Exercise Motivation Inventory Research Articles

An Investigation of the Relationship Between Body Composition, Social Physique Anxiety, and Exercise Motives

Health and fitness professionals widely promote physical activity recommendations as put forth by ACSM, however, according to recent data from the CDC, only 20.2% of U.S. adults currently meet the combined recommendation for aerobic exercise and strength training on a weekly basis. The possibilities of factors that may impact this lack of exercise compliance is infinite. Variations among individuals in terms of body composition and psychological variables may have synergistic functions and may differ by age. PURPOSE: Investigate the relationship between body composition, exercise motivations, social physique anxiety (SPA), exercise confidence, and exercise stage of change (SOC) among adults across the age span. METHODS: 192 participants (males = 89, females = 103) completed a demographic questionnaire, the Stages of Change for Exercise—Short Form, Social Physique Anxiety Scale, Exercise Confidence Survey, and Exercise Motivations Inventory-2, and body composition via DEXA. RESULTS: One-way ANOVA revealed that males were more motivated by social recognition (p = 0.003), affiliation (p = 0.029), and competition (p < 0.001); females were more motivated by weight management (p = 0.050) and appearance (p < 0.001). Males also had lower SPA (28.20 ± 9.71 vs. 35.25 ± 10.87) (p < 0.001), higher exercise confidence (24.91 ± 13.31 vs. 30.42 ± 17.32) (p = 0.016), and were more likely to be maintainers for SOC (p = 0.006). Age was correlated to weight management (r = 0.305, p < 0.001), ill-health avoidance (r = 0.271, p < 0.001), social recognition (r = -0.258, p < 0.001), health pressures (r = 0.219, p = 0.002), nimbleness (r = 0.204, p = 0.004), challenge (r = -0.232, p = 0.001), and appearance (r = 0.172, p = 0.017). %BF was correlated to weight management (r = 0.495, p < 0.001), enjoyment (r = -0.427, p < 0.001), competition (r = -0.374, p < 0.001), revitalization (r = -0.351, p < 0.001), social recognition (r = -0.303, p < 0.001), challenge (r = -0.280, p < 0.001), stress management (r = -0.274, p = 0.001), affiliation (r = -0.159, p = 0.027), and ill-health avoidance (r = 0.153, p = 0.034). CONCLUSIONS: While exercise motivations changed and %BF increased with age, overall males had different exercise motivations, lower SPA, lower %BF, higher exercise confidence, and were more likely to be maintainers than females, regardless of age.

Weight Management and Appearance Motivate Non-Competitive CrossFit Participants

Exercise motives help explain initiation and adherence to exercise programs. As CrossFit (CF) has grown in popularity, the number of competitions has grown accordingly. CF aims to “forge a broad, general and inclusive fitness,” and some may do CF for fitness reasons rather than desiring competition. PURPOSE: To determine if motives for current CF participants differed between those who chose to compete or not at multiple levels. METHODS: Participants included 736 adults (age = 32.5 ± 8.1y, 52.7% male, BMI = 25.6 ± 3.9, 63.9% 1+ years CF experience) who completed an online survey. Over half (59.3%) completed CF workouts 4+ days/week. Participants indicated if they competed in any local competitions, the CF Open, CF Regionals, or CF Games. Participants completed the 51-item Exercise Motivation Inventory (EMI-2) with responses from 0-not at all true for me to 5-very true for me. The EMI-2 contained 14 sub-scales. One-way ANOVAs were used to examine differences between non-competitors and competitors of 1+ levels with SPSS 20. RESULTS: Non-competitors (G0) comprised 38.5% of the sample (n = 282); followed by those competing either in a local competition or the CF Open (G1; 26.1% n = 192); competing at two levels (G2; 26.6%, n = 196); competing at three levels (G3; 6.0%, n = 44); or competing at all four levels (G4; 2.8%, n = 21). Significant differences were found between groups for subscales Revitalization (p = .004), Enjoyment (p < .001), Challenge (p = .002), Social Recognition (p < .001), Affiliation (p < .001), Competition (p < .001), Weight Management (p < .001), Appearance (p = .005), and Strength & Endurance (p = .016). Tukey post hoc tests indicated G0 had significantly lower scores for Revitalization (vs G2, G3), Enjoyment (vs G2, G3), Challenge (vs G3), Social Recognition (vs G2, G3), Affiliation (vs G1-G3), and Competition (vs G1-G4). However, G0 had significantly higher scores for Weight Management (vs G2-G4) and Appearance (vs G4). No significant post hoc differences were found for Strength & Endurance. CONCLUSIONS: Although non-competitors had similar BMIs to the competitive groups (p = .60), they reported significantly greater motives for weight management and appearance. Understanding the different motives between groups can help CF trainers and coaches work with participants to initiate and sustain their CF exercise.

