Three studies are reported of children and youth aged 11–19 years (n = 3478) examining the nature of beliefs about athletic ability. Drawing on related research in academic, moral and stereotyping domains, development of a psychometric instrument assessing athletic ability beliefs is detailed. Support was found for a multidimensional hierarchical structure that is invariant across age and gender. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a structure comprising two higher-order factors of entity and incremental beliefs underpinned by beliefs that athletic ability is stable and a gift (entity), and is open to improvement and can be developed through learning (incremental). Incremental beliefs, indirectly through a task goal orientation, and entity beliefs directly, predicted self-reported amotivation towards physical education and sport. On the other hand, enjoyment of physical activity in youth was predicted directly by task orientation and incremental beliefs. Predictions concerning the moderating role of perceived competence were not supported. Our findings highlight the importance of ability beliefs and goals in understanding the determinants of physical activity in children and youth.

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a novel online education program for British tennis parents and their experiences of engaging in the program. Using a convergent parallel mixed-methods design, 13 parents completed pre- and post-program online questionnaires, and a subset of 9 participants shared their experiences via an asynchronous e-mail interview. Quantitative findings revealed positive directional changes for almost all of the variables in relation to emotional experiences, goal orientations, tennis parent efficacy, and general parenting efficacy. The contribution of the combined quantitative and qualitative findings and their practical implications are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to explore the implicit beliefs and underlying motivational processes of para-athletes, and how these beliefs influenced perceptions of sport performance, as well as challenge the dominant social stereotypes that misconstrue disability as inability. Utilising a qualitative research design, semi-structured interviews were conducted with five elite para-athletes from various sporting backgrounds and analysed from a psychosocial perspective according to the procedures of theoretical thematic analysis. To invoke greater emotional tone and depth, participant-created visual data were used to supplement the initial thematic analysis. Three themes associated with the implicit beliefs of para-athletes were identified and termed, (1) on being disabled, (2) achieving is believing and (3) accepting differences or being indifferent. These themes illustrated how participants had to accept the ‘fixed’ nature of their disability first, before they could work towards overcoming its limitations. Through continuously adapting and adjusting their strategies to address setbacks as they occurred, the process of accepting limitations and overcoming setbacks led to increased feelings of self-efficacy and competence, which consequently led to the dominant incremental beliefs participants held.

Historically fitness testing has been identified as a common but controversial physical education (PE)-for-health practice across the globe. Despite this, little is known about the current prevalence and implementation of fitness testing. This paper therefore reports on findings from a survey which gathered both quantitative and qualitative data to explore the ‘if?’, ‘why?’ and ‘how?’ of fitness testing and provide new insights into teachers’ learning intentions, pedagogical practices, and attitudes towards it. The survey was distributed to PE departments in secondary schools across the UK, and responses were analysed and reported descriptively and thematically. Responses from 260 schools highlighted that fitness testing remains a common practice in PE, with 80% of PE teachers reporting it to feature in their curriculum. There was less consensus surrounding the ‘why?’ and ‘how?’ of testing, with variation evident in teachers’ stated learning intentions, pedagogical practices, and attitudes. Despite its prevalence, PE teachers expressed concerns over negative pupil outcomes potentially arising from fitness testing, and over 60% of teachers were uncertain or agreed that fitness testing can have a negative impact on pupils’ psychological health. Given the findings and the reported widespread prevalence of fitness testing, further research should explore pupils’ perspectives, responses, and outcomes of fitness testing, including their motivational and emotional responses to testing. Working with teachers and encouraging them to critically reflect on the ‘if?', ‘why?' and ‘how?’ of fitness testing is recommended and will hopefully help to bridge the gap between research and practice.

In this study, we examined the patterns of goal orientations, perceived competence, reasons for behaving well and self-reported discipline in school physical education among 511 pupils from years 8 and 9 (mean age 14.2 years). Cluster analyses were conducted on two randomly split subsamples to identify homogeneous groups of pupils on these measures of achievement motivation and discipline. Three meaningful clusters emerged for the first subsample, which were then cross-validated for the second subsample. One group of pupils revealed low scores on task and ego orientations, perceived competence and feelings of self-determination about their behaviour in lessons. These perceptions were related to lower ratings of discipline in physical education than pupils who scored more highly on these variables. The highest discipline scores were reported by pupils with high task and ego orientations, perceived competence and feelings of autonomy. The results are useful for teachers and other physical activity leaders in enhancing motivation and disciplined behaviour in young people. Promoting more self-determined reasons for being disciplined, for example, could lead to more orderly classes.

This study examined relationships among pupils’ perceptions of task-involving and ego-involving climates in their physical education (PE) classes and perceived teacher’s strategies to sustain discipline. The Learning and Performance Oriented Physical Education Classes Questionnaire and the Strategies to Sustain Discipline Scale were completed by 488 pupils aged 12–14 years. Canonical correlation analysis revealed a positive association between pupils’ perceived task-involving climate and theirperceptions of teaching strategies promoting pupils’ internal locus of causality for the regulation of disciplined behaviour. On the other hand, the perception of an ego-involving climate was linked with the promotion of an external locus of causality. Moreover, different combinations of perceived climate were associated with perceived teaching strategies to keep discipline. The perception of a teacher emphasizing more internalized reasons for discipline was stronger among pupils perceiving a high task-involving PE climate, regardless of their perceptions of the salience of a prevailing ego climate.The results have implications for teachers wishing to maximize pupil involvement and discipline in PE classes.