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Success and failure in sports are not concrete events but rather psychological states that result from the perception of achieving or failing to reach specific goals (Maehr & Nicholls, 1980). The quality of an athlete's sporting experience is profoundly influenced by how success is defined and how their capabilities are judged (Duda, 1993). Achievement Goal Theory (AGT), as proposed by Nicholls (1984; 1989), posits that individuals are motivated by the desire to feel competent, but they can define competence and success in various ways, primarily through ego and task orientations.
In this comprehensive essay, we will delve into the essential principles of AGT, including ego and task orientations, approach and avoidance goals, motivational climates, and TARGET guidelines. Furthermore, we will analyze the motivational style of Coach Brent, who leads the Varsity rugby league team, and its impact on an 18-year-old athlete named Justin. Finally, we will explore theoretically grounded strategies that Coach Brent can employ to create a more appropriate motivational atmosphere for Justin and his team.
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“ She followed all my directions. It was really easy to contact her and respond very fast as well. ”
Coaches play a pivotal role in shaping athletes' motivational orientations (Ames, 1992).
According to AGT (Nicholls, 1984, 1989), individuals participating in achievement situations aim to demonstrate competence or avoid demonstrating incompetence. AGT identifies two distinct approaches athletes may adopt to assess their ability within a sporting context: ego-oriented and task-oriented. Ego-oriented individuals assess their ability relative to others and strive to demonstrate superior ability or outperform their peers, often emphasizing innate talent over effort (Nicholls, 1989). In contrast, task-oriented athletes evaluate their competence based on effort, task mastery, and personal improvement, emphasizing self-reflective assessments (Ames, 1992).
Extensive research consistently indicates the advantages of a task-oriented approach in sports and other achievement-related activities (Ames, 1992; Duda, 1993, 2001). Task-oriented athletes tend to exhibit positive outcomes such as enhanced physical and mental well-being, improved social interactions, and superior performance. They also demonstrate greater persistence in sporting tasks, higher engagement in training, and more effective cognitive processing strategies. Conversely, ego-oriented goals often lead to negative consequences, including a higher likelihood of dropping out of sport (Duda & Balaguer, 2007).
Furthermore, the athlete's goal orientation can be categorized into approach and avoidance goals within both ego and task domains, as proposed by Elliot (1999) and Pintrich (2000). Task-approach oriented athletes seek to master a task, while task-avoidance oriented athletes aim to avoid misunderstanding the task. On the ego side, ego-approach oriented athletes strive to demonstrate greater competence than their peers, while performance-avoidance oriented individuals seek to avoid appearing incompetent.
It's important to note that athletes can simultaneously hold multiple goals. For instance, an athlete may be both task-approach oriented and ego-approach oriented, indicating a desire to learn and master the material while also aspiring to appear more competent than others. The activation of specific goal states (levels of task and ego-orientation) in a given sport situation depends on individual preferences (goal orientation) and situational cues (motivational climate).
Studies highlight that athletes' goal orientations are influenced by both dispositional factors and contextual influences. The learning environment, including the coaching style, significantly affects the types of goals adopted by athletes in various contexts (Dweck, 1986; Cury, Biddle, Famose, Goudas, & Sarrazin, 1996; Spray, 2000). The motivational climate established by coaches can be broadly categorized into mastery or task-oriented and competitive or ego-oriented motivational climates (Ames, 1992).
In a task-oriented motivational climate, coaches prioritize cooperation, reward effort, and ensure that every team member has clear and meaningful roles. Mistakes are viewed as opportunities for improvement, and corrective feedback is provided. This environment fosters athletes who are confident, coachable, dedicated to shared goals, and who genuinely enjoy their sport.
Conversely, an ego-oriented climate emphasizes rivalry among players, has little tolerance for mistakes, and may exhibit favoritism. This environment tends to result in athletes experiencing higher levels of performance anxiety, self-doubt, and counterproductive behaviors (Duda & Balaguer, 2007; Ntoumanis & Biddle, 1999).
Research consistently shows that athletes in task-oriented climates report greater enjoyment, self-esteem, and intrinsic motivation to participate in their sport compared to those in ego-oriented climates (Duda & Balaguer, 2007; Ntoumanis & Biddle, 1999).
Feedback plays a pivotal role in defining an athlete's perception of "being the best." In a task-oriented climate, feedback emphasizes effort, improvement, and skill mastery, while in an ego-oriented climate, the focus is on win-loss records and individual ability. Coaches can influence athletes' goal orientations by emphasizing specific aspects of feedback during training and competition.
Coaches, therefore, wield significant influence in shaping athletes' perceptions of what it means to be the best. To achieve this, coaches must provide the appropriate types of goals within the right motivational climate.
Epstein (1989) identified the TARGET (Task, Authority, Recognition, Grouping, Evaluation, and Time) structures as influential factors that determine the motivation climate. Ames (1992) later adapted this acronym to summarize the structures fostering a mastery motivational climate in achievement situations. These structures play a crucial role in shaping athletes' perceived competence, enjoyment, and intentions to participate.
The Task (T) dimension pertains to the design of learning activities, Authority (A) involves participation in decision-making processes, Recognition (R) concerns the use of rewards to acknowledge progress and achievement, Grouping (G) relates to how athletes are divided into groups, Evaluation (E) encompasses assessment methods and criteria, and Time (T) deals with the appropriateness of time demands and task completion schedules.
Notably, the mastery TARGET structures of task, grouping, and time have the most positive impact on athletes' activity levels (Bowler, 2009).
Now, let's apply the theoretical foundations discussed above to analyze the motivational style employed by Coach Brent and its effects on Justin, the 18-year-old athlete.
