Having a Positive Relationship to Physical Activity: Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction and Age as Predictors for Students’ Enjoyment in Physical Education

Abstract

Physical activity is fundamental to prevent common illnesses in youth and research shows that students who perceive enjoyment in physical education (PE) have a more physically active lifestyle. This study aims to identify psychological antecedents of student enjoyment in PE. We addressed this by assessing aspects of self-determination theory (SDT), including the extent of autonomy-supportive teaching in PE (reported by teachers), the satisfaction of students’ basic psychological needs, and student age (reported by students), via questionnaires. Correlational and multiple linear regression analyses of the collected data of N = 170 students (M = 14.3 ± 2.20, 10–19 years of age) and N = 10 teachers show that autonomy support is related to autonomy satisfaction in students (r = 0.20, p < 0.01). In turn, student perception of autonomy correlates with competence (r = 0.64, p < 0.001) and belonging (r = 0.37, p < 0.001). All three basic psychological needs predict enjoyment in PE (F(1, 163) = 19.59, R2 = 0.68, p < 0.01). Additional analyses show that higher student age predicts a decrease in enjoyment (ΔR2 = 0.04, B = −0.73, β = −0.21, p < 0.01). Thus, student enjoyment in PE, as a foundation for a physically active lifestyle, can help to prevent common illnesses by satisfying basic psychological needs in PE.

Students’ Perceptions in Online Physical Education Learning: Comparison Study of Autonomy, Competence, and Relatedness in Saudi Students during the COVID-19 Lockdown

“…Positive correlations were detected between the three variables of psychological needs satisfaction and the variables of gender, experience in online learning, hours of sleep, and the type of PA undertaken during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown; however, no correlation was detected with GPA and the frequency of PA. This result verified the findings of recent research [ 37 ], which showed that competence is strongly related, autonomy is moderately to strongly related, and relatedness is moderately related to enjoyment in PE. In a previous study [ 35 ], the presence of a high correlation was observed between the three psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness) and exercise intensity (moderate to strenuous) [ 18 , 39 ].…”

“…Indeed the present findings showed higher values of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in the group of students that slept for more than six hours per day and in the group practicing PA (i.e., walking, aerobic exercise, muscular training, and other) in comparison to the group that had less than five hours of sleep and the group with no PA practice, respectively. The high correlations between autonomy, competence, and relatedness indicated the high relationships between these variables and their interdependence within PNS, which verified recent findings that reported high correlations between autonomy, competence, and relatedness in PE students [ 17 , 37 ] and adult active members [ 35 ]. Thus, as reported in other research [ 37 , 38 ], we can conclude that changes in one of the psychological needs induce changes in the others in PE students.…”

“…The high correlations between autonomy, competence, and relatedness indicated the high relationships between these variables and their interdependence within PNS, which verified recent findings that reported high correlations between autonomy, competence, and relatedness in PE students [ 17 , 37 ] and adult active members [ 35 ]. Thus, as reported in other research [ 37 , 38 ], we can conclude that changes in one of the psychological needs induce changes in the others in PE students.…”

“…The study design was cross-sectional and therefore not suitable for conclusions concerning causal links between the study variables. This study did not assess the relationship between psychological needs and PE students’ enjoyment during online lessons [ 37 , 43 ] or the effect of synchronous versus asynchronous online learning environments [ 44 ], which may represent possible future orientations for research. Moreover, it would be interesting to compare PE student profiles of PNS during and post-pandemic lockdown to better understand the influence of the restriction measures and the online learning.…”

The Effect of Physical Activity on the Memory of Schoolchildren

“…The topic of children's health and development is always relevant (Leisterer and Gramlich, 2021;Jussila et al, 2022;Peterson et al, 2022;Silva et al, 2022). From early childhood and throughout life, people try to make health stable, stable to the effects of adverse factors.…”