SEMINAR

REPORT
(Motivational Theories in Sports Psychology
And Organisational Behaviour)

BY
Ashlin Baiju
&
Sravan Suresh
INTRODUCTION

Motivation is an internal energy force that determines all aspects of our behaviour; it also
impacts on how we think, feel and interact with others. In sport, high motivation is widely
accepted as an essential prerequisite in getting athletes to fulfil their potential. However,
given its inherently abstract nature, it is a force that is often difficult to exploit fully. Some
coaches, like Portugal manager Luiz Felipe ‘Big Phil’ Scolari, appear to have a ‘magic
touch’, being able to get a great deal more out of a team than the sum of its individual parts;
others find motivation to be an elusive concept they are forever struggling to master.
There are numerous approaches to the study of motivation. Some are based on schedules of
positive and negative reinforcement (eg BF Skinner’s and Ivan Pavlov’s behaviourism) while
others focus on an individual’s sense of mastery over a set of circumstances (eg Albert
Bandura’s self-efficacy theory). This article explores the constituents of motivation using a
contemporary approach, popularised by Americans Edward Deci and Richard Ryan, known
as self-determination theory, which emphasises the role of individual choice.

Different Types Of Motivation

One of the most popular and widely tested approaches to motivation in sport and other
achievement domains is self-determination theory(1-3). This theory is based on a number of
motives or regulations, which vary in terms of the degree of self-determination they reflect.
Self-determination has to do with the degree to which your behaviours are chosen and self-
initiated. The behavioural regulations can be placed on a self-determination continuum (see
Figure 1 below). From the least to the most self-determined they are amotivation, external
regulation, introjected regulation, identified regulation, integrated regulation and intrinsic
motivation.
Amotivation represents a lack of intention to engage in a behaviour. It is accompanied by
feelings of incompetence and a lack of connection between one’s behaviour and the expected
outcome. For example, an amotivated athlete might be heard saying, ‘I can’t see the point in
training any more – it just tires me out’ or ‘I just don’t get any buzz out of competition
whatsoever’. Such athletes exhibit a sense of helplessness and often require counselling, as
they are highly prone to dropping out.
External and introjected regulations represent non-self-determined or controlling types of
extrinsic motivation because athletes do not sense that their behaviour is choiceful and, as a
consequence, they experience psychological pressure. Participating in sport to receive prize
money, win a trophy or a gold medal typifies external regulation. Participating to avoid
punishment or negative evaluation is also external. Introjection is an internal pressure under
which athletes might participate out of feelings of guilt or to achieve recognition.
Identified and integrated regulations represent self-determined types of extrinsic motivation
because behaviour is initiated out of choice, although it is not necessarily perceived to be
enjoyable. These types of regulation account for why some athletes devote hundreds of hours
to repeating mundane drills; they realise that such activity will ultimately help them to
improve. Identified regulation represents engagement in a behaviour because it is highly
valued, whereas when a behaviour becomes integrated it is in harmony with one’s sense of
self and almost entirely self-determined. Completing daily flexibility exercises because you
realise they are part of an overarching goal of enhanced performance might be an example of
integrated regulation.
Intrinsic motivation comes from within, is fully self-determined and characterised by interest
in, and enjoyment derived from, sports participation. There are three types of intrinsic
motivation, namely intrinsic motivation to know, intrinsic motivation to accomplish and
intrinsic motivation to experience stimulation. Intrinsic motivation is considered to be the
healthiest type of motivation and reflects an athlete’s motivation to perform an activity
simply for the reward inherent in their participation.

Flow: the ultimate motivational state

According to Hungarian psychologist Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi, the highest level of intrinsic
motivation is flow state (4,5). Flow is characterised by complete immersion in an activity, to
the degree that nothing else matters. Central to the attainment of flow is a situation in which
there is a perfect match between the perceived demands of an activity and an athlete’s
perceived ability or skills (see Figure 2 above right). During flow, self-consciousness is lost
and athletes become one with the activity. For example, a World champion canoeist I work
with often describes how the paddle feels like an extension of her arms while she is in flow.

Motivational Techniques For Coaches And Athletes

1. Goal setting
Athletes should be encouraged to set a few ambitious but achievable long-term goals; perhaps
to represent their country in a major championship in three or four years. Through
empowering athletes to set their own goals, they are more likely to accept the challenges that
lie ahead and pursue the goals with enthusiasm
To keep athletes on track with their long-term goals, they should also set appropriate
medium-term goals. For example, following a bronze medal-winning performance at the
2004 Athens Olympics, UK heptathlete Kelly Sotherton set herself the medium-term goal of
winning the 2006 Commonwealth title in Melbourne (which she achieved) en route to
pursuing her long-term goal to be crowned Olympic champion at the 2008 Beijing Games;
By far the most important goals in practical terms are those for the short-term, as it is these
that keep athletes focused on the checkmarks which are seminal to achieving superior
performance. Therefore, short-term goals should be predominantly process-oriented. For
example, when Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney injured a metatarsal six weeks before
the start of the soccer World Cup, he set a series of process goals in his race to regain full
fitness. These included daily physiotherapy sessions, remedial exercises in an oxygen
chamber, non weight-bearing aerobic activities, monitoring of nutritional intake and so on;
Goals need to be monitored and revised on a regular basis. One of the biggest mistakes that
coaches make in setting goals is that they are often too rigid in their approach. The goal
setting process works best when there is some flexibility and the individual athlete or team
take ownership of each goal. Thus, coaches and managers are better off exercising some
democracy when setting goals, particularly if working with more experienced athletes.

