The purpose of this study was to test a motivational model of sport dropout that integrates the four-stage causal sequence proposed by the Hierarchical Model of Vallerand (1997) and elements from achievement goal theory (Nicholls, 1989). The model posits that a task involving motivational climate facilitates, while an ego-involving climate undermines, perceptions of competence, autonomy, and relatedness. In turn, feeling incompetent, non-autonomous, and unrelated to others undermines self-determined motivation toward handball which leads to the intention of dropping out of the game. Finally, such intentions are implemented later. Three hundred and thirty-five female handballers completed a motivation questionnaire and were followed for 21 months. In France, as in many Western countries, an increasing number of people engage in sport (see for example, Ewing & Seefeldt, 1996;Russell, Allen, & Wilson, 1996;Wankel & Mummery, 1996). In 1997, 14 million individuals were registered in French sporting federations (Data of the Ministry for Youth and Sports, 1997). However, this massive passion for sport masks a paradox: a massive number of teenagers, particularly girls, drop out from sport every year (Gould, 1987;Russell al., 1996;Sallis & Patrick, 1996;Wankel & Mummery, 1996). For example, 50% of French women handball players drop out between 13 and 15 years of age (Guillet & Sarrazin, 1999, unpublished data, University of Grenoble, France). Given the multiple benefits of the regular practice of physical activity revealed in many studies (see Martinsen & Stephens, 1994, for a review), it is unfortunate that a large number of children and teenagers terminate their participation in a physical activity. Moreover, some experts identified adolescents as a group 'at risk' due to declining physical activity and subsequent health-related behaviour and outcomes (Sallis & Patrick, 1996). If the goal is to increase the physical activity level of the teenage population, more research is needed with regard to factors related to their physical activity. A key variable to look at when attempting to predict sport participation is motivation (Vallerand, Deci, & Ryan, 1987;Vallerand & Losier, 1999;Vallerand & Rousseau, 2001). 'Motivation represents the hypothetical construct used to describe the internal and/or external forces that produce the initiation, direction, intensity, and persistence of behaviour ' (Vallerand & Thill, 1993, p. 18, translated by the authors). Various motivational theories can be useful with respect to the study of sport dropout (see Gould, 1987;Weiss & Chaumeton, 1992;Sarrazin & Guillet, 2001, for reviews). However, a model that seems particularly well suited to study the dropout issue is the Hierarchical Model of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation (HMIEM, Vallerand, 1997; Vallerand & Ratelle, in press). Drawing its roots in self-determination theory , 1991, the HMIEM model has furthered our understanding of motivational processes involved in the dropout issue in education (Vallerand, Fortier, & Guay, 1997...

To assess whether changes in physical activity and sedentary behaviour during the COVID-19 lockdown are associated with changes in mental and physical health. Observational longitudinal study. Participants living in France or Switzerland responded to online questionnaires measuring physical activity, physical and mental health, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. Paired sample t-tests were used to assess differences in physical activity and sedentary behaviour before and during lockdown. Multiple linear regressions were used to investigate associations between changes in physical activity and changes in mental and physical health during lockdown. 267 (wave1) and 110 participants (wave2; 2 weeks later) were recruited. Lockdown resulted in higher time spent in walking and moderate physical activity (~10min/day) and in sedentary behaviour (~75min/day), compared to pre COVID-19. Increased physical activity during leisure time from week 2 to week 4 of lockdown was associated with improved physical health (β=.24, p=.002). Additionally, an increase in sedentary behaviour during leisure time was associated with poorer physical health (β=−.35, p=.002), mental health (β=−.25, p=.003), and subjective vitality (β=−.30, p=.004). Ensuring sufficient levels of physical activity and reducing sedentary time can play a vital role in helping people to cope with a major stressful event, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Recent developments in self-determination theory research in the educational setting (e.g., Reeve, Deci, & Ryan, 2004), suggest that teachers' interpersonal style should be considered as consisting of three dimensions: autonomy-support, structure and interpersonal involvement. Based on this theoretical proposition, the purpose of the present study was to test the effects of a training program for three physical education newly qualified teachers on the aforementioned teachers' overt behaviors and students' psychological needs satisfaction, self-determined motivation and engagement in sport-based physical education. After a baseline period of four lessons, the teachers attended an informational session on adaptive student motivation and how to support it. The training program also included individualized guidance during the last four lessons of the cycle. Results revealed that from pre-to postintervention: (1) teachers managed to improve their teaching style in terms of all three dimensions, and (2) students were receptive to these changes, as shown by increases in their reported need satisfaction, self-determined motivation and engagement in the class.

Previous studies in education have inspected the relations between students' autonomous versus controlled motivation and relevant outcomes. In most of those studies a global index of self-determined motivation was created. The purpose of this article was to examine (a) how the different types of motivation proposed by Self-Determination Theory combine into distinct profiles as identified by cluster analysis and (b) the links between those profiles and objective criteria of achievement. In Study 1, motivation toward physical education was assessed at the beginning of a 10-week gymnastics teaching cycle, and performance was assessed at the end of the cycle among a sample of high school students (N ϭ 210). Study 2 (N ϭ 215) extended Study 1 by controlling students' initial performance, measuring the effort they exerted and recording their grades. Cluster analyses revealed three motivational profiles: self-determined, non-self-determined, and moderate levels of both types of motivation. Path analysis showed that the self-determined profile was related to the highest achievement. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for the assessment of students' motivation and the consequences of motivational profiles for educational outcomes.

International audienceThe role of sex stereotypes and gender roles in the sex differences observed in sport and exercise has been extensively investigated in sport psychology, past studies showing that stereotypes are internalized into the self during the socialization process. Although this research has provided clear evidence of the psychosocial roots of sex differences in athletics, focusing exclusively on an internalization explanation may not allow a complete understanding of the influence of stereotypes in this domain. This article presents two approaches that have been developed in mainstream psychology and discusses their relevance in sport psychology: (1) the situational approach, which considers that the mere presence of stereotypes in the environment is sufficient to affect individuals (e.g., stereotype threat theory); (2) the content of stereotypes approach (e.g., stereotype content model), which suggests that stereotypes about a particular group may be ambivalent, and that this ambivalence may serve to legitimize the status quo

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