Predictability of sport participation motivation from metamotivational dominances and orientations

The hypothesis of a relationship among metamotivational dominances as asses sed by dominance scales, life metamotivational orientations (LifeMOs) and m ore specific metamotivational orientations towards sport and physical activ ity participation (SportMOs), derived from questionnaire responses, was tes ted using the framework of Reversal Theory. Regression analyses showed that participation motivation was weakly but reliably predictable from metamoti vational dominances in a large sample of Hong Kong school children and yout h (N=2346), and that SportMOs were similarly predictable from LifeMOs and d ominances in a sample of Hong Kong university entrants (N=3162). These find ings are interpreted as supportive of Reversal Theory, which would anticipa te low, but statistically significant relationships on the basis that motiv ation for behavior, in this case sport participation, is believed to be inf luenced by a complex interaction of situational variables, metamotivational states, metamotivational dominances and metamotivational orientations. The findings provide a better understanding of the relationships between the m otivational factors that influence sport participation. (C) 2001 Elsevier S cience Ltd. All rights reserved.