Edited by: Camilo Hurtado-Parrado, Troy University, United States
Reviewed by: Kristen A. Rost, Troy University, United States; Fernando Claver Rabaz, Universidad de Extremadura, Spain
This article was submitted to Educational Psychology, a section of the journal Frontiers in Psychology
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This longitudinal study explored patterns of basic psychological needs and self-determined motivation, as well as its association with the teaching style and the physical activity enjoyment in a group of students. The sample consisted of 200 secondary education students (105 girls and 95 boys) aged 11 to 13 years (
The importance of regular exercise is indisputable in maintaining quality of life and health. Aspects related to physical exercise are particularly investigated in childhood and adolescence, since during this period a significant relationship is established between acquired behaviors and the resulting actions in adulthood (
The factors that interfere in exercise adherence and a healthy lifestyle are related to motivational aspects. In this respect, the self-determination theory (SDT;
Basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness) and motivation are factors that have been extensively studied (
Unfortunately, these studies only provide information on the relationship between the determinant and the outcome, such as high values on autonomy correspond to high values on enjoyment. These types of studies rely on a variable-centered approach. This approach provides a small picture of the interplay among the studied variables, however, a person-centered approach allows the study of different variable configurations whilst providing a bigger picture (
The present study addresses this gap in the literature by examining students’ patterns of autonomy, competence, relatedness and self-determined motivation changes, and how such patterns predict enjoyment/disenjoyment, and how these patterns relate to autonomy support.
The SDT, proposed by
Motivation varies from the most self-determined form, called intrinsic motivation, when the choice is personal, characterizing total autonomy in terms of the activity, which generates interest, enjoyment and satisfaction inherent to the activity (
Satisfaction of basic psychological needs and self-determined motivation are associated with enjoyment and effort in performing activities and other positives outcomes (
Unfortunately, these longitudinal studies relied on a variable-centered approach, and thus, it is not possible to see a big picture of the interplay among the studied variables. Nevertheless, there are cross-sectional studies that relied on a person-centered approach to increase adolescents’ motivation. Most of these studies analyzed the coexistence of motivational regulations (
In the educational and behavioral context, the SDT was broadened by
During physical education classes, one of the contextual factors that can influence motivation is the teacher’s interpersonal style. Teachers offer support along a continuum, which ranges from extreme control to total support for autonomy (
In contrast to an interpersonal style that supports autonomy in the classroom, teachers with a controlling style ensure that activities are performed exactly according to their way of thinking, feeling and behaving. When teachers use controlling support, they make students abandon their own inner motivational resources in order to undertake activities and seek to solve problems based on the teachers’ needs (
The motor and affective experiences perceived by students during class are influenced by the teachers’ interaction and how they present class content (
Investigations on the SDT indicate that a teaching style aimed at supporting autonomy results in improved student motivation.
A determining factor in physical education classes and physical activity in general is the feeling of joy. Studies show that self-determined motivation to engage in physical activity is influenced by perceived enjoyment and challenges that activities can generate in children and adolescents (
The SDT highlights the positive effect of enjoyment and the feeling of pleasure as a crucial point for physical education self-determined motivation. Perceptions of competence, autonomy, success and good relationships with others increase pleasure during physical activity and reduce negative perceptions such as boredom (
Understanding different patterns of self-determined motivation in physical education classes may help teachers improve the quality of interactions with students, favoring and increasing positive experiences during classes (
We hypothesize the existence of different clusters and that the students in motivational clusters with more self-determination will show more pleasure in practicing physical activity and more autonomy support from their teachers. Similarly, we expect that motivational clusters with less self-determination will show less pleasure in practicing the activity and will receive more controlled classes from their teachers.
