Background/Purpose Motivation is an essential ingredient in promoting student learning in physical education. This study investigated the effects of expectancy beliefs and task values, as self-initiated motivators in physical education, on ninth grade students' in-class and after-school physical activity behaviors as well as their performance in learning the knowledge associated with energy-balanced living.
Method Ninth grade students (N = 195; Girls: n = 115; Boys: n = 80) from two ethnically diverse public high schools in the United States contributed data on measures for expectancy beliefs, task values, energy-balance knowledge, in-class physical activity and after-school physical activity. The structural equation modeling tested the extent to which expectancy beliefs and task values affected the energy-balance knowledge, in-class and after-school physical activity participation.
Analysis/Results The study found that expectancy beliefs positively contributed to in-class physical activity (Standardized model parameter value = .32, p < .01) and that cost perceptions, as the negative aspect of task value, negatively affected after-school physical activity (Standardized model parameter value = -.42, p < .01). However, no significant paths from expectancy-value motivation to the energy-balance knowledge were detected (ps > .05).
Conclusions The study revealed that strong perception of expectancy beliefs for success can contribute to in-class physical activity behaviors; while high cost or strong barriers perceived in physical education may demotivate students to participate in leisure-time physical activity. The study suggests future research and practice should enhance adolescent students' expectancy beliefs and minimize cost perceptions while intervening in their physical activity behaviors.
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