Achievement Goals and Physical Activity Participation and Attitudes

In the United States, more than 60% of the population fails to achieve the minimum recommended amounts of moderate physical activity on most days of the week (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2000). Without question, researchers will gain a better understanding of physical activity behaviors and potential interventions with theoretical approaches. Achievement goal theory is a social-cognitive theory that has been tremendously helpful over the last 30 years in the domain of physical activity (Biddle, 1999; Duda, 2005). Achievement goal theory (Nicholls, 1989; Roberts, 1992) is concerned with the individual's subjective interpretation of success corresponding to two achievement goal orientations: task and ego. A task oriented individual's action is primarily motivated by personal mastery or improvement. In contrast, an ego oriented individual strives to demonstrate high levels of normative ability. Achievement goal theory proposes that these ego oriented individuals will be motivationally fragile when their competence is perceived as low or in doubt (Nicholls, 1989; Roberts, 1992). Researchers have established that the two orientations are not mutually exclusive; thus, they have begun ‘goal profiling' by the use of cluster analysis (Fox et al., 1994). In addition to achievement goal theory, the last 10 years has seen a movement towards Elliot's (1997) integration of the approach and avoidance to the task (mastery) and ego (performance) constructs. This 2 x 2 framework (mastery approach, mastery avoidance, performance approach, and performance avoidance) also clearly allows for ‘goal profiling' as individuals may again hold multiple goals (Wang et al., 2008). Over the last 15 years, a number of investigations that span from adolescents to master sport athletes using both achievement goal theories have utilized cluster analysis with self-reported physical activity participation (e.g., Hodge et al., 2008; Lochbaum et al., 2007; Wang & Biddle, 2001; Wang et al., 2002; 2007) as well as several other indicants of physical activity attitudes such intrinsic motivation, enjoyment, intention. Hence, by using Lochbaum et al. (2007) as an example, the purposes of this presentation are (1) to provide an overview of achievement goal theories, (2) to explain why goal orientation theory allows for theoretical as well as useful classifications, (3) to explain how cluster analysis was conducted, and (4) to provide clear guidelines to practitioners at all levels as to how to target low motivated profiles and thus intervene to improve attitudes towards physical activity and physical activity participation itself across the lifespan.