The sample consisted of 200 schoolchildren, 105 girls, and 95 boys, in the final grades of elementary schooling at four public schools located in the urban zone of three municipalities in Midwest Santa Catarina state, Brazil. The students were 11–13 years old (
The Learning Climate Questionnaire (LCQ;
The Controlling Teacher Questionnaire (CTQ), from
A questionnaire was applied to assess basic psychological needs in physical education (NPBEF), adapted for Portuguese by
The Perceived Locus of Causality Questionnaire (PLOCQ) (
We applied the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES) (
Questionnaires were administered individually during class time on two time points. The first data collection took place in March 2015 and the second in December 2016. Both evaluations had the same sample of individuals, so the data represent the answers of the students at the beginning of the 2015 school year while they were in the sixth, seventh and eighth grades. At the end of 2016, these same students were in the seventh, eighth and ninth grade, respectively. It is important to consider that the Brazilian school year begins in February and ends in December. The questionnaires were applied in the classroom under the supervision of the authors of this study. Prior authorization was requested from management staff and teachers at the schools involved in the study, as well as the parents and/or guardians of the participants. The questionnaires were answered during physical education (PE) classes under the supervision of the researcher, who explained how subjects should complete the instrument and remained available to answer any questions that might arise during the process. Completion time was approximately 35 min, and anonymity was respected to ensure sincere answers. Whilst the students answered the questionnaire, only the researchers were in the classroom. The teachers were not present during the data collection. This study was carried out in accordance with the recommendations of Human Research Ethics Committee of Unoesc/Hust with written informed consent from all subjects. All subjects gave written informed consent in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. The protocol was approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of Unoesc/Hust, under protocol number 937.597 on December 19, 2014.
Descriptive analyses were conducted, including Pearson’s correlations between major variables at both time points (see Table
Descriptive statistics and Pearson’s correlations.
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
(1) Self-determination | 10.061 | 8.175 | |||||||
(2) Autonomy | 3.059 | 3.041 | 0.294 | ||||||
(3) Competence | 3.931 | 3.695 | 0.381 | 0.208 | |||||
(4) Relatedness | 4.071 | 3.898 | 0.190 | 0.120 | 0.182 | ||||
(5) Enjoyment + | 4.002 | 3.525 | 0.614 | 0.198 | 0.369 | 0.167 | |||
(6) Enjoyment – | 1.625 | 1.834 | -0.609 | -0.269 | -0.273 | -0.129 | -0.574 | ||
(7) Autonomy Support | 4.519 | 3.753 | 0.454 | 0.311 | 0.280 | 0.082 | 0.487 | -0.360 | |
(8) Control Support | 2.404 | 2.840 | -0.220 | -0.160 | -0.124 | -0.053 | -0.007 | 0.172 | -0.142 |
To explore the number and nature of clusters, we relied on Latent Profile Analysis (
Means for variables at both time points and correlations between the standardized differences scores (T2–T1) are displayed in Table
We compared models between one and four clusters. As can be seen in Table
Goodness of fit for models with latent groups.
Clusters | AIC | SSA-BIC | PB-LRT ( |
% smallest cluster |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2286.352 | 2287.394 | – | – |
2 | 2231.420 | 2233.113 | 0.000 | 20.000 |
3 | 2224.502 | 2226.846 | 0.030 | 14.106 |
4 | 2226.495 | 2229.490 | 1.000 | 0.500 |
Figure
Standardized scores for each cluster.
Mean and standard error for variables in each cluster.
Low |
Average |
High |
||
---|---|---|---|---|
14% | 63% | 23% | ||
Self-determination | -1.559 | -0.067 | 1.065 | |
0.222 | 0.116 | 0.131 | ||
Autonomy | -1.069 | 0.111 | 0.338 | |
0.261 | 0.095 | 0.168 | ||
Competence | -0.803 | -0.143 | 0.821 | |
0.292 | 0.121 | 0.185 | ||
Relatedness | -0.699 | 0.065 | 0.239 | |
0.203 | 0.107 | 0.185 | ||
Subjects in the low cluster had the lowest Autonomy Support (
Mean and standard error for autonomy support and positive enjoyment in each cluster.
Low (1) | Average (2) | High (3) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Autonomy Support | -1.2382,3 | 0.0881 | 0.4931 | |
0.183 | 0.092 | 0.189 | ||
Enjoyment + | -1.2612,3 | -0.0241,3 | 0.7861,2 | |
0.184 | 0.088 | 0.185 | ||
As can be seen in Table
Mean and standard for error teacher controlling style and negative enjoyment in each cluster.
