Competitive Swimmers’ Interpretation of Motivational Climate Rebecca C. Trenz, M.A. Fordham University Psychology of Motivation

Background Motivational Orientation in the Classroom Much of the research on developing appropriate motivational goals in the classroom points to the importance of creating a mastery orientated climate that is salient to the student. A motivational climate that places value on effort, enhances perceived competence and self-efficacy beliefs, fosters intrinsic motivation, autonomy, and persistence is recommended. The type of motivational orientation a student adopts is at least partially dependent on how the student interprets the reality of the classroom environment (Ames & Archer, 1988). Ames (1992) illustrates three categories that are central elements in the design of the classroom environment that promote a mastery orientation: tasks, evaluation and recognition, and authority.

Background Motivational Orientation in Sport Roberts and Treasure (1995) assert that adults play an important role in creating the motivational climate for their athletes. When athletes adopt a mastery orientation in sport, they are more satisfied, enjoy their experience, and adopt adaptive achievement strategies. Autonomy, competence, and relatedness are positively correlated with the perception of the coach’s mastery orientation across the season (Reinboth & Duda, 2004). Characteristics of the mastery oriented coach are praising an athlete’s personal progress, valuing everyone’s role on the team, and an over-all task-involved climate.

Research Questions 1.Can swimmers accurately identify motivational climate? 2.What characteristics of the motivational climate do swimmers prefer?

Method Participants  150 competitive swimmers (75 male, 75 female); mean age 15  All participants are members of USA Swimming from the Metropolitan area. Procedure  Swimmers will complete this experiment via an internet website. 1.After consent is obtained swimmers will be given a login ID to enter the website. 2.Demographic data will be collected (age, gender, ability). 3.Swimmers will be randomly assigned to view one of two coaching videos. Mastery Coach or Performance Coach 4.Swimmers will complete PMCSQ-2 and open-ended questions. 5.A debriefing statement will follow the completion of the questionnaires.

Materials Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire-2  PMCSQ-2; Newton, et al., 2000  33-item measure  Stem “On this team…” and is followed by a 5-point scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).  Mastery oriented scale includes 17 items e.g. “On this team, trying hard is rewarded”  Performance oriented scale includes 16 items e.g. “On this team, the coach gives most of his or her attention to the ‘stars’ ”

Materials Open-Ended Questionnaire 1.What was the coach doing in the video? 2.Why was the coach doing what she was doing in the video? 3.What characteristics did you like about the coach in the video? 4.What characteristics did you dislike about the coach in the video? 5.Are there any characteristics of the coach that you would change? 6.Are there any characteristics of the coach that you thought were missing and you would like to add? 7.How did you feel about the coaching style depicted in the video? 8.Would you like to have this coach as your own?  Why or why not?

Data Analysis PMCSQ-2  Two mean scores are obtained: Mastery oriented climate and performance oriented climate Open-Ended Questionnaire  Responses will be coded into one of four categories: 1.Utility (e.g. what to do and how to do it) 2.Mastery (e.g. understanding of task, task enjoyment) 3.Performance (e.g. overt evaluations of performance, or comparisons of performance) 4.Social (e.g. statements referring to interpersonal relationships)

Results Summary Swimmers who watch the mastery oriented coach will have significantly higher mean scores on the mastery climate subscale of the PMCSQ-2 than swimmers who watch the performance oriented coach. Swimmers who watch the performance oriented coach will have significantly higher mean scores on the performance climate subscale of the PMCSQ-2 than swimmers who watch the mastery oriented coach. Responses to the open-ended question will be coded into four categories: Utility MasteryPerformanceSocial

Conclusions The motivational climate that the coach establishes through cues and feedback affects the motivational goals that the athlete will adopt. To enhance a mastery oriented climate in the competitive sport setting, coaches should evaluate athletes based on personal improvement and effort, as well as demonstrate and emphasize the importance of interpersonal skills. The development of a social component may speak to the importance of the interpersonal relationship between coach and swimmer. The interpersonal relationship between a coach and a swimmer may be an integral part of the mastery oriented climate that is often overlooked in sport and may ultimately translate into psychological benefits for the swimmer.