Effects of a Motivational Climate on Psychological Needs Satisfaction, Motivation and Commitment in Teen Handball Players

• Main Authors: Marianna Alesi, Manuel Gómez-López, Carla Chicau Borrego, Diogo Monteiro, Antonio Granero-Gallegos
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2019-07-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: Coach; self-determined motivation; team sports; sports adherence; performance
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/15/2702

The aim of this study was to examine the effects of the motivational climate created by the coach and perceived by a group of young high-performance handball players on their sport motivation, self-determination, sport psychological needs and sport commitment. The study participants were 479 young handball players. The age range was 16&#8722;17 years old. Players were administered a battery composed of a Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire, Sport Motivation Scale, the Basic Psychological Needs in Exercise Scale and Sport Commitment Questionnaire to measure the above-mentioned theoretical constructs. Results showed that the handball players showed high levels of a task-involving climate, of basic psychological needs satisfaction and of self-determined motivation and commitment. Higher levels of basic psychological needs such as autonomy and competence were associated with a higher task-involving climate, self-determined index and sport commitment (task-involving climate&#8722;basic psychological needs (&#946; = 0.55; 95% IC 0.387/0.682; <i>p</i> = 0.001); Ego-involving climate&#8722;basic psychological needs (&#946; = 0.06; 95% IC &#8722;0.069/0.181; <i>p</i> = 0.387); Basic psychological needs&#8722;self-determined index (&#946; = 0.48; 95% IC 0.376/0.571; <i>p</i> = 0.001); Self-determined index&#8722;commitment (&#946; = 0.58; 95% IC 0.488/0.663; <i>p</i> = 0.001). The obtained model showed that basic psychological needs mediated the association between a task-involving climate and self-determination, and self-determination mediated the association between basic psychological needs satisfaction and commitment.