Dispositional and Situational Goal Orientations as Discriminators Among Recreational and Competitive League Athletes

Abstract

The present study examined the relationship between individual goal orientation, motivational team climate, perceived sport competence, and league structure among 216 youth soccer players. It was predicted that competitive league teams would report higher ego-involvement and performance-oriented team climate and lower sport competence than recreational teams. Discriminant analyses indicated that only the mastery-oriented team climate variable differentiated competitive and recreational teams. Athletes who participated in recreational teams reported a greater degree of mastery-oriented climate than competitive league players. The results suggest that athletes' perceptions of situational rather than dispositional aspects of achievement goals are more highly affected by the playing structure present in youth sport teams. The possible psychological benefits derived from the development of a mastery-oriented team climate in sports are discussed.

Learning and motivation in multiple contexts: the development of a heuristic framework

“…Formal elements of context have also been examined in learning and motivation in the domain of sport, where Anshel (1994) found that factors such as features of sporting competitions impacted on athletes' performance. Differences in aspects of individual motivation have also been found between academic and sporting domains (Duda and Nicholls 1992), between different types of sports (Halvari and Thomassen 1997) and between different competitive and recreational sporting leagues (Ryska and Yin 1999).…”

The Relationship Between Sources of Information and Perceived Competence Across a Sports Season: A Planned Missing Data Approach

“…Competitive versus recreational. The level of play, recreational versus competitive, is a vital source of information because the particular achievement goal orientation that a youth athlete adopts might be affected by situational factors present within an evaluation setting, such as a mastery-climate or a performance-climate (Ryska & Yin, 1999). Mastery climates tend to promote positive affect towards the team, more adaptive learning strategies and greater challenge seeking behaviour.…”

“…Mastery climates tend to promote positive affect towards the team, more adaptive learning strategies and greater challenge seeking behaviour. In contrast, a performance climate encourages normative, or other-referenced, standards of success, that typically produce lower perceived competence after failure outcomes (Ryska & Yin, 1999). Ryska and Yin (1999) found, using descriptive discriminant analysis, that athletes who perceived their team's motivational climate to be predominantly mastery-oriented were involved in recreational play.…”

“…In contrast, a performance climate encourages normative, or other-referenced, standards of success, that typically produce lower perceived competence after failure outcomes (Ryska & Yin, 1999). Ryska and Yin (1999) found, using descriptive discriminant analysis, that athletes who perceived their team's motivational climate to be predominantly mastery-oriented were involved in recreational play. Ryska and Yin (1999) expected that youth athletes who played competitive sports would report higher levels of ego, higher perceived performance climate and lower perceived competence compared to those playing recreational sports who would report higher levels of mastery-involvement, higher perceived mastery climate and higher perceived competence.…”

“…Ryska and Yin (1999) found, using descriptive discriminant analysis, that athletes who perceived their team's motivational climate to be predominantly mastery-oriented were involved in recreational play. Ryska and Yin (1999) expected that youth athletes who played competitive sports would report higher levels of ego, higher perceived performance climate and lower perceived competence compared to those playing recreational sports who would report higher levels of mastery-involvement, higher perceived mastery climate and higher perceived competence. However, only mastery climate significantly discriminated recreational and competitive athletes.…”