Within Brent's team, an athlete named Justin is experiencing a noticeable decline in his enjoyment and motivation for rugby league. Justin attributes this change in motivation to the coaching style and team environment fostered by Brent, who is a relatively inexperienced coach. Brent, drawing from his own experiences as a player and being coached by various mentors, believes he can be a successful coach. However, the case study and existing literature strongly suggest that Brent's motivational approach is adversely affecting Justin's motivation to the extent that he is on the verge of quitting the sport altogether.
It would greatly benefit Brent to shift towards a more task-oriented coaching style as opposed to his current ego-oriented approach. Brent's ego-oriented motivational climate can be dissected into the six dimensions of the TARGET taxonomy (Epstein, 1989):
These ego-oriented practices have resulted in a highly ego-oriented motivational climate, which significantly influences the types of goal orientations that Justin adopts. The nature of Justin's goal orientation is determined by a combination of individual preference and the prevailing motivational climate.
Justin's motivational preference also appears to be highly ego-oriented. He believes that success hinges on comparing himself with others, whether during fitness training or in situations where recognition is at stake, such as aiming for a spot in national representative squads. Unfortunately, Justin is currently grappling with performance anxiety and self-doubt. He feels that he hasn't been given the opportunity to enhance his league skills and is anxious about losing his place on the New Zealand representative team. Instead of striving for task-oriented goals, he is exhibiting an ego-oriented goal orientation.
Furthermore, Justin is displaying signs of ego-avoidance orientation, where he is primarily focused on avoiding the perception of incompetence. He continues to participate in the sport primarily because he would feel guilty if he abandoned the season prematurely.
While the situation may seem challenging for Justin at this point in the season, there is still hope for improvement. In the following section, we will outline specific strategies that can be implemented to create a more adaptive and motivational sport environment for Justin.
In order to address the current coaching challenges and foster a more adaptive 'motivational' sport environment for Justin and his team, several strategies should be considered. Brent needs to reflect on his coaching style and make necessary changes, potentially seeking opportunities for further coaching education.
A promising approach for Brent is to enhance task involvement among his athletes, aligning with the TARGET (Epstein, 1989) conceptualization. This framework represents six structures of the achievement context that can significantly impact athletes' motivation. These situational structures are interdependent, meaning that changes in one dimension can have direct implications on another within the structure.
Now, let's explore how Brent can establish a more adaptive motivational climate by applying the principles of the TARGET guidelines. These strategies aim to foster a task-oriented environment that promotes athletes' confidence, enjoyment, self-esteem, and intrinsic motivation.
Task (T): To address the Task dimension, Brent can equip athletes with tools to set self-referenced process and performance goals. For instance, Brent may record each athlete's initial and post-fitness test scores, providing them with individual times. Emphasizing individual challenge within the task and recognizing individual improvement as an achievement indicator can be highly motivating.
Authority (A): To encourage athlete input, Brent can pose questions to athletes during review sessions, such as "how do you think we could improve our performance from Saturday's game?" Additionally, Brent can involve individual athletes in tasks that require active participation, like calling out the tackle count during defensive drills. This approach not only engages athletes like Justin but also helps build their confidence and leadership skills.
Recognition (R): Brent can approach each player individually during training sessions to discuss their strategies, progress, and evaluation. Providing personalized feedback can be especially advantageous for athletes like Justin, who may benefit from additional guidance and recognition.
Grouping (G): Brent can experiment with various grouping arrangements to promote cooperative teamwork. For example, he could group athletes based on their state of origin team, province, or playing position (e.g., forwards). Subdividing groups based on similar characteristics can foster a sense of camaraderie and teamwork.
Evaluation (E): Brent can encourage athletes to bring notebooks to training sessions, allowing them to track their individual progress. Instead of comparing athletes' skill levels against each other, Brent should acknowledge mastery of tasks and commend athletes for their effort.
Time (T): Recognizing that athletes progress through skills and fitness at different rates, Brent should be flexible in his approach to timing constraints. Training drills may need to progress longer or shorter than initially planned to accommodate the diverse needs of the athletes.
By employing Epstein's (1989) TARGET guidelines to foster a task-involving motivational climate, athletes are likely to experience greater confidence, enjoyment, self-esteem, and intrinsic motivation in rugby league. Importantly, Brent should aim to shift his own perception of what defines "the best" from his current ego-involved definition to a more task-oriented one. Creating this type of climate can help shape his athletes' perceptions of competence and enhance their overall sporting experience.
In conclusion, this essay has delved into specific theoretical assumptions of Achievement Goal Theory (AGT) and how they offer insights into athletes' behavioral patterns in sports. It has been demonstrated that the motivational climate established by a coach plays a pivotal role in influencing athletes' interpretations of their involvement in sports. The impact of this influence, whether positive or negative, hinges on the degree to which the coach's motivational atmosphere leans towards being task-involving or ego-involving.
We have assessed Brent's current coaching style using the TARGET taxonomy and its effects on Justin, a young athlete. Finally, we have outlined specific strategies from the TARGET framework that Brent can implement to create a more task-oriented motivational coaching climate. Through these strategies, we have supported the assertion that an athlete's motivation should always aim to be the best, with the understanding that "best" can be defined through task-oriented goals.
By adopting these strategies and shifting towards a task-oriented approach, Brent can not only enhance Justin's motivation but also contribute to the overall development and satisfaction of his athletes, ultimately creating a more positive and fulfilling sporting experience for everyone involved.
Understanding Athlete Motivation: The Role of Achievement Goal Theory. (2016, Apr 30). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/achievement-goal-theory-an-athletes-motivation-should-always-be-to-aim-to-be-the-example-essay
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