Effect of Motivation by "Instagram" on Adherence to Physical Activity among Female College Students.

Objective. To investigate the efficacy of using “Instagram application” with a “home-exercise program” as a motivational stimulus in improving physical activity (PA) adherence levels among female college students. Methods. Fifty-eight female undergraduate students with the mean age 20.3 ± 0.96 years participated. Participants were divided into two groups: intervention and the control group; both the groups received an exercise program and the intervention group was additionally motivated by “Instagram.” Adherence to PA was measured by using an adherence sheet. The Exercise Motivation Inventory (EMI-2) was used to assess the motivational factors. Results. The most frequent motivational factors were extrinsic as assessed using the EMI-2. “Positive health” was the most frequent factor mentioned of the two types with 47% of the sample. The intervention group adhered with 17% more to the activity program compared to the control group. Moreover, 72% of the participants in the intervention and control groups found the activity program flexible enough to be performed at home; they agreed about its effectiveness on adherence (53%). Conclusions. The use of Instagram with the home exercise program as a motivational modality could be attractive and effective to reinforce adherence and maintain an appropriate PA level.

Technology and physical activity motivation

Technological devices have evolved into a popular social trend becoming a part of many people's daily life. As a result, technology devices are becoming more commonly used for different tasks and activities. The current study examined if wearing a Nike Fuelband (FB) SE increased physical activity (PA) motivation for an adult population. The research design included an 8-week, pre-/post-test intervention. The inclusion of the FB SE served as the research intervention. Participants (n = 42) included two convenient samples located in Colorado and Nebraska. Prior to study investigation, participants were trained how to use all the functions of the device, associated Nike+ Connect program, and given additional resources for reference. Participants completed the Exercise Motivation Inventory-2 before device training and post 8 weeks. Pre- and post-data were analysed using a paired t-test. The current study reports that significant differences were present among the measured constructs of affiliation, enjoyment, challenge, and positive health motivation. Participants who used the FB reported a significant increase in the motivation constructs of affiliation, enjoyment, challenge, and positive health motivation over an 8-week intervention. This study suggests that electronic activity-tracking devices can be valuable tools for behaviour change, aiding efforts to increase adult PA levels and decrease trends of obesity.

University Students’ Motives to Exercise According to the Self-Determination Theory

The present study investigated exercise behavior and its motives among Sultan Qaboos University students. Self-determination theory was used to investigate the relationship between these motives and the actual exercise behavior. The study sample consisted of 263 students from the Faculty of Education at Sultan Qaboos University (129 male and 134 female). The participants completed two questionnaires: an exercise behavior questionnaire which was developed specifically for this study; and an Arabic version of the Exercise Motivation Inventory (EMI-2), which was developed by Markland and Ingledew. Descriptive statistics showed that 20% of male students and 77% of female students didn’t participate at all in any sport and exercise activities; 45% of male students and 21% of female students participated moderately in sport and exercise activities (2-3 times a week); while 35% of the male students and 2% of the female students participated intensively in sport and exercise activities (almost on daily basis). Results indicated that intrinsic motives for exercise behavior (challenge, revitalization, health, affiliation and enjoyment) were common among the male participants. However, physically active females, extrinsic motivations (ill-health avoidance, positive health, revitalization, weight management, and appearance) were the major driving forces for their exercise behavior. Results of the current study provide support for the application of the self-determination theory within the Arab context.

