ERIC Number: EJ1346998
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2022-Aug
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1356-336X
EISSN: EISSN-1741-2749
The Relationships among Motivational Climate, Perceived Competence, Physical Performance, and Affects during Physical Education Fitness Testing Lessons
Huhtiniemi, Mikko; Sääkslahti, Arja; Tolvanen, Asko; Watt, Anthony; Jaakkola, Timo
European Physical Education Review, v28 n3 p594-612 Aug 2022
Despite the prominence of fitness testing in school physical education (PE), there is a sparsity of research examining the antecedents of students' affective experiences during fitness testing lessons. This study aimed to investigate the associations among task- and ego-involving motivational climates, perceived physical competence, physical performance, enjoyment, and anxiety during two different types of PE fitness testing lessons. Altogether, 645 Finnish students from Grade 5 (50% boys, M[subscript age] = 11.2, SD = 0.36) and Grade 8 (47% boys, M[subscript age] = 14.2, SD = 0.35) participated in two fitness testing lessons with different content (lesson 1: 20-meter shuttle run test and a test of flexibility; lesson 2: curl-ups, push-ups, 5-leaps, and a catching-throwing combination test). Students' experiences were collected using short questionnaires immediately after the lessons. Structural equation modeling was applied to examine the direct and indirect associations among study variables. Results indicated that task-involving climate and perceived competence increased students' enjoyment and decreased their anxiety levels whereas ego-involving climate had no effect on students' enjoyment but increased their anxiety levels. In addition, students' actual physical performance as a mediator between motivational climate and affects, or as a direct predictor of affects, was limited. Strategies advancing task-involving motivational climate and students' perception of competence should be employed to increase enjoyment and decrease anxiety during PE fitness testing lessons.
Descriptors: Student Motivation, Educational Environment, Competence, Physical Fitness, Physical Education, Testing, Elementary School Students, Grade 5, Grade 8, Secondary School Students, Foreign Countries
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education; Grade 5; Intermediate Grades; Middle Schools; Grade 8; Junior High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Finland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A