INVESTIGATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ATHLETES' FRIENDLY RELATIONSHIP AND SPORT PARTICIPATION MOTIVATIONS

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this research is to examine the motivation of participation in sports and the level of peer relations of wrestling athletes according to the benefit of Athlete Training Centers and to determine the predictive power of peer relations on the motivation of participants to participate in sports. Method: The sample group of the study included 225 Athletes' Training Centres (SEM) boarding in 21 regions, 142 beneficiaries on a daytime basis and 503 wrestlers in a total of 136 who did not benefit at all. The ages of the participants ranged from 12 to 18 (Mean age= 16). Participants selected with the easy sampling method answered the "Peer Relationship Scale" (Atik, Cok, Coban, Dogan, & Karaman, 2014) and the "Motivation to Participate in Sports" (Oyar, Asci, Celebi, & Mulazımoglu, 2001). After testing of the base assumptions required for the parametric testing, descriptive statistics for the analysis of the data, Kruskal Wallis H, Mann Whitney U, ANOVA, Pearson Correlation regression tests were used. Results and Conclusion: It was determined that the motivation of participants to participate in sports and sub-factors of success/status, team membership/spirit, physical fitness/energy expenditure differed in favor of boarders, competition, movement/activeness and skill development factors in favor of daytime ones. No difference is observed in the entertainment and friendship factors depending on their location in SEM. On the other hand, while the total score and protection factors of the peer relationship are not different from the status of staying in SEM, the factors of togetherness and intimacy differ in favor of the boarders and the conflict and proximity factors differ in favor of the daytime ones. As a result of the regression analysis, it was determined that peer relations were a significant predictor of the participants' motivation to participate in sports.