University Students’ Motives to Exercise According to the Self-Determination Theory

The present study investigated exercise behavior and its motives among Sultan Qaboos University students. Self-determination theory was used to investigate the relationship between these motives and the actual exercise behavior. The study sample consisted of 263 students from the Faculty of Education at Sultan Qaboos University (129 male and 134 female). The participants completed two questionnaires: an exercise behavior questionnaire which was developed specifically for this study; and an Arabic version of the Exercise Motivation Inventory (EMI-2), which was developed by Markland and Ingledew. Descriptive statistics showed that 20% of male students and 77% of female students didn’t participate at all in any sport and exercise activities; 45% of male students and 21% of female students participated moderately in sport and exercise activities (2-3 times a week); while 35% of the male students and 2% of the female students participated intensively in sport and exercise activities (almost on daily basis). Results indicated that intrinsic motives for exercise behavior (challenge, revitalization, health, affiliation and enjoyment) were common among the male participants. However, physically active females, extrinsic motivations (ill-health avoidance, positive health, revitalization, weight management, and appearance) were the major driving forces for their exercise behavior. Results of the current study provide support for the application of the self-determination theory within the Arab context.

The impact of incentives on intrinsic and extrinsic motives for fitness-center attendance in college first-year students.

A criticism of incentives for health behaviors is that incentives undermine intrinsic motivation. The objective of this study was to determine the impact of monetary incentive provision on participation motives for exercise in first-year college students at a northeastern public university. Randomized-controlled trial. Public university in the Northeastern United States. One hundred seventeen first-year college students. Participants were randomized to one of three conditions: a control condition receiving no incentives for meeting fitness-center attendance goals; a discontinued-incentive condition receiving weekly incentives during fall semester 2011, and no incentives during spring semester 2012; or a continued-incentive condition receiving weekly incentives during fall semester, and incentives on a variable-interval schedule during spring semester. The Exercise Motivation Inventory 2 measured exercise participation motives at baseline, end of fall semester, and end of spring semester. Fitness-center attendance was monitored by using ID-card check-in/check-out records. Repeated-measures analyses using linear mixed models with first-order autoregressive covariance structures were run to compare motive changes in the three conditions. Participation motives of Enjoyment and Revitalization associated with intrinsic motivation did not decrease significantly over time in any of the conditions, F(4, 218) = 2.25, p = .065 and F(4, 220) = 1.67, p = .16, respectively. Intrinsically associated participation motives for exercise did not decrease with incentive provision. Therefore, incentives may encourage fitness-center attendance without negatively impacting participation motives for exercise.

Gender Differences in South African Generation Y Students’ Motives for Engaging in Physical Activity

Whilst the literature provides significant evidence of the benefits of engaging in physical activity and its influence on reducing certain dreaded illnesses, there are indications that the levels of physical activity amongst the youth are declining globally. The Generation Y cohort comprises individuals born between 1986 and 2005, and in 2013, this cohort made up an estimated 38 percent of the South African population. As today’s youth, this cohort’s physical and mental wellbeing has important current and future economic implications, not only to the country’s health care system but also to its labour market. Successfully encouraging members of this cohort to engage in physical activity necessitates having a clear understanding of their motives to participate in physical activity. The purpose of this study was to determine whether gender differences exist concerning Generation Y students’ motivation for participating in physical activity. A survey questionnaire that included the Exercise Motivation Inventory-2 (EMI-2) was administered on a sample of 450 students registered at the campuses of three higher education institutions (HEIs) in the Gauteng Province of South Africa. The captured data was analysed using descriptive statistics and a two-independent samples t-test. The findings suggest that Generation Y females are more motivated to engage in physical activity by the motives of health pressure, ill-health avoidance, positive health, weight management and appearance. In contrast, Generation Y males are more motivated to engage in physical activity by intrinsic motives such as enjoyment, challenge, competition, and strength and endurance. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n21p195

The influence of physical activity, sport and exercise motives among UK-based university students

