Motivation for exercise is a multi-dimensional
psychological characteristic influenced by an individual’s
intrinsic aspects, such as preferences, desires and fears,
and their extrinsic experiences, such as social acceptance,
friendship, abilities and competences (Weinberg & Gould,
2011). At a time when the adoption of physically active habits
has been promoted in all sectors of the population (Haskell
et al., 2007; WHO, 2010), it is essential that the main motives
for specific population groups to exercise be evident, seeking
to contribute to their adherence and minimize possible
dropouts. The present study aimed to identify motivational
factors associated with exercise in a representative sample
of university students. This approach enables the identification
of the motivational characteristics of different strata
of individuals who exercise or could be exercising, making
available relevant information that promotes more effective
interventions aimed at encouraging exercise in the university
environment.
In general, disease prevention was the main factor of
motivation for exercise indicated by university students. The
following factors pointed out by them were also associated
with extrinsic motivation: physical fitness, body weight
management, physical appearance and stress management.
An important finding was the fact that leisure/well-being
and affiliation, two relevant factors associated with intrinsic
motivation, ranked significantly lower than other factors
traditionally associated with extrinsic motivation and similarly
to health rehabilitation. Factors associated with competition
and social recognition were ranked as attributes with a lower
motivational level by university students. When the reasons
to exercise were analyzed by sex, women were found to
attribute a significantly higher level of importance to body
weight management and physical appearance, whereas men
considered the motives associated with physical fitness and
competition to be more important. Evidence available in the
literature confirms the trend of females selecting aesthetical
reasons to exercise more frequently than men, who tended
to value attributes associated with challenge and personal
competence (Andrade Bastos et al., 2006; Brunet & Sabiston,
2011; Cagas et al., 2010; Kilpatrick et al., 2005; Wilson & Rodgers, 2002). This is an interesting finding, as it suggests
the occurrence of similarities in the level of importance given
by women and men to the attributes associated with intrinsic
motivation and the existence of significant differences in
the attributes associated with extrinsic motivation between
sexes.
With regard to age, although the mean values found for
competition were comparatively lower than the remaining
motivational factors, university students aged < 20 years
attributed a significantly higher importance to this factor
than others aged > 30 years, thus confirming the typical
predisposition of younger individuals to face challenges and
test their personal competence (Yan & Mccullagh, 2004).
University students aged > 30 years reported they were significantly
more motivated to exercise for reasons associated
with disease prevention, body weight management and
health rehabilitation than younger students. Similar results
were identified in previous studies (Andrade Bastos et al.,
2011; Brunet & Sabiston, 2011; Netz & Raviv, 2004) and they
can be justified by the concern for health inherent in the
advance of age.
It is hypothesized that the theoretical model of adherence
to exercise associated with the belief in health can provide a
plausible explanation for the significant differences
observed in this context. In this case, even when considering
that the harm to health caused by physical inactivity can be
present from an early age, individuals only tend to adopt
concepts of health promotion and disease prevention/
rehabilitation with regard to exercise when they grow older,
as they perceive the threat of and their vulnerability to
diseases.
Previous studies have also pointed to favorable evidence
of the possible relationship between economic class and
motivational factors for exercise (Withall et al., 2011). In the
present study, university students belonging to higher family
economic classes were significantly more motivated to
exercise than less privileged students, as observed through
body weight management and physical appearance. In this
case, in agreement with the results found in studies with
adolescents (Ingledew & Sullivan, 2002), it is assumed that,
due to the context in which university students are found,
those with a higher family economic level would be more
concerned about aesthetical reasons to exercise, causing
them to seek to achieve a slim body and a body image that
meets the aesthetic standards imposed by modern society.
Among the university students who reported exercising, the
level of motivation associated with stress management,
leisure/well-being and affiliation became significantly higher
with the increase in the level of experience with exercise.
The level of motivation associated with disease prevention,
health rehabilitation and social recognition did not have any
significant impact on the intention to exercise and length of
experience with exercise. However, university students who
reported not exercising or exercising for less than six months
attributed significantly less importance to stress management,
leisure/well-being and affiliation and, inversely,
significantly more importance to body weight management
and physical appearance than those with longer experience
with exercise.
