Self-determination theory posits that satisfaction of the needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness represents the basic nutriments for humans' optimal functioning. It also postulates that with greater the degree to which these three needs are equally satisfied, the quality of motivation is further enhanced. Yet, this premise has remained…

The relationships that students have with their parents and peers permeate their lives both inside and outside of the classroom. The purpose of the present exploratory study is to assess (a) the psychometric quality of measures gauging the latent variables of adolescents' perceptions of their relatedness to both parents and peers and (b) the…

This study tested moderators of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) based on geographical region, gender, race, and income among adolescents in an exercise context using multigroup path analyses. Participants were eighth- and ninth-grade students from Louisiana (LA; N = 448, M[subscript age] = 14.37 years) and Pennsylvania (PA; N = 681,…

Epistemic beliefs are deeply held convictions about the nature of knowledge, knowing, and learning. In this study, approximately 500 ninth and tenth-grade physical education (PE) students completed fitness-specific measures assessing their epistemic beliefs in the simplicity and stability of knowledge and the speed of its acquisition along with…