Recent evidence suggests that the majority of the adult population fails to achieve the recommended target of 30-minutes moderate intensity exercise, days a week. This includes university students who often have the time to engage in physical activity. The aim of this study was to determine exercise motives for a UK-based student population. The motives of 736 participants (± 20.45 years of age, SD=3.50) regarding participation or non-participation in free-time exercise, sport and physical activity were measured using the Exercise Motivation Inventory-2 (EMI-2). Significant main effects were reported for age (P = 0.1) and gender (P = 0.1). Students over 23 years of age reported higher levels of motivation than the other age groups (i.e. for stress, revitalisation and avoidance of ill health). The results of this study indicate that the motivation of UK university students to engage in physical activity or exercise demonstrates gender and age differences. These findings should enable health professionals and health educators in university environments to design preventative programmes aimed at reducing multiple risk behaviours among university populations. These could include gender-specific exercise programmes underpinned by appearance motives for female university populations.

Motivos de los ciudadanos para realizar ejercicio físico: un estudio desde la teoría de la autodeterminación

Based on self-determination theory, the objective of this study was to analyze the relationship between the reasons for exercise and its reported weekly frequency in a representative sample of an adult urban population. A total of 918 inhabitants, aged between 16 and 89, participated in this study answering the Spanish version of the Exercise Motivations Inventory-2 (EMI-2) and reporting on their exercise frequency. Controlling for the influence of age and gender, multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) showed that participants who reported the highest exercise frequency had the highest score on both self-determined and controlling exercise motives, except the ill-health avoidance motive. The results support propositions of self-determination theory, and suggest that citizens may internalize exercise behaviour as they become more physically active. However, the results also suggest that some controlling motives are pertinent to exercise. Decision makers of the local sport policy should look into suitable ways of combining both controlling motives and more internalized motives in order to produce long lasting exercise adherence in citizens.

A Comparison of Motivational Factors and Barriers to Physical Activity Among Traditional Versus Nontraditional College Students

Objective: To investigate the motivational factors and the barriers to physical activity (PA) in traditional college students (TS) and nontraditional college students (NTS) and determine if differences exist between these 2 groups. Participants: A total of 746 college students; 628 were TS (19.1 ± 1.2 years), and 118 were NTS (31.2 ± 8.6 years). Methods: In fall 2010, students voluntarily completed a demographic questionnaire, Barriers to Being Active Quiz, and Exercise Motivations Inventory–2 (EMI-2). Results: EMI-2 revealed that TS and NTS differed on 8 of the 14 motivational factors for exercise. There was a significant difference between TS and NTS for the following barriers: fear of injury (p = .001), lack of resources (p = .017), and lack of skill (p = .003). Conclusion: Based on these findings, interventions can be developed for the varied needs of a diverse student population as it pertains to PA participation.

Exercise Engagement Is Differentially Motivated by Age-Dependent Factors

To examine exercise engagement motives from adolescence throughout the adult life span using the Exercise Motivation Inventory 2 questionnaire. Two hundred fifty-five (255) participants, 13 - 84 years and equally representing both genders, were grouped by age and sex. An age-dependent engagement in voluntary exercise was observed. Young adults engage in exercise based on interpersonal motives, whereas exercise engagement in middle age is associated with body-related motives and psychological motives. Health motives influence exercise engagement beyond middle age whereas fitness motives underpin exercise engagement throughout the life span beyond childhood. Data indicate age-dependent motivational factors for exercise engagement that may hold important implications for exercise adherence and engagement strategies.

Influence of Age, Sex, and Race on College Students’ Exercise Motivation of Physical Activity

Objective: The authors examined differences in exercise motivation between age, sex, and race for college students. Participants: Students from 156 sections of physical activity classes at a midsize university were recruited (n = 2,199; 1,081 men, 1,118 women) in 2005–2006 and volunteered to complete the Exercise Motivation Inventory. Methods: Quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive research design was employed. Results: Significant differences were found in 3 of 14 exercise motivational subscales by age (affiliation, health pressures, and ill health avoidance) (p < .05). Males were motivated by intrinsic factors (strength, competition, and challenge) (p < .05) and females by extrinsic factors (ie, weight management and appearance) (p < .05); only 2 subscales proved not to be significant by sex. Race differences provided 8 significant differences by exercise motivations (p < .05). Conclusions: Significant differences for exercise motivations in college-aged population by demographics were documented. Understanding these differences is important for college health professionals for programming strategies and promoting physical activity.

