Bernese motive and goal inventory in exercise and sport: Validation of an updated version of the questionnaire

Abstract

Target group-specific intervention strategies are often called for in order to effectively promote exercise and sport. Currently, motives and goals are rarely included systematically in the design of interventions, despite the key role they play in well-being and adherence to exercise. The Bernese motive and goal inventory (BMZI) allows an individual diagnosis of motives and goals in exercise and sport in people in middle adulthood. The purpose of the present study was to elaborate on the original BMZI and to modify the questionnaire in order to improve its psychometric properties. The study is based on data from two samples (sample A: 448 employees of companies and authorities; sample B: 853 patients of a medical rehabilitation programme). We applied confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory structural equation modelling. Overall, both the original and the updated BMZI had an acceptable to good validity and a good reliability. However, the revised questionnaire had slightly better reliability. The updated BMZI consists of 23 items and covers the following motives and goals: Body/Appearance, Contact, Competition/Performance, Aesthetics, Distraction/Catharsis, Fitness and Health. It is recommended as an economical inventory for the individual diagnosis of important psychological conditions for exercise and sport.

The Bernese Motive and Goal Inventory for Adolescence and Young Adulthood

“… SMC, squared multiple correlations; loadings < 0.20 are not presented. a In accordance with the studies of the BMZI for middle adulthood (Lehnert et al, 2011; Schmid et al, 2018) and older adulthood (Schmid et al, 2014), an error covariance between con4 and con5 was permitted .…”

“…Outstanding issues concern the choice of suitable exercise and sport activities and their implementation (e.g., Ekkekakis, 2009). The promising modularity of the three BMZIs for adolescence and young adulthood, middle adulthood (Lehnert et al, 2011; Schmid et al, 2018), as well as late adulthood (Schmid et al, 2014) should enable researchers to track the development of exercise- and sport-related motives and goals across the whole lifespan.…”

“…In the extrinsic mode, goals are pursued only because of external incentives. Based on this theoretical consideration as well as on empirical findings (Lehnert et al, 2011; Schmid et al, 2014, 2018), the following hypotheses were formulated: (a) activity-centered motives (e.g., Competition/Performance, Aesthetics) are predominantly related to the intrinsic mode because the incentive is inherent in the activity; (b) motives and goals which are meaningful for personal values and interests (e.g., Health/Fitness) are related to the introjected or identified mode; and (c) purpose-centered motives and goals (e.g., Body/Appearance) are associated with the extrinsic mode. Sixth, the measurement invariance across activity levels, gender, and age was tested.…”

“…Aesthetics : experiencing beautiful movements, e.g., rhythmic movements during dancing or while skiing. The BMZI was recently updated (Schmid et al, 2018) and has been applied in various settings, such as exercise therapy (Krauss et al, 2017; Schmid et al, 2018) and leisure sport activities (Sudeck and Conzelmann, 2011; Ley and Krenn, 2017; Schmid et al, 2018).…”

Within-Person Variation of Affective Well-Being during and after Exercise: Does the Person–Exercise Fit Matter?

“…Motives and goals were assessed before the start of the exercise trial sessions, using the Bernese Motive and Goal Inventory (BMZI). The BMZI has a good validity and reliability both for less active and more active adults [ 21 ]. Participants were asked the following question: «Why do you exercise/why would you exercise?» The BMZI consists of 23 items and covers the following seven dimensions: Contact (e.g., «to get to know people »), Competition/Achievement (e.g., «to compete with others»), Distraction/Catharsis (i.e., «to reduce stress»), Figure/Appearance (e.g., «to regulate my weight»), Fitness (e.g., «to keep myself in good physical shape»), Health (e.g., «to improve my state of health») and Aesthetics (e.g., «for enjoyment of beautiful movements»).…”