Background/Purpose As a component of Self-Determination Theory, Cognitive Evaluation Theory (CET) posits that intrinsic motivation increases student desire to participate in sport and physical activity (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Scanlan et al., 1989). Teacher feedback may affect student perceived competence (PC), a construct of CET which influences intrinsic motivation, as they participate in physical education (Deci & Ryan, 2000). The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between feedback type on student perceived competence in physical education.
Method Students (n=285) from two northwest Florida middle schools participated in this study. Participants were assigned to small groups and then completed a lacrosse shooting task receiving one of three randomly-assigned treatment conditions (general positive, informational correctional, or no feedback). Participants completed a post-task PC questionnaire (Cronbach's alpha=.83) from the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (McCauley, Duncan, & Tamman, 1989).
Analysis/Results A one-way post-task ANOVA revealed differences between treatment groups [F(2,283)=12.38, p<.001]. Tukey's post-hoc revealed that PC of participants receiving general feedback was significantly higher than participants receiving informational feedback (p<.001) and no feedback (p<.001). No mean difference was found between the general feedback and no feedback group (p>.05).
Conclusions Results indicate that when students in middle school physical education receive informational corrective feedback, they may have lower post-task PC, even when compared to students who receive no feedback. Conversely, positive general feedback may lead to greater PC which, according to CET, influences intrinsic motivation. Middle school educators who are interested in motivating students may need to consider the type of feedback they use in class.
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