Motor ability and self-esteem: The mediating role of physical self-concept and perceived social acceptance

Abstract

Objectives: One important issue in sport and exercise psychology is to determine to what 1 extent sports and exercise can help to increase self-esteem, and what the underlying 2 mechanism might be. Based on the exercise and self-esteem model (EXSEM) and on findings 3 from the sociometer theory, the mediating effect of physical self-concept and perceived social 4 acceptance on the longitudinal relationship between motor ability and self-esteem was 5 investigated. Design: Longitudinal study with three waves of data collection at intervals of ten 6 weeks each. Method: 428 adolescents (46.3 % girls, Mage = 11.9, SD = .55) participated in the 7 study, in which they performed three motor ability tests and completed paper-and-pencil 8 questionnaires for physical self-concept and perceived social acceptance, as well as for self-9 esteem, at all three measuring points. Results: Using structural equation modelling 10 procedures, the multiple mediation model revealed both physical self-concept and perceived 11 social acceptance to be mediators between motor ability and self-esteem in the case of boys. 12In girls, on the other hand, the mediation between motor ability and self-esteem only takes 13 place via physical self-concept. Conclusions: Gender differences in the relationship between 14 motor ability and self-esteem suggest gender-specific interventions aimed at promoting self-15 concept. 16Key-words: sport competence, self-perceptions, adolescents, gender, structural 17 Global self-esteem is traditionally seen as a central indicator for mental health and an 22 explanatory variable for human behaviour (Rosenberg, 1965). People with high self-esteem 23 are more emotionally stable, less prone to experiencing depression and display higher 24 academic achievements (Marsh & O'Mara, 2008). From a multidimensional perspective on 25 the self, which is now widely accepted in many psychological disciplines, global self-esteem 26 marks the apex of the hierarchically organized and multidimensionally structured self-concept 27 (Shavelson, Hubner, & Stanton, 1976). Moving from the top to the bottom, the term 'self-28 concept' is reserved for evaluations in discrete domains such as academic, social, emotional 29 and physical domains, and thus refers to domain-specific self-perceptions or self-conceptions 30 (Harter, 2012). In recent years, various scientific disciplines (e.g. educational, sport or 31 developmental psychology) have adopted a multidimensional perspective by the fact that 32 domain-specific self-perceptions are more suitable for predicting specific behaviour (Marsh & 33 O'Mara, 2008), that it is easier to influence specific facets through interventions (Schmidt, 34Valkanover, Roebers, & Conzelmann, 2013), and that they are more strongly related to 35 corresponding external criteria (Möller, Pohlmann, Köller, & Marsh, 2009). In addition, a 36 multidimensional perspective of the self allows the relationship between domain-specific self-37 perceptions and global self-esteem to be examined, as well as their inter...

Global self-esteem, perceived athletic competence, and physical activity in children: A longitudinal cohort study

“…This result is (partly) in contrast to other longitudinal studies. Significant associations have been found in both boys and girls, with even stronger associations in boys (e.g., Schmidt, Blum, Valkanover, & Conzelmann, 2015). We have no clear explanation for our results.…”

Moderating Effects of Physical Activity and Global Self-Worth on Internalizing Problems in School-Aged Children With Developmental Coordination Disorder

“…It is worth noting that sex has been previously identified to be an important factor influencing physical activity, global self-worth, and internalizing problems in school-aged children. For example, compared to boys, girls have been found to be less physically active ( Cairney et al, 2010 ), have lower levels of self-concept ( Schmidt et al, 2015 ), and report more internalizing problems ( Wade et al, 2002 ). Moreover, a previous study examining the mediating pathways from pDCD to internalizing problems in the ESH found that the underlying mechanisms through physical activity and global self-worth may also be sex specific.…”

Self-Concept in Adolescents—Relationship between Sport Participation, Motor Performance and Personality Traits

“…According to Conzelmann and Müller [ 2 ], no convincing proof has yet been provided that sport actually promotes personality development. However, the available data suggests that cognitive personality traits (e.g., self-concept) can be influenced more strongly through sporting activity than by static personality traits (global traits) [ 2 , 3 , 27 ]. Nevertheless, the causal direction here is unclear and cannot be clarified through the methodological approach [ 28 , 29 ].…”

“…The relationship between sport participation, personality development, self-concept and self-esteem has repeatedly been discussed within the framework of legitimation discussions in the sector of school sport. The research shows contradictory findings (see [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]). These contradictions concern, inter alia, the direction of causal associations of the investigated features.…”