Graduate Research Papers

Availability

Open Access Graduate Research Paper

Abstract

Motivation is a key underlying determinant for any given human behavior. Without motivation the human species would cease to live. Above and beyond the basic physiological needs humans are motivated to meet (i.e., hunger, safety, and shelter), many individuals are also motivated to meet higher order needs (i.e., the need to belong, the need for high self esteem, or the need for love) (Naime, 2006). One such example of a "higher order" need that many individuals are motivated to meet is participation in sports. Individuals are motivated by different needs and different motives. Motivation can be described as something that cases person to act. Motivation describes why individuals perform they way they do, why individuals choose certain tasks, or even why the highly competitive environment can bring individuals best effort. A more specific definition of motivation can be described as "a social-cognitive process where the individual becomes motivated or de-motivated through assessments of competencies within the achievement or other personal context" (Roberts, 2001, p. 6).

In the research literature motivation refers to those personality factors, social variables, and /or cognitions that come into play when a person undertakes a task at which he or she is evaluated, enters into competition with others, or attempts to attain some standard of excellence (Roberts, 1992). Motivation can be expressed through achievement behaviors such as behavioral intensity (trying hard), persistence ( continuing to try hard), choice of possibilities and performance outcomes. In sport, achievement behaviors are those behaviors witnessed when participants try harder, concentrate more, persist longer, pay more attention, perform better, and chose to participate. These behavioral patterns are not all inclusive; they represent assessments of behavior from which we infer motivation, however they define what we refer to when we state that an individual is or is not motivated (Maehr & Braskamp, 1986). There are a multitude of theories that account for motivation in sport, thus the current paper will elect to focus upon two specific theories: Reversal Theory (RT; Apter, 1989) and Achievement Goal Theory (AGT; Nicholls, 1989).

Specifically, the present paper will focus on sport motivation among youth. There is 4 more empirical support for AGT, but RT has initial support as a valuable theory to help explain youth sport motivation. The research paper will first start with a brief overview of RT, followed by a more detailed account of the various studies that have tested specific components of this theory in combination with AGT. Next, a brief overview of AGT will be discussed, followed by a more comprehensive review of the literature that has specifically looked at the various components of this theory. After that, in depth research on youth sports will be discussed and numbers studies will be reviewed by examining sets of different results. Furthermore, the research paper will give an overview of motivation in youth sport specifically related to sport of soccer, and discuss complete review of literature with different research studies. Within the discussion of each theory and the corresponding research studies, a suggestion for future research will be included, with an overall conclusion section.

Year of Submission

2007

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

School of Health, Physical Education, and Leisure Services

First Advisor

Samuel Lankford

Comments

If you are the rightful copyright holder of this graduate research paper and wish to have it removed from the Open Access Collection, please submit an email request to scholarworks@uni.edu. Include your name and clearly identify the thesis by full title and author as shown on the work.

Date Original

2007

Object Description

1 PDF file (45 pages)

Language

en

Download

Comments?

Share

COinS