Testing a self-determination theory model of children’s physical activity motivation: a cross-sectional study

International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, Sep 2013

Background Understanding children’s physical activity motivation, its antecedents and associations with behavior is important and can be advanced by using self-determination theory. However, research among youth is largely restricted to adolescents and studies of motivation within certain contexts (e.g., physical education). There are no measures of self-determination theory constructs (physical activity motivation or psychological need satisfaction) for use among children and no previous studies have tested a self-determination theory-based model of children’s physical activity motivation. The purpose of this study was to test the reliability and validity of scores derived from scales adapted to measure self-determination theory constructs among children and test a motivational model predicting accelerometer-derived physical activity. Methods Cross-sectional data from 462 children aged 7 to 11 years from 20 primary schools in Bristol, UK were analysed. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to examine the construct validity of adapted behavioral regulation and psychological need satisfaction scales. Structural equation modelling was used to test cross-sectional associations between psychological need satisfaction, motivation types and physical activity assessed by accelerometer. Results The construct validity and reliability of the motivation and psychological need satisfaction measures were supported. Structural equation modelling provided evidence for a motivational model in which psychological need satisfaction was positively associated with intrinsic and identified motivation types and intrinsic motivation was positively associated with children’s minutes in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Conclusions The study provides evidence for the psychometric properties of measures of motivation aligned with self-determination theory among children. Children’s motivation that is based on enjoyment and inherent satisfaction of physical activity is associated with their objectively-assessed physical activity and such motivation is positively associated with perceptions of psychological need satisfaction. These psychological factors represent potential malleable targets for interventions to increase children’s physical activity.

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Testing a self-determination theory model of children’s physical activity motivation: a cross-sectional study

International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity Testing a self-determination theory model of children's physical activity motivation: a cross-sectional study Simon J Sebire 0 Russell Jago 0 Kenneth R Fox 0 Mark J Edwards 0 Janice L Thompson 1 0 Centre for Exercise Nutrition and Health Sciences, School for Policy Studies, University of Bristol , BS8 1TZ Bristol , United Kingdom 1 School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, University of Birmingham , B15 2TT, Edgbaston, Birmingham, England Background: Understanding children's physical activity motivation, its antecedents and associations with behavior is important and can be advanced by using self-determination theory. However, research among youth is largely restricted to adolescents and studies of motivation within certain contexts (e.g., physical education). There are no measures of self-determination theory constructs (physical activity motivation or psychological need satisfaction) for use among children and no previous studies have tested a self-determination theory-based model of children's physical activity motivation. The purpose of this study was to test the reliability and validity of scores derived from scales adapted to measure self-determination theory constructs among children and test a motivational model predicting accelerometer-derived physical activity. Methods: Cross-sectional data from 462 children aged 7 to 11 years from 20 primary schools in Bristol, UK were analysed. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to examine the construct validity of adapted behavioral regulation and psychological need satisfaction scales. Structural equation modelling was used to test cross-sectional associations between psychological need satisfaction, motivation types and physical activity assessed by accelerometer. Results: The construct validity and reliability of the motivation and psychological need satisfaction measures were supported. Structural equation modelling provided evidence for a motivational model in which psychological need satisfaction was positively associated with intrinsic and identified motivation types and intrinsic motivation was positively associated with children's minutes in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Conclusions: The study provides evidence for the psychometric properties of measures of motivation aligned with self-determination theory among children. Children's motivation that is based on enjoyment and inherent satisfaction of physical activity is associated with their objectively-assessed physical activity and such motivation is positively associated with perceptions of psychological need satisfaction. These psychological factors represent potential malleable targets for interventions to increase children's physical activity. Motivation; Physical activity; Children; Self-determination theory; Physical activity - Background Many children are insufficiently physically active [1]. To increase childrens physical activity (PA), it is necessary to understand its social, environmental and psychological underpinnings [2]. Understanding the social cognitive factors that can be influenced by childrens social milieu is important because they could be targeted through theorybased interventions to increase PA [3]. For example, giving advice to influential figures in childrens lives such as teachers and parents on how to support PA may provide a mechanism for increasing childrens motivation. Motivation is an individuals drive to act, and selfdetermination theory (SDT) [4] is being widely applied to study PA motivation throughout the lifespan [3,5-7]. SDT contains many elements that have established relevance to PA in a single theoretical framework including personal motivation, psychological and social-environmental antecedents to motivation [3]. A multi-dimensional view of motivation is taken in SDT. Specifically, different types of motivation are arranged on a continuum based on their degree of self-determination [4]. Such a perspective focuses upon the quality in addition to the quantity of motivation, with self-determined (or autonomous) motivation types considered to be higher quality than less selfdetermined (or controlling) types of motivation. Six motivation types are proposed in SDT; intrinsic motivation, integrated regulation, identified regulation, introjected regulation, external regulation and amotivation. Intrinsic motivation is based on the inherent interest and satisfaction derived from being active rather than engaging for a separable outcome and is considered the most autonomous form of motivation. Integrated, identified, introjected and external regulations are extrinsic forms of motivation because of their instrumental focus on consequences not inherent in the activity. Integrated (i.e., where PA reflects an individuals values and broader goals) and identified (i.e., personally valuing the benefits of being active) regulation are considered autonomous forms of extrinsic motivation. On the (...truncated)


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Simon J Sebire, Russell Jago, Kenneth R Fox, Mark J Edwards, Janice L Thompson. Testing a self-determination theory model of children’s physical activity motivation: a cross-sectional study, International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 2013, pp. 111, 10, DOI: 10.1186/1479-5868-10-111