An Idiographic Analysis of Amotivation in Compulsory School Physical Education

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to provide an in-depth account of amotivation in compulsory school physical education by examining its major causes, the way it is displayed, and how it can be tackled. From an initial participant pool of 390 British schoolchildren ages 14 to 15 years, 21 of them (15 girls and 6 boys) were selected to participate in semi-structured interviews. They were categorized as being amotivated based on their responses to a questionnaire measuring motivation in physical education. Three main perceived causes of amotivation were identified in the interviews: learned helplessness beliefs, low need satisfaction, and contextual factors. Amotivation was mainly displayed by nonattendance, low involvement in the class, and low intention to be physically active after leaving school. Students' suggestions for reducing amotivation focused on the enhancement of positive affect, need satisfaction, and structural/organizational changes. The findings are discussed in conjunction with contemporary motivation theories and models of amotivation.

Change in Affect and Needs Satisfaction for Amotivated Students within the Sport Education Model

“…The work of Ntoumanis et al (2004) suggested that amotivated students require a physical education experience that satis es their psycho-social needs, as well as, enhances their level of enjoyment. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the affect and needs satisfaction of amotivated students within the SEM.…”

“…This popularity can be attributed to various mental, physical and affective consequences within activity-based settings (Vallerand, 2001). However, Ntoumanis, Pensgaard, Martin and Pipe (2004) suggested that there is "little research on the lack of motivation or amotivation " (p. 197). A reason for this lack of research could be due to the limited engagement and/or participation by amotivated students within physical education providing dif culty in attaining adequate data.…”

“…Findings further indicated that students desired all three psycho-social needs be supported or satis ed in the physical education setting. Ntoumanis et al (2004) indicated that amotivated students required support for each psychological need within physical education by working in smaller groups with friends, receiving praise from authority gures, and having their voice heard. A model of instruction which has provided empirical evidence and alignment with the aforementioned aspects is the Sport Education Model (Siedentop, Hastie & van der Mars, 2004;Wallhead & Ntoumanis, 2004).…”

“…Physical education is an ideal social setting for application of SDT, in particular focusing on amotivation, as students desire support for all three psycho-social needs (Ntoumanis, 2001;Standage, Duda & Ntoumanis, 2003). Ntoumanis et al (2004) conducted a qualitative examination of adolescent amotivated students in physical education. Findings from this study indicated that amotivated students desired their physical education setting to enhance affect, students reporting that they would be more willing to engage and participate in class if it were more enjoyable.…”

Autonomy support in Physical Education: Evidence to improve the teaching process

“…Desafortunadamente no todos los estudiantes tienen experiencias positivas en las clases de EF, lo que puede dar lugar a consecuencias desadaptativas como la desmotivación o unos niveles menores de participación (Brooks & Magnusson, 2006;Ntoumanis, Pensgaard, Martin & Pipe, 2004).…”