These results are consistent with the findings from other
studies that reported different motivations for adherence to
and maintenance of exercise (Frederick-Recascino &
Schuster-Smith, 2003; Malby & Day, 2001). In the present
study, although rewards associated with extrinsic motivation
are defined as key aspects in the initial stages of adherence
to exercise, theoretical and empirical pieces of evidence point
to the importance of rewards related to intrinsic motivation
for the maintenance of such practice (Ryan et al., 1997).
Likewise, beginners are usually more oriented towards
results, unlike those who are more experienced and report
their preference for reasons associated with subjective
aspects of exercise, such as pleasure, well-being, satisfaction
and the opportunity to be with friends (Buckworth &
Dishman, 2002). A possible reason for this behavior could
be associated with the fact of individuals who have begun
exercising more recently not being yet aware of the benefits
that exercising can provide to the psycho-social dimension.
However, from the moment that these benefits are perceived,
they begin to act as a powerful incentive to continue
exercising.
With regard to the impact that the BMI, an indicator
associated with overweight and obesity, can have on
motivational factors for exercise, the level of motivation of
the two factors related to aesthetics, body weight management
and physical appearance, rose significantly according
to increasing values of body weight, especially among
women. This observation confirms the results of previous
studies with regard to the concern and dissatisfaction with
one’s body image expressed by young adults with
overweight and obesity (Ingledew & Sullivan, 2002; Kim &
Lee, 2011), thus having repercussions on the level of
importance attributed to aesthetical reasons to exercise.
Additionally, health reasons were more valued by
university students with overweight. Those with a BMI > 30
kg/m2 reported they were more motivated to exercise due to
factors associated with disease prevention and health
rehabilitation than others with a BMI < 25 kg/m2. These
findings show that obese students have a clear perception
of the risks of excess weight to health and, consequently,
they can adhere to exercise motivated by this context. In
contrast, types of behavior regulated by the intrinsic
dimensions of motivation, represented by factors associated
with stress management, leisure/well-being and affiliation,
were more significant motivational agents for university
students with a normal weight to exercise than others with
overweight or obesity. The findings of this study can be
interpreted in the light of the self-determination theory (Deci
& Ryan, 1985; Hagger & Chatzisarantis, 2008). In this case,
when intrinsically motivated, it seems that physically active
individuals tend to become involved with exercise for the
pleasure and satisfaction inherent in their own practice, when
in fact this practice meets their psychological needs for
autonomy, competence and self-realization. When extrinsically
motivated, individuals seek to become involved with exercise primarily to meet the externally imposed demands
or to obtain rewards that are attributed through their practice.
Thus, different motivational approaches can lead to distinct
cognitive, emotional and behavioral consequences.
A longitudinal follow-up has shown that reasons
identified in intrinsic dimensions, rather than extrinsic ones,
are more effective and likely to be maintained for longer
(Vierling, Standage, & Treasure, 2007). Thus, individuals
intrinsically motivated to exercise should be more likely to
adhere to this practice than those extrinsically motivated. In
addition, experimental observations revealed that many
individuals begin exercising due to weight loss and health
reasons; however, few of them continue to exercise regularly
unless they find pleasure and satisfaction in their practice
(Weinberg & Gould, 2011).
