Grit, Self-Efficacy, Motivation and the Readiness to Change Index Toward Exercise in the Adult Population

Abstract

This study examined the relationships between grit personality, self-efficacy, motivation (autonomous, controlled, and amotivation), and the readiness to change index toward exercise. Participants were 391 adults aged between 18 and 64 years old (M = 31.16; SD = 12.45) from Hermosillo, Sonora (Mexico) who completed questionnaires (i.e., the Grit Personality Scale, the Exercise Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, the Treatment Self-Regulation Questionnaire and the Stages of Change Questionnaire for Physical Activity) measuring the variables of interest. The reliability of the instruments was tested using Cronbach's alpha, whereas confirmatory factor analyses were performed for each instrument separately. A measurement model and a structural equation model were assessed as well. The results of the structural equations model showed that grit personality was positively associated with self-efficacy, and in turn, with autonomous motivation and with the readiness to change index. On the other hand, self-efficacy was negatively correlated with controlled motivation, and positively correlated with the readiness to change index. Finally, self-efficacy also showed a negative correlation with amotivation, which, in turn, was negatively correlated with the readiness to change index. These results provide information to develop psychological intervention programs based on grit personality and motivation, with the aim of increasing the number of participants who engage in exercise.

Behavioral experiments confirm that interventions with psychological factors facilitate weight management: a prospective cohort study

“…It was noticed that the exercise addicts in the participants were consistent with the overall level of the population through EAI [32,33], Grit-S [34,35] and TSRQ [29,36] scores. Considering that information such as temperature and humidity during running was already di cult to obtain through recall, only Frequency, Distance, and Time were used to approximate the running patterns of the participants before the study.…”

“…For the Grit-S, the total level of grit was the average of the scores of all questions, and the different dimensions of grit were the average of the scores of the questions of that dimension [12,15]. For the TSQR analysis [29][30][31], the motivation level for each dimension was obtained by calculating the average of question scores for each of the three dimensions separately. Note that since amotivation is not a type of motivation, the averages of the three dimensions of motivation could not be simply summed to obtain the total motivation level.…”

“…Grit personality was related to self-e cacy, and it was related to effort, the subdimension of girt, but not interest [14]. Self-e cacy was de ned as people's belief in their ability to organize and execute the necessary action processes to achieve a speci c achievement [46], such as changing behaviors related to a speci c habit.…”

“…Treatment Self-Regulation Questionnaire (TSRQ). Motivation was measured using the Chinese version of the TSRQ, which included 15 questions and covered three sub-dimensions of motivation, namely amotivation, controlled, and autonomous [29]. This questionnaire was a commonly used questionnaire to measure motivation to exercise currently [30] and had shown acceptable validity and reliability.…”

Research Bites

“…In a 2021 study, De La Cruz et al (2) wanted to examine the relationship between a grit-oriented personality and self-efficacy, various aspects of motivation, and readiness to change with regard to exercise. In Sonora, Mexico, 391 adults (18–64 years old; 48% male and 52% female) completed questionnaires, including the Grit Personality Scale, the Exercise Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, and the Stages of Change Questionnaire for Physical Activity.…”