Examining how teachers' beliefs and behaviors predict students' motivation and achievement outcomes in physical education is an area of increasing research interest. Guided by the expectancy-value model and self-determination theory, the major purpose of this study was to examine the predictive strength of teachers' autonomy, competence, and…

Using self-determination theory as a framework, the purpose of this study was to test a structural model of hypothesized relationships among perceived need support from physical education teachers (autonomy support, competence support, and relatedness support), psychological need satisfaction (autonomy, competence, and relatedness), intrinsic…

High school physical education classes provide students with numerous opportunities for social interactions, but few studies have explored how social strivings impact class engagement. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships among 2 x 2 achievement goals, social motivation orientations, and effort in high school physical…

Recently, the lack of physical activity and increasing rates of childhood obesity have received a great deal of attention in the United States. One way to combat inactivity in children is to utilize physical education programs as a means to promote active lifestyles. There is not, however, a consensus concerning how physical education programs can…

Recently, national studies have reported on young people's low level of participation in physical activity. Because gender and racial differences among youth participating in physical activity have not been sufficiently addressed, examining the social construction of the body in physical education can provide valuable insights. This study uses…

The study of the social construction of the body has become crucial to contemporary academic discourses in education and physical education. Employing feminist poststructuralist theory and a qualitative ethnographic design, this study investigated how high school students identified themselves with images of bodies drawn from fitness and sports…

This study was designed to explore the relationships among individuals' dispositional ability conceptions, intrinsic motivation, experience, perceived competence, persistence, and performance. Participants practiced a novel task, completed surveys before instruction and after practicing the task, and completed a skill test. The results indicated…

Used self-efficacy theory as a framework to investigate the interaction of beliefs about gender appropriateness and conceptions of ability on competence beliefs in physical activity. College students completed surveys about the sport of hockey, watched a video of a specific hockey skill, and responded to questions about the skill. Results support…

This study used case studies to examine the biographies of three first-year teachers to determine how individual perception of the teaching role impacts professional development during the first year of teaching. Results indicated that beginning teachers can be active agents in controlling the direction of biography and social structures in the…