Competition in sport and physical education programs has been used to motivate the learning of skills, increase physical fitness, and to create environments purportedly conducive to the development of desirable personality qualities. However, the way in which competition is conceptualized is of great importance. In direct competition, achievement is obtained by besting an opponent. Indirect competition focuses on redefining winning as a personal comparison between present skills and past capabilities. The major advantage of the indirect competitive attitude is that it allows for success by all participants, and this hopefully motivates a larger number of individuals to engage in this activity. Indirect competition allows the reinforcing of students and athletes for improvement regardless of the win-loss situation and keeps them aspiring toward enhanced levels of performance. (CJ)