The present study had some limitations that must be
taken into consideration. In this sense, it should be
emphasized that the information about motivational factors
for exercise were self-reported. However, self-reporting is a
procedure used in studies with these characteristics and the
most viable way to perform large scale surveys. On the other
hand, the sample size enables possible inaccuracy in the
es
แรงจูงใจออกกำลังกายนั้นมีหลายระดับลักษณะทางจิตวิทยาของแต่ละที่มีผลต่อด้าน intrinsic ลักษณะ ความปรารถนา และความ กลัวและ ประสบการณ์การสึกหรอของพวกเขา เช่นการยอมรับทางสังคมมิตรภาพ ความสามารถ และ competences (Weinberg & Gould2011) ทีเมื่อของนิสัยการใช้งานจริงได้ส่งเสริมในทุกภาคส่วนของประชากร (Haskellร้อยเอ็ด al., 2007 , 2010) มันเป็นสิ่งสำคัญว่า หลักไม่สนคำครหาสำหรับกลุ่มประชากรเฉพาะการออกกำลังกายได้ชัด แสวงหาการมีส่วนร่วมต่าง ๆ ของพวกเขาลดได้ตก การศึกษามีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อระบุหัดปัจจัยที่เกี่ยวข้องกับการออกกำลังกายในตัวอย่างพนักงานของนักศึกษามหาวิทยาลัย วิธีนี้ช่วยให้รหัสลักษณะการหัดของชั้นต่าง ๆบุคคล ที่ออกกำลังกาย หรืออาจจะออกกำลังกาย ทำมีข้อมูลที่เกี่ยวข้องอย่างมีประสิทธิภาพมากขึ้นมาตรการที่มุ่งส่งเสริมการออกกำลังกายในมหาวิทยาลัยสภาพแวดล้อมทั่วไป การป้องกันโรคเป็นปัจจัยหลักของแรงจูงใจออกกำลังกายตามที่นักศึกษามหาวิทยาลัย ที่ปัจจัยต่อไปนี้ชี้ให้เห็น โดยพวกเขามีความเกี่ยวข้องมีแรงจูงใจที่สึกหรอ: กาย น้ำหนักจัดการ ลักษณะทางกายภาพ และความเครียดการค้นหาที่สำคัญมีความจริงที่ พัก/well-beingและ สังกัด สองปัจจัยที่เกี่ยวข้องสัมพันธ์กับ intrinsicmotivation, ranked significantly lower than other factorstraditionally associated with extrinsic motivation and similarlyto health rehabilitation. Factors associated with competitionand social recognition were ranked as attributes with a lowermotivational level by university students. When the reasonsto exercise were analyzed by sex, women were found toattribute a significantly higher level of importance to bodyweight management and physical appearance, whereas menconsidered the motives associated with physical fitness andcompetition to be more important. Evidence available in theliterature confirms the trend of females selecting aestheticalreasons to exercise more frequently than men, who tendedto value attributes associated with challenge and personalcompetence (Andrade Bastos et al., 2006; Brunet & Sabiston,2011; Cagas et al., 2010; Kilpatrick et al., 2005; Wilson & Rodgers, 2002). This is an interesting finding, as it suggeststhe occurrence of similarities in the level of importance givenby women and men to the attributes associated with intrinsicmotivation and the existence of significant differences inthe attributes associated with extrinsic motivation betweensexes.With regard to age, although the mean values found forcompetition were comparatively lower than the remainingmotivational factors, university students aged < 20 yearsattributed a significantly higher importance to this factorthan others aged > 30 years, thus confirming the typicalpredisposition of younger individuals to face challenges andtest their personal competence (Yan & Mccullagh, 2004).University students aged > 30 years reported they were significantlymore motivated to exercise for reasons associatedwith disease prevention, body weight management andhealth rehabilitation than younger students. Similar resultswere identified in previous studies (Andrade Bastos et al.,2011; Brunet & Sabiston, 2011; Netz & Raviv, 2004) and theycan be justified by the concern for health inherent in theadvance of age.It is hypothesized that the theoretical model of adherenceto exercise associated with the belief in health can provide aplausible explanation for the significant differencesobserved in this context. In this case, even when consideringthat the harm to health caused by physical inactivity can bepresent from an early age, individuals only tend to adoptconcepts of health promotion and disease prevention/rehabilitation with regard to exercise when they grow older,as they perceive the threat of and their vulnerability todiseases.Previous studies have also pointed to favorable evidenceof the possible relationship between economic class andmotivational factors for exercise (Withall et al., 2011). In thepresent study, university students belonging to higher familyeconomic classes were significantly more motivated toexercise than less privileged students, as observed throughbody weight management and physical appearance. In thiscase, in agreement with the results found in studies withadolescents (Ingledew & Sullivan, 2002), it is assumed that,due to the context in which university students are found,those with a higher family economic level would be moreconcerned about aesthetical reasons to exercise, causingthem to seek to achieve a slim body and a body image thatmeets the aesthetic standards imposed by modern society.Among the university students who reported exercising, thelevel of motivation associated with stress management,leisure/well-being and affiliation became significantly higherwith