Joan L. Duda

Dimensions of achievement motivation in schoolwork and sport

Both sport and academic work play large roles in school life, yet there is little comparativeevidence on the nature or generality of achievement motivation across these domains. In thisstudy, beliefs about the causes of success in school and sport of 207 high school students werefound to be related in a logical fashion to their personal goals. The ego-involved goal of superioritywas associated with the belief that success requires high ability, whereas task orientation (the goalof gaining knowledge) was associated with beliefs that success requires interest, effort, andcollaboration with peers. These goal-belief dimensions, or theories about success, cut across sportand schoolwork. However, little cross-domain generality was found for perceptions of ability andintrinsic satisfaction. Intrinsic satisfaction in sport primarily related to perceived ability in thatsetting. Task orientation, not perceived ability, was the major predictor of satisfaction inschoolwork.

The Relationship of Task and Ego Orientation to Sportsmanship Attitudes and the Perceived Legitimacy of Injurious Acts

Nichollss theory of achievement motivation (1989) assumes ones goal orientation in an achievement activity is consistent with ones views concerning what is acceptable behavior in that setting. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship of a task and ego goal orientation (i.e., the tendency to focus on personal mastery or beating others, respectively) to sportsmanship attitudes and perceptions of the legitimacy of aggressive acts by testing this assumption in the context of interscholastic sport. Fifty-six male and 67 female high school basketball players completed a three-part questionnaire assessing (a) individual differences in goal orientation, (b) approval of unsportsmanlike play/cheating, strategic play, and sportsmanship behaviors, and (c) subjective ratings of the legitimacy of intentionally injurious behaviors. All measures were basketball-specific. Results indicated a low task orientation and high ego orientation corresponded to an endorsement of unsportsmanlike play/cheating. Ego orientation positively related to the rating of aggressive acts as more legitimate. Gender differences in goal orientation, sportsmanship attitudes, and legitimacy ratings were observed.

Contemporary measures of approach and avoidance goal orientations: Similarities and differences

BACKGROUNDnIn response to a resurgence of interest in and demonstrated utility of the approach-avoidance goal distinction, a number of researchers (Elliot & Church, 1997; Midgley et al., 1998; Skaalvik, 1997) have developed instruments to assess individual differences in the tendency to adopt approach-avoidance goals. However, to date there has been no attempt to examine the psychometric properties or conceptual and measurement overlap of these instruments.nnnAIMSn(i) To determine whether three questionnaires designed to measure approach-avoidance goal orientations are assessing the same or different constructs, and (ii) to examine the psychometric properties of each of the approach-avoidance measures (i.e., internal consistency, convergent, discriminant, factorial, and construct validity).nnnSAMPLEnParticipants in this study were 475 undergraduate students (N = 228 males; N = 244 females; three missing information) enrolled at two large universities in the United Kingdom.nnnMETHODnParticipants completed a questionnaire which included measures of approach-avoidance goal orientations, effort regulation, test anxiety, perceived ability, and intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and amotivation.nnnRESULTSnResults revealed a degree of convergence between the three instruments. Each of the instruments demonstrated good psychometric properties although construct validity results were inconsistent across the measures.nnnCONCLUSIONnThere is a need for future research to clarify the operational definition and subsequent measurement of the performance avoidance construct, and in particular, to examine the role that effort, impression management, and anxiety/fear of failure play in its conceptualisation.

Moral Atmosphere and Athletic Aggressive Tendencies in Young Soccer Players

The major purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of the moral atmosphere of athletic teams to athletes self-described likelihood to aggress (SLA). Two additional purposes were: first, to determine whether there was a predominant figure most influential to athletes SLA and, secondly, to examine potential gender differences in athletes perceived team moral atmosphere, their SLA and the most influential person affecting their SLA. Participants were 194 male and female soccer players 13-19 years of age. Athletes perceptions of their team pro-aggressive norms emerged as the most consistent predictor of their SLA. Regardless of gender, the athletes reported that they would be more likely to aggress if they thought their coach supported such behaviour. The findings shed light on the influence that significant others have in shaping the moral atmosphere operating on youth sport teams.

Goal orientations, beliefs about success, and performance improvement among young elite Dutch soccer players

Extending past work testing goal perspective theory in sport, one purpose of this study was to examine, via a longitudinal design, the relationship of goal orientations to the beliefs about the causes of success in the case of elite male Dutch soccer players. A second purpose was to determine the relationship of goals and beliefs to ratings of performance. Seventy‐five male pupils representing five teams from an internationally renowned soccer school in The Netherlands completed the TEOSQ and a measure of their perceptions of the determinants of success in soccer at the onset and conclusion of one season. Assessments of the coaches appraisal and athletes self‐reported performance in soccer were carried out at the same time. In line with other studies, a positive association between ego orientation and the belief that ability or innate talent are determinants of success was revealed. Task orientation was linked to the beliefs that effort, team play, and parental support contribute to achievement in soccer. An increase in skilled performance over the season (as appraised by the coach) corresponded to a stronger task orientation and the beliefs that soccer success stems from hard work and having supportive parents.

