Abstract
The aim of study is to expand the knowledge of motives of Slovak high school students to participate in sports (at school but also in extracurricular activities after school) and identify the differences between boys and girls in adolescent age. The research group consisted of 318 high school students (boys: n = 154, 16.77 ± 1.01 years old and girls: n = 164, 16.54 ± 1.14 years old) from various areas of Slovakia. The questionnaire Exercise Motivations Inventory was used as the research tool. The questionnaire contains 54 items to which the respondent answers on the Likert scale. Kolmogor-Smirnov’s test did not confirm the normality of the research group’s data. The nonparametric Mann-Whitney U test was used to evaluate the significance of the differences in motives between girls and boys. For effect size was calculated coefficient r. The most important motive to participate in sport for boys is motive to gain strength and endurance and for girls is motive positive health. We can see significant differences in motives to participate in sports between girls and boys, where boys have higher score in motives affiliation (p = 0.001, r = 0.18), appearance (p = 0.012, r = 0.14), social pressure (p = 0.006, r = 0.15), social recognition (0.001, r = 0.29) and strength and endurance (p = 0.001, r = 0.23). Significantly higher score girls have in motive weight management (p = 0,009, r = 0.15). Our results can help teachers of physical education, trainers, sport educators and parents to plan thematic units, sport activities, which are of interest and attractive in age of adolescence.
Highlights
Whitehead (2004) thinks about question, why only less than a quarter of the population is engaged in regular sporting activity, when there is an evidence of the health benefits of physical activity over the past 20 years
The research group consisted of 318 high school students from various areas of Slovakia
Adolescence is an important milestone in which young people can create and adopt an active lifestyle, but nowadays there is a change in reducing the frequency and quality of physical activity and a greater incidence of sedentary behavior
Summary
Whitehead (2004) thinks about question, why only less than a quarter of the population is engaged in regular sporting activity, when there is an evidence of the health benefits of physical activity over the past 20 years. The answer to this question finds in psychology area – in motivation. According to Švancara (2004) motivation has a function in which the most important is to satisfy the needs of human, which may be due to lack of being. The role of motivation in this case is to arrive at a certain goal and that is to satisfy the needs. The role of motivation in this case is to arrive at a certain goal and that is to satisfy the needs. Murphy, Nevill, Neville, Biddle and Hardman (2002), treat the motivation as an inner strength that arises between people and their acts to propel them mutually
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