the increase in the level of experience with exercise.The level of motivation associated with disease prevention,health rehabilitation and social recognition did not have anysignificant impact on the intention to exercise and length ofexperience with exercise. However, university students whoreported not exercising or exercising for less than six monthsattributed significantly less importance to stress management,leisure/well-being and affiliation and, inversely,significantly more importance to body weight managementand physical appearance than those with longer experiencewith exercise.These results are consistent with the findings from otherstudies that reported different motivations for adherence toand maintenance of exercise (Frederick-Recascino &Schuster-Smith, 2003; Malby & Day, 2001). In the presentstudy, although rewards associated with extrinsic motivationare defined as key aspects in the initial stages of adherenceto exercise, theoretical and empirical pieces of evidence pointto the importance of rewards related to intrinsic motivationfor the maintenance of such practice (Ryan et al., 1997).Likewise, beginners are usually more oriented towardsresults, unlike those who are more experienced and reporttheir preference for reasons associated with subjectiveaspects of exercise, such as pleasure, well-being, satisfactionand the opportunity to be with friends (Buckworth &Dishman, 2002). A possible reason for this behavior couldbe associated with the fact of individuals who have begunexercising more recently not being yet aware of the benefitsthat exercising can provide to the psycho-social dimension.However, from the moment that these benefits are perceived,they begin to act as a powerful incentive to continueexercising.With regard to the impact that the BMI, an indicatorassociated with overweight and obesity, can have onmotivational factors for exercise, the level of motivation ofthe two factors related to aesthetics, body weight managementand physical appearance, rose significantly accordingto increasing values of body weight, especially amongwomen. This observation confirms the results of previousstudies with regard to the concern and dissatisfaction with
one’s body image expressed by young adults with
overweight and obesity (Ingledew & Sullivan, 2002; Kim &
Lee, 2011), thus having repercussions on the level of
importance attributed to aesthetical reasons to exercise.
Additionally, health reasons were more valued by
university students with overweight. Those with a BMI > 30
kg/m2 reported they were more motivated to exercise due to
factors associated with disease prevention and health
rehabilitation than others with a BMI < 25 kg/m2. These
findings show that obese students have a clear perception
of the risks of excess weight to health and, consequently,
they can adhere to exercise motivated by this context. In
contrast, types of behavior regulated by the intrinsic
dimensions of motivation, represented by factors associated
with stress management, leisure/well-being and affiliation,
were more significant motivational agents for university
students with a normal weight to exercise than others with
overweight or obesity. The findings of this study can be
interpreted in the light of the self-determination theory (Deci
& Ryan, 1985; Hagger & Chatzisarantis, 2008). In this case,
when intrinsically motivated, it seems that physically active
individuals tend to become involved with exercise for the
pleasure and satisfaction inherent in their own practice, when
in fact this practice meets their psychological needs for
autonomy, competence and self-realization. When extrinsically
motivated, individuals seek to become involved with exercise primarily to meet the externally imposed demands
or to obtain rewards that are attributed through their practice.
Thus, different motivational approaches can lead to distinct
cognitive, emotional and behavioral consequences.
A longitudinal follow-up has shown that reasons
identified in intrinsic dimensions, rather than extrinsic ones,
are more effective and likely to be maintained for longer
(Vierling, Standage, & Treasure, 2007). Thus, individuals
intrinsically motivated to exercise should be more likely to
adhere to this practice than those extrinsically motivated. In
addition, experimental observations revealed that many
individuals begin exercising due to weight loss and health
reasons; however, few of them continue to exercise regularly
unless they find pleasure and satisfaction in their practice
(Weinberg & Gould, 2011).
The present study had some limitations that must be
taken into consideration. In this sense, it should be
emphasized that the information about motivational factors
for exercise were self-reported. However, self-reporting is a
procedure used in studies with these characteristics and the
most viable way to perform large scale surveys. On the other
hand, the sample size enables possible inaccuracy in the
es
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