Situational and dispositional goals as predictors of perceptions of individual and team improvement, satisfaction and coach ratings among elite female handball teams

Objectives. To examine the relationship of the perceived motivational climate created by the coach and dispositional goal orientations of elite female handball players (a) perceived individual and team improvement in different facets of the game; (b) satisfaction with their own and the teams game; and (c) ratings of the coach. A second aim was to study whether the dependent variables were best predicted by the perceived motivational climate created by the coach and/or the players dispositional goal orientations. n nDesign. Cross-sectional. n nMethods: Elite female handball players (n=181) from 14 teams participating in a national handball competition in Spain completed the Spanish measures of goal orientations and climate and items assessing the dependent variables of interest. n nResults: When a stronger task-involving climate was perceived, players reported greater performance improvement and satisfaction with performance and held more positive views regarding the coach. Task orientation added a significant proportion of the variance for perceptions of ones own performance improvement. Perceptions of an ego-involving climate were negatively related to overall coach ratings but were positively related to satisfaction with the teams competitive results. n nConclusions: The findings are consistent with the tenets of achievement goal theory and provide evidence for the adaptive implications of a task-involving climate in high-level sport. The superior predictive ability of climate over individual goals suggests that interventions targeted at the coach should have an important impact on individual and team motivation.

The relationship between goal perspectives, persistence and behavioral intensity among male and female recreational sport participants

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between identification with mastery versus social comparison‐based goals and select motivated behaviors (i.e., persistence and behavioral intensity) in a recreational sport setting. A secondary focus was to examine whether variation in goal perspectives was significantly related to gender and previous competitive sport involvement. A total of 67 male and 67 female undergraduates who participated on a team sport in an intramural league responded to a questionnaire that examined their preference for mastery and competitive sport goals. The questionnaire also tapped the students present participation in intramural sport (i.e., type of sport, years of involvement in the sport and hours/week spent practicing the sport in ones free time during the intramural season) and previous competitive sport history. In general, students who placed a high emphasis on mastery in sport were more likely to have participated in their sport longer and practi...

Multi-sample confirmatory factor analysis of the Task and Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire.

The Task and Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire (TEOSQ; Duda, 1989; Duda & Nicholls, 1992) was designed to assess individual differences in the proneness for task and ego involvement in athletic settings. The purpose of this study was to independently and simultaneously test the measurement model assumed to underlie the TEOSQ across intercollegiate athletes (n = 143), college students enrolled in skill classes (n = 270), high school athletes (n = 310), and junior high school sport participants (n = 234). Single-sample confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was employed to establish and to evaluate the tenability of a baseline model in terms of each sample. A series of multi-sample CFAs were then conducted to test the invariance of the measurement and factor structure of the TEOSQ across the four groups. The measures of overall fit for the hypothetical two-factor structure of the TEOSQ were generally acceptable, albeit weaker in the case of the college students. Further, the results of the multi-sample CFA did not support the assumption for intergroup invariance of the TEOSQ. This finding indicated that the 13 items and structure of the TEOSQ were not equally valid across the present four samples.

Predictors of Personal Investment in Physical Activity among Middle-Aged and Older Adults

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between the social psychological components of Personal Investment Theory and exercise behaviors among 47 middle-aged and older men and women participating in an organized exercise program. Specifically, the degree to which personal incentives for exercise, perceptions of sense of self (i.e., physical self-efficacy, fitness locus of control, self-motivation, social identity), and the congruence between program and participants goals predict present physical activity and estimated future physical activity was examined. Multiple regression analyses indicated that present and future exercise behaviors significantly related to social psychological variables reflecting personal investment.

Motivational climate and goal orientations as predictors of perceptions of improvement, satisfaction and coach ratings among tennis players

One purpose of this work was to study the relationship of goal orientations and the perceived motivational climate created by the coach in relation to 219 competitive Spanish tennis players: a) perceived improvement in different facets of the game, b) satisfaction with their competitive results, overall level of play, and coach, and c) ratings of their coach. The second purpose was to examine whether the dependent variables were best predicted by the perceived situationally emphasized goal structure created by the coach and/or the athletes dispositional goal perspective. Intermediate (N=70), advanced (N=124), and professional (N=25) level players completed Spanish versions of the TEOSQ and the PMCSQ‐2 and items assessing perceived improvement specific to tennis, satisfaction and coach ratings. The results were consistent with the tenets of goal perspective theory and provide further support for the promotion of a task‐involving atmosphere in sport.