2. Using extrinsic rewards

According to SDT(1), the key aspect in using extrinsic rewards effectively is that they
reinforce an athlete’s sense of competence and self-worth. Thus, a reward should be
informational in nature rather than controlling. If a reward comes to be controlling, it can
significantly undermine intrinsic motivation. For a reward to be informational, it is advisable
that it has relatively little monetary worth (ie it is a token reward), such as a ‘woman of the
match’ or ‘athlete of the tour’ title. Also, the reward should be presented to an athlete in front
of all potential recipients with some emphasis placed on the prestige associated with it. Other
popular ways of using token rewards include etching athletes’ names on annual honours
boards for their contributions, or awarding a special item of clothing.

3. Motivational music
A particularly good way to motivate athletes in training and prior to competition is through
the use of music they perceive to be inspirational. Sydney Olympics rowing gold medallist,
Tim Foster, now a respected coach, uses music to punctuate all of the indoor training sessions
that he leads. Specifically, during circuit training or rowing ergometer intervals, he puts on
loud/fast music, while during recovery periods he plays soft/slow music. Therefore, work and
recovery times are regulated by music. Research from Brunel University indicates that this
approach increases work output, reduces perceived exertion and improves in-task affect – the
pleasure experienced during the activity.

4. Positive self-talk
Positive self-talk is a technique that can be used to enhance motivation across a wide range of
achievement domains. It makes use of an athlete’s powerful inner voice to reinforce their
self-esteem or important aspects of their performance. With appropriate repetition, self-talk
can positively alter an athlete’s belief system. I use three types of self-talk in my work with
athletes and will illustrate each with an example to assist you in coming up with your own.
The first type is known as task-relevant self-talk, which serves to focus an athlete’s attention
on the task at hand. A karateka I worked with used the mantra ‘pillar of power’ to reinforce
his strong posture. The second type is known as mood-related self-talk, which impacts on
how athletes feel. An international water skier came up with ‘butterflies in formation’ to
represent how the butterflies in her tummy would work for her rather than against her. The
third type is known as a positive self-affirmation statement and the most famous exponent of
these was the legendary boxer Mohammed Ali who repeated the claim, ‘I am the greatest’ so
many times that even his opponents believed it.
‘I figured that, if I said it enough, I would convince the world that I really was the greatest.’
Mohammed Ali

REINFORCEMENT
Reinforcement comes from behaviorism, a branch of psychology that studies how animals
and human beings respond to different reinforcers from their environment. The pioneering
work was done by B. F. Skinner, who developed the theory of operant conditioning. This
theory was developed primarily with studies of animals, but many of the principles have been
adapted by the field of applied behavior analysis.

Operant conditioning follows a specific process. An athlete performs a behavior and the
coach chooses how to respond to that behavior. If the goal is to increase the frequency of that
behavior, the coach should provide reinforcement. Reinforcement can be positive or negative
(more about the difference later). If the goal is to decrease that behavior, the response should
be punishment. However, extensive research has shown the limitations and problems of using
punishment (it creates a short-term fix but creates long-term distress). The goal for a coach
should be to use reinforcement to increase desirable behaviors and to drastically limit the
amount of punishment, ideally never using it at all.

Now, some clarifications.

 Positive reinforcement is a reward for performing the behavior correctly. It

should come soon after the behavior is performed. It is usually in the form of a
quick vocal praise (“nice pass”), a clap, or a supportive gesture (like a head nod
or fist-pump).

 Negative reinforcement follows a correct performance, but involves removing

something undesirable to reinforce the desired behavior. A simple example is
taking away a difficult conditioning workout if players perform well on some
behavior, like paying attention during a tactical drill, or vocally encouraging
their teammates).

 Punishment happens in response to an incorrect or undesirable behavior, and

involves the presentation of something unpleasant (like making the player run or
do push-ups). Punishment is usually psychological, like ridicule or
embarrassment, and it often trends towards abuse.

Self-Efficacy

The Self Efficacy Theory (Bandura, 1977) suggests that self-efficacy beliefs predict one’s
behaviours, thought patterns and motivation.  Individuals with high self-efficacy will
participate readily and more frequently, will put more effort in and persist longer, enhancing
performance in sport and exercise (Bandura, 1986).

Previous research has examined the relationship between self-efficacy, motivation and its
mediating roles upon performance in sport. Studies have found that the higher the self-
efficacy, the greater the persistence and effort, as measured by motor performance
(Weinberg, Gould & Jackson, 1979) and muscular endurance (Gould & Weiss, 1981; George,
Feltz & Chase, 1992). Although the latter two of these studies only used female participants
minimising the generalisability, these earlier studies show how high beliefs about one’s
capabilities to use their skills and execute a successful performance can drive effort and
persistence, consequently improving performance.

REFERENCE

Deci E, Ryan R (1985) :Intrinsic Motivation and Self-determination in Human Behavior,

New York: Plenum

Advances in Sport Psychology (2nd ed), Champaign IL: Human Kinetics, 2002: 459-499

Csikszentmihalyi M (1990) Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, New York:

Harper and Row