Teachers’ Interpersonal Style in Physical Education: Exploring Patterns of Students’ Self-Determined Motivation and Enjoyment of Physical Activity in a Longitudinal Study

Abstract

This longitudinal study explored patterns of basic psychological needs and self-determined motivation, as well as its association with the teaching style and the physical activity enjoyment in a group of students. The sample consisted of 200 secondary education students (105 girls and 95 boys) aged 11 to 13 years (M = 12.65, SD = 0.79) at the start of the study. Students were assessed twice in a 22 month-period. Descriptive analyses were conducted between major variables at both time points, and to explore the number and nature of clusters, we relied on latent profile analysis. The statistical analyses showed three different patterns: downward, stable and upward, with different outcomes and determinants. The downward pattern was associated with more negative enjoyment and a controlling style, while the upward pattern with more positive enjoyment and autonomy support. This study, which was based on a person-centered approach, provided a bigger picture of the interplay between autonomy, competence, relatedness, self-determined motivation, autonomy/control support, and physical activity enjoyment.

Teacher Autonomy Support in Physical Education Classes as a Predictor of Motivation and Concentration in Mexican Students

“…The results support the hypothesis that claims that the autonomy support style predicts autonomous motivation and amotivation in a positive and negative manner, respectively. The latter is widely supported and documented in various studies (Standage et al, 2005(Standage et al, , 2006(Standage et al, , 2012Standage and Gillison, 2007;Zamarripa et al, 2016;Behzadnia et al, 2018;Fin et al, 2019). For their part, autonomous motivation and amotivation predicted concentration in a positive and negative manner, respectively.…”

“…According to the results obtained in these studies, autonomy support predicts the most autonomous regulations (i.e., intrinsic and identified) in a positive manner. On the other hand, autonomy support predicts the least autonomous ones (i.e., introjected external regulations and amotivation) in a negative manner (Standage et al, 2005(Standage et al, , 2006(Standage et al, , 2012Standage and Gillison, 2007;Zamarripa et al, 2016;Behzadnia et al, 2018;Fin et al, 2019).…”

Complementing the Self-Determination Theory With the Need for Novelty: Motivation and Intention to Be Physically Active in Physical Education Students

“…This model established that motivation at any of these levels is influenced by social factors (e.g., the interpersonal style of the teacher); that the perception of the three basic psychological needs mediates the effect between these social factors and motivation; and that motivation brings a series of consequences across a wide variety of contexts (Ryan and Deci, 2017), including in Physical Education (e.g., Van den Berghe et al, 2014). In this way, the scientific literature has shown how satisfaction of the needs for competence, autonomy and relatedness increases the most self-determined types of motivation (Ntoumanis, 2001;Standage et al, 2006;Fin et al, 2019), and this leads to positive behavioral consequences in students, some of which are associated with the practice of physical activity outside of the school context (e.g., the intention to be physically active; Hein et al, 2004;Mouratidis et al, 2008;Lim and Wang, 2009).…”

Psychometric Properties of the Interpersonal Styles Questionnaire for Physical Education in a Mexican Sample

“…The interpersonal style of authority figures [ 17 ] is one of the social factors that play an important role within the educational environment, not only in performance, but also in motivation and psychological experiences resulting from student participation. One of the factors that can influence the student’s motivation in the PE classroom is the teacher’s interpersonal style, ranging from pursuing extreme control to fostering support for the adolescent’s autonomy [ 18 , 19 ].…”

“…The study carried out by Fin et al [ 18 ] used the modified version for physical education [ 37 ] of TCS [ 34 ]. This scale comprises of four items preceded by the phrase “My physical education teacher…” to assess the teacher’s control during the class (e.g., “attempts/tries to control everything I do”).…”