Low (1) | Average (2) | High (3) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Control Support | 0.7732,3 | -0.0921 | -0.2141 | |
0.211 | 0.105 | 0.163 | ||
Enjoyment– | 1.3512,3 | 0.0091,3 | -0.8001,2 | |
0.190 | 0.084 | 0.188 | ||
With regard to gender differences, all clusters were significantly different. The low and high cluster were characterized by more females, while more males were observed in the average cluster (Table
Proportion of males and females in each cluster.
Low (1) | Average (2) | High (3) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Gender | Male | 0.271 | 0.589 | 0.000 |
Female | 0.729 | 0.411 | 1.000 | |
The aim of this longitudinal study was twofold: (1) explore different clusters based on autonomy, competence, relatedness and self-determined motivation changes over a 22-months period, and (2) test how these clusters differ on enjoyment and on teacher style (autonomy/control support). The hypothesis presented seeks for the existence of patterns of change and for the association of these patterns with an outcome and a determinant.
Three patterns were identified: decreases in all psychological needs and self-determination; no changes, and increases in self-determination, competence, autonomy but no changes in relatedness. The downward pattern was associated with more Negative Enjoyment and a Controlling Style, while the upward pattern, with more Positive Enjoyment and Autonomy Support. In a similar study,
Importantly, those three patterns differed on the outcome (positive and negative enjoyment), and the determinant (autonomy/control support). In a cross-sectional study
The group with low self-determination also showed low fulfillment of the basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence and relatedness with moderate self-determination exhibited moderate fulfillment of these needs. Changes in satisfaction related to basic psychological needs were associated with self-determined motivation, and it is important to examine competence, autonomy and the relationship with others separately, in order to obtain a more complete understanding of the role played by the teaching style, fulfillment of psychological needs and enjoyment of physical activity in adolescents.
Earlier studies gathered evidence of the positive influence of teaching style on autonomy on self-determined motivation, basic psychological needs and satisfaction with physical activity (
It is important to underscore the relationship between enjoyment and physical activities, given that the sense of fulfillment and pleasure in performing an activity promotes adherence and regularity (
There is also an intergroup difference between the sexes. In this study the boys obtained moderate results, while the girls showed both extremes (low and high self-determination). Most of the studies that analyze self-determined motivation to attend physical education classes, considering the students’ sex, found that boys are more intrinsically motivated than girls (
Educational programs that stimulate the development of self-determined motivation may lead students to habitually engage in physical activities so that they are less likely to discontinue them after the school year ends. Thus, enjoyment in physical education classes results from a more self-determined behavior and fulfillment of the basic psychological needs for competence, autonomy and relationships with others, with an influence of interpersonal teaching style. The present findings support the use of educational strategies that favor autonomy and influence self-determined motivation, thereby promoting commitment to physical activity. In this respect, a number of aspects are important in improving self-determined motivation in physical education classes, such as varying activities, transmitting the feeling of responsibility, enabling student decision making, and recognizing efforts and personal improvement (
A study limitation was the fact that the authors used the self-determination index, as observed in earlier studies. However, recent research indicates that using a continuum as a general index may dilute the richness of the findings obtained, given that the model can be tested by considering each type of self-determined motivation or separating it into two large categories (autonomous and controlled). Nevertheless, the information collected may help future studies, where it will be important to design interventions with teachers in order to enhance experiences in physical education classes, thereby improving adherence to physical activities.
In conclusion, more self-determined motivation is related to greater teacher support for autonomy, greater fulfillment of basic psychological needs and increased enjoyment with physical activity. It is important to underscore that the group characterized by high self-determination exhibited high competence values. As such, it is recommended that physical education teachers use a style that supports autonomy, applying strategies that improve student self-determined motivation as well as feelings of pleasure and satisfaction with physical education.
JM-M conceptualized the study, supervised and managed the data, drafted and revised the manuscript, approved the manuscript to be published, and agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work in this manuscript. GF and EB analyzed and managed the data, drafted and revised the manuscript, approved the manuscript to be published, and agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work in this manuscript. JL and authors conceptualized the study, analyzed and wrote the results, approved the manuscript to be published, and agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work in this manuscript. RNJ supervised the data, drafted and revised the manuscript, approved the manuscript to be published, and agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work in this manuscript.
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
We gratefully acknowledge Mayara de Souza Arceno Mees and Igor da Cruz, for assistance in data collection.