Exercise motives of long-term phase IV cardiac rehabilitation participants

Objectives To identify the exercise motives of long-term phase IV cardiac rehabilitation participants. Design A two-stage triangulation approach was used where more than one methodology is used, either sequentially or concurrently, in a study. Setting Phase IV cardiac rehabilitation classes held in the community. Participants Fifty-five phase IV participants (30 men aged 66 ± 7.4 years and 25 women aged 69 ± 6.5 years) completed the Exercise Motivation Inventory (EMI-2). Four women and five men were in the focus groups (men aged 65 ± 5.7 years and women aged 68 ± 5.4 years). All the participants had attended phase IV exercise sessions for at least 5 years. Results Motivational drivers of ill-health avoidance and positive health were consistently rated highly by men and women, as were social support and fun. Intrinsic motivational drivers of nimbleness, enjoyment and revitalisation were also rated highly by men and women. Only two areas were rated significantly higher by men [i.e. attachment to the group), 3 (2.5 to 3.8) for males and 2.5 (2.0 to 3.0) for females ( P = 0.022); and stress management, 3.3 (1.4 to 4.3) for males and 2 (1.4 to 3.0) for females ( P = 0.028). Weight management, competition, challenge, appearance and social recognition were consistently given a low rating by men and women. Conclusions Key motivational factors influence exercise participation. For rehabilitation providers, it is important to have an understanding of these factors and furthermore be able to shape and adapt programmes to promote uptake and maintain exercise adherence.

A Cross Sectional Investigation of Age and Exercise Motivation

Despite the undisputed health benefits attributed to an active lifestyle, most individuals choose not to participate in regular physical activity. Accordingly, ongoing efforts are aimed at better understanding exercise motivation with the end of improving exercise adherence trends. PURPOSE: We undertook this study with the aim of documenting motives for exercise participation throughout the lifespan. METHODS: We employed the 51 question Exercise Motivation Inventory-2 (EMI-2) to identify motives for engaging in exercise. To evaluate age-specific variations in exercise motivation, subjects were grouped according to age. RESULTS: 254 subjects aged 13–84 years completed EMI-2 questionnaires equally representing both genders across the five age divisions. Traditional EMI-2 analysis using two-way ANOVA (p < 0.05) revealed significant age-specific differences in 13 of 14 sub-categories, largely independent of gender. EMI subcategories were further collapsed into the following thematic groups of exercise motivation: “external/extrinsic”, “interior/intrinsic”, “health concerns”, “physical ability”, and “psychological factors”. Statistical assessment of thematic data indicate that young adults are more likely to engage in exercise for interior/intrinsic reasons while middle age is associated with external/extrinsic and psychological concerns. Finally, health concerns motivate exercise participation in the three oldest age divisions while physical ability appears to motivate exercise participation throughout the lifespan. CONCLUSIONS: With the exception of physical ability concerns, our data indicate that exercise participation is related to age-dependent motivational factors. These findings have important implications for exercise adherence and engagement strategies.

Motivation, Psychological Distress and Exercise Adherence Following Myocardial Infarction

AbstractFifty patients with myocardial infarction were recruited from a hospital based Cardiac Education and Assessment Program (CEAP) in Sydney, Australia. The Exercise Motivation Inventory-2 (EMI-2) and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS) were administered prior to commencement in the program and re-administered by telephone interview at 5-month followup. Four exercise adherence measures were completed: attendance, exercise stress test, self-report ratings and a 7-day activity recall interview. There was a 46% adherence rate for MI patients during the hospital based CEAP. Of those individuals who completed CEAP, 91% obtained functional improvement on the exercise stress test. For the 38 patients who were followed-up by telephone interview at 5 months, 71% were exercising according to CEAP prescription. Higher levels of anxiety were associated with lower levels of self-reported exercise adherence. The 3 strongest motivations for exercise in this group of MI patients were all health related; wanting to be free from illness, maintaining good health and recovering from the effects of coronary heart disease. The discussion highlights the implications of these findings for cardiac rehabilitation programs and the need for empirically driven guidelines for measuring exercise adherence.