- Home
- What is the purpose of this website?
- Development of confidence theories
- Taking Action
- Theories Blogs
- Forum
- Suggested Reading
- About
- Contact
- Bibliography
Purpose of website
Figure 1: Reasons for participation in sport (Weiss & Williams, 2004; author's ideas)
Overview
As will be explained through this website, confidence is impacted by motivation. If one thinks about motivation to do something, words such as, impelled, incited, or excited should be evoked. As such, a brief explanation of motivation should help enlighten the concepts described hereafter.
There are many theories of motivation as to why an athlete chooses to participate in an activity and the degree to which an attempt is made to master the skills necessary to perform such activities well (Weiss & Williams, 2004). These choices can be influenced by many sources such as socio-economic status, gender, culture, peer relationships, disability, and inclusiveness (Anderssen & Wold, 1992; Bell, 1997; Kirk, 2005; Lirgg, 1992). Abbott and Collins (2004) state that a lack of fundamental skills to perform an activity will likely erode the self-efficacy beliefs required to continue participation.
Additionally, expectations of the attempts of performance mastery are integral to the level of motivation and, consequently, the commitment to improve (Bandura, 1977). Both Bandura (1997) and Horn and Harris (2002) further suggest that perceived and actual competence are critical factors in children's motivation to continue to engage in athletic activities over time. Thus, actual competence allows for the athlete the opportunity of choice. For instance, if an athlete shows proficiency in an activity, they can choose to continue to engage said activity, vs they have little to no proficiency in a given activity, the choice is either made for them by not being chosen to play or they self-select out of the activity. But, perceived competence facilitates the motivation to persist in spite of difficulty (Bailey et al., 2010).
Thus, motivation and confidence are very much intertwined; however, not necessarily in every case. While motivation must exist for confidence to flourish (otherwise, why bother engaging in the activity?), confidence need not be present for someone to be motivated to do something (Roberts, Kleiber, & Duda, 1981).
Motivation to participate
Children from all walks of life participate in, and cease to participate in athletics for a variety of reasons (Gould, 1982). Some of the strongest motives are the opportunity to make close social contacts, the opportunity to do something well, the opportunity for excitement, and the opportunity for social recognition, enjoyment, and approval of achievements (Seefeldt, Ewing, & Walk, 1992; Weiss & William, 2004; Williams, J., 2001).
As a coach, I have heard other less noble reasons from athletes such as simply trying to “pad” their school transcripts with a variety of activities to look more attractive to colleges, avoid going home, because a sibling is involved, or being told to by their parent or guardian regardless of their feelings to engage in athletics (Figure 1- lower right quadrant). The last reason has been frequently couched in the explanation of developing better fitness levels.
Interestingly, another element of understanding an athlete’s desire to
participate in physical activities can be seen in the reasons chosen to stop playing. This is typically seen as athletes get older (later teens) where levels of ability become more obvious, and differences become more pronounced. Furthermore, it was found that children between 10 and 14 stopped competing in swimming, in particular, because they desired to do other things, whereas those between 15 and 18 had more social reasons for dropping out (Gould, Feltz, Horn, & Weiss, 1982). For these reasons, it is important to recognize that age-relatedness affects an athlete’s motivation and subsequent levels of perceived competence.
As will be explained through this website, confidence is impacted by motivation. If one thinks about motivation to do something, words such as, impelled, incited, or excited should be evoked. As such, a brief explanation of motivation should help enlighten the concepts described hereafter.
There are many theories of motivation as to why an athlete chooses to participate in an activity and the degree to which an attempt is made to master the skills necessary to perform such activities well (Weiss & Williams, 2004). These choices can be influenced by many sources such as socio-economic status, gender, culture, peer relationships, disability, and inclusiveness (Anderssen & Wold, 1992; Bell, 1997; Kirk, 2005; Lirgg, 1992). Abbott and Collins (2004) state that a lack of fundamental skills to perform an activity will likely erode the self-efficacy beliefs required to continue participation.
Additionally, expectations of the attempts of performance mastery are integral to the level of motivation and, consequently, the commitment to improve (Bandura, 1977). Both Bandura (1997) and Horn and Harris (2002) further suggest that perceived and actual competence are critical factors in children's motivation to continue to engage in athletic activities over time. Thus, actual competence allows for the athlete the opportunity of choice. For instance, if an athlete shows proficiency in an activity, they can choose to continue to engage said activity, vs they have little to no proficiency in a given activity, the choice is either made for them by not being chosen to play or they self-select out of the activity. But, perceived competence facilitates the motivation to persist in spite of difficulty (Bailey et al., 2010).
Thus, motivation and confidence are very much intertwined; however, not necessarily in every case. While motivation must exist for confidence to flourish (otherwise, why bother engaging in the activity?), confidence need not be present for someone to be motivated to do something (Roberts, Kleiber, & Duda, 1981).
Motivation to participate
Children from all walks of life participate in, and cease to participate in athletics for a variety of reasons (Gould, 1982). Some of the strongest motives are the opportunity to make close social contacts, the opportunity to do something well, the opportunity for excitement, and the opportunity for social recognition, enjoyment, and approval of achievements (Seefeldt, Ewing, & Walk, 1992; Weiss & William, 2004; Williams, J., 2001).
As a coach, I have heard other less noble reasons from athletes such as simply trying to “pad” their school transcripts with a variety of activities to look more attractive to colleges, avoid going home, because a sibling is involved, or being told to by their parent or guardian regardless of their feelings to engage in athletics (Figure 1- lower right quadrant). The last reason has been frequently couched in the explanation of developing better fitness levels.
Interestingly, another element of understanding an athlete’s desire to
participate in physical activities can be seen in the reasons chosen to stop playing. This is typically seen as athletes get older (later teens) where levels of ability become more obvious, and differences become more pronounced. Furthermore, it was found that children between 10 and 14 stopped competing in swimming, in particular, because they desired to do other things, whereas those between 15 and 18 had more social reasons for dropping out (Gould, Feltz, Horn, & Weiss, 1982). For these reasons, it is important to recognize that age-relatedness affects an athlete’s motivation and subsequent levels of perceived competence.