EFFECT OF GOAL ORIENTATION ON ACHIEVEMENT BELIEFS, COGNITION AND STRATEGIES IN TEAM SPORT

Nicholls' motivation conceptual framework pertaining to achievement go als was used to study the relationship between two implicit goal orien tations (task and ego) and achievement cognitions and beliefs about th e competitive team sport experience. The study examined the relationsh ip between the goal orientations and purposes of team sport, motivatio nal climate, satisfaction, sources of satisfaction, achievement strate gies, and perception of ability in team sport. The subjects were 148 s tudents experienced in team sport at a Norwegian university. The scale s were translated specifically for the study and factor analyses used to determine the factor structure of the scales. Seventeen factors alo ng the 6 dimensions emerged, and canonical analysis determined that pr edominantly task-oriented subjects focused on health-related activitie s within purposes, preferred mastery climates and focused on mastery-o riented criteria to determine satisfaction and other achievement-relat ed beliefs. In contrast, predominantly ego-oriented subjects focused o n status enhancement for purpose, preferred performance-oriented clima tes and focused on ego-oriented criteria to determine satisfaction and other achievement beliefs.