychology, to expand the dynamic interactionism-related flow theory, we have attempted to conduct an exploratory study about flow to reveal the most common activities that can trigger this experience during solitary or social situations. The study involved 1,709 adult participants from Hungary (Age: M = 26.95, SD = 11.23). They read descriptions about optimal experience in solitary and social situations and were asked to identify the activity from their life that is most typically followed by the described experiences. The social context was supplemented by other flow-related questions for a deeper understanding and to contribute to the research. According to the results the most typical solitary flow activities are found to be work, sports, creative activities and reading. The most common flow-inducing social activities are work and sports. The choice of the most frequent flow-inducing activities in both solitary and interpersonal situations is dependent on the gender of the respondent, and various demographical factors can influence the frequency of flow experiences in different contexts. Analysis reveal that optimal experience during a social interaction is determined by the perceived level of challenges, the perceived level of cooperation, the immediateness and clarity of the feedback, and the level of the skill. Our study may contribute to the broadening purpose of positive psychology as it focuses on the interpersonal level in relation to flow experience, which, in turn, may also support a higher level of well-being.

Qualidade do Relacionamento Treinador-Atleta e Orientação às Metas como Preditores de Desempenho Esportivo

RESUMO Este estudo investigou a qualidade do relacionamento treinador-atleta (RTA) e da orientação às metas (OM) como preditoras para o desempenho de atletas de voleibol. Os participantes (n=185) responderam o Questionário de Relacionamento Treinador-Atleta e o Questionário de Orientação às Metas. Os atletas medalhistas perceberam maior proximidade e comprometimento com o treinador e maior orientação para a tarefa (OT) em comparação aos não medalhistas. O RTA apresentou impacto moderado na OT tanto dos atletas medalhistas (proximidade e complementaridade) quanto das atletas não-medalhistas (compromisso). O compromisso apresentou efeito moderado sobre a orientação para o ego dos não-medalhistas e das mulheres (não significativo). Conclui-se que quanto mais alto o nível de desempenho das equipes, maior a influência do RTA (complementariedade e proximidade) sobre a OT.

An investigation of motivational variables in CrossFit facilities

CrossFit is a growing fitness trend in the United States; however, little systematic research has addressed specific motivational principles within this unique exercise environment. The purpose of the study was to explore the influence of gender and membership time on perceptions of motivational climate and goals within the CrossFit environment. Specifically, people may set goals related to self-improvement (i.e., mastery) or focus on their performance in comparison to others (i.e., performance). Motivational climate refers to an individual's perception of being encouraged to focus on either mastery or performance goals from CrossFit trainers. A total of 144 members (88 females; 56 males) completed questionnaires to assess participants' perceptions of CrossFit goal structures and perceptions of the motivational climate encouraged by the trainer within their CrossFit box. Results indicated a significant main effect for gender on preferred goals (p ≤ 0.05), with males reporting higher levels of performance approach goals and females reporting higher levels of master avoidance goals. Participants who reported shorter membership times were found to have significantly higher mastery-related goals than individuals who reported longer membership times (p ≤ 0.05). The results from the study suggest that practitioners should consider how perceptions of the motivational climate and goals in group-based exercise settings such as CrossFit may vary based on demographic variables, and that these differences may impact how to most effectively motivate, encourage, and instruct group members, particularly with regard to helping members set goals that most effectively address their approach to the CrossFit regimen.

Perceptions of motivational climate and teachers' strategies to sustain discipline as predictors of intrinsic motivation in physical education

This study examined the relationship among pupils' perceptions of the motivational climate, pupils' perceptions of teachers' strategies to maintain discipline and pupils' intrinsic motivation in physical education. A sample of 2189 Spanish adolescents, ages 13 to 17 years, completed Spanish versions of the EPCM, SSDS, and IMI. Confirmatory factor analyses were carried out to confirm the factorial validity of the scales. Then, the relationship among the variables was explored through Structural Equation Modelling. The most important predictors of pupils' intrinsic motivation were the perceived mastery climate, and perceived teachers' emphasis on intrinsic reasons to maintain discipline. Perceived performance climate and perceived teachers' strategies to maintain discipline based on introjected reasons and indifference, predicted pupils' tension-pressure. Results are discussed in the context of theoretical propositions of self-determination theory and practical issues of enhancing adolescents' motivation in physical education.

Psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Flow State Scale

The purpose of this research was to examine the psychometric properties of a Spanish translation of the Flow State Scale (FSS; Jackson & Marsh, 1996). This instrument is used to assess the Flow State in participants of physical activity, although it can be adapted to other contexts (such as work, educational contexts, etc.). This construct can be considered the optimal psychological state to carry out an activity, being closely related to motivation and personal enjoyment (Csikszentmihalyi, 1997). A sample of 2036 athletes was recruited from diverse sports activities. The results revealed satisfactory validity and internal consistency of the instrument, obtaining a factor model made up of a main factor and nine subscales. The correlations between motivational orientations and the flow state are highlighted. The Spanish translation of this instrument is found to be acceptable, with similar psychometric properties as the original scale, although future research in other contexts is needed to support these outcomes.