title: Relationships among goal orientations, motivational climate and flow in adolescent athletes: differences by gender.
abstract: The purpose of this investigation was to examine the relationships among perceived motivational climate, individuals' goal orientations, and dispositional flow, with attention to possible gender differences. A sample of 413 young athletes, ages 12 to 16 years, completed the Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire-2 (PMCSQ-2) and Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ), as well as the Dispositional Flow Scale. Task orientation was positively and significantly related to a perceived task-involving motivational climate and to the disposition to experience flow in the sport. Ego orientation was positively and significantly associated with a perceived ego-involving motivational climate and with dispositional flow. The perceptions of task-involving and ego-involving motivational climates were positively and significantly linked to general dispositional flow. Multiple regression analysis indicated that both task and ego goal orientations and perceived task- and ego-oriented climates predicted dispositional flow. Males displayed a stronger ego orientation, and were more likely to report that they participated in an ego-oriented climate, than did females. To the contrary, the females were more likely to perceive a task-oriented climate than did the males. No meaningful differences were found between males and females in general dispositional flow.
authors.affiliation: Facultad de Ciencias del Deporte, Universidad de Murcia, San Javier, Murcia, Spain. morenomu@um.es
authors.forename: Juan Antonio
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Moreno Murcia
authors.forename: Eduardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cervelló Gimeno
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: González-Cutre Coll
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D054874:Athletic Performance; D001290:Attitude; D002605:Character; D003674:Defense Mechanisms; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012649:Self Concept; D013177:Sports / Q000523:psychology*