Development of a motivation-based taxonomy of adult sport participants using a self-determination theory perspective.

Development of a motivation-based taxonomy of adult sport participants using a self-determination theory perspective.

Self-determination theory (SDT; Deci & Ryan, 1985, 1991; Ryan & Deci, 2000) has been prominent in investigations of the motivational dynamics of sport participation. SDT posits that motivation for participation in an activity may be either intrinsic, extrinsic, or amotivated. When individuals engage in a behaviour to obtain rewards, pay, or as a result of coercive pressures, the behaviour is said to be extrinsically motivated. In contrast, when the motive for a behaviour is the enjoyment derived from the process of participation, the behaviour is said to be intrinsically motivated. Amotivation is evident when there is a lack of intention to participate in an activity. According to Deci and Ryan (1985) extrinsic motivation can be differentiated into four sub-types, referred to as 'external regulation', 'introjected regulation', 'identified regulation' and 'integrated regulation'. For definitions of these types of extrinsic motivation see Deci and Ryan (1985). In addition, Deci (1975) and Vallerand and associates (Vallerand et al., 1992, 1993) suggested that intrinsic motivation can be differentiated into 'intrinsic motivation to know', 'intrinsic motivation to accomplish' and 'intrinsic motivation to experience stimulation'. These types of motivation (from amotivation to intrinsic motivation) are proposed to lie on a continuum ranging from lower to higher degrees of self-determination (Deci & Ryan, 1985). Research in a variety of life domains has shown that higher self-determination is associated with positive consequences whereas lower self-determination is associated with negative consequences.
Vallerand (1997) has suggested that pitting intrinsic against extrinsic motivation is not the most informative way to study human motivation. This is because various types of motives coexist within individuals in different degrees and they interact to influence behaviour. Hence, the purpose of the present study was to examine the configurations of motives for sport participation that characterise the motivation profiles of adult sport participants and to identify the configurations that correspond with the most and least positive consequences.