Perceived parental support and adolescents’ motivation toward physical activity

Abstract

This study aimed to know to what extent different types of parental social support increased the percentage of explained variance for self-determined motivation toward physical activity practice of their children, apart from other variables such as gender, age, and body mass index. Four hundred and sixty-nine adolescents (50.3% female) aged between 12 and 16 years participated in this study. The Spanish adaptations of the Activity Support Scale and the Behavioral Regulation Exercise Questionnaire-2 were used to assess parental support for children´s physical activity and self-determined motivation toward physical activity (PA), respectively. A hierarchical linear regression procedure was used for the main statistical analysis.
Our results revealed that regarding identified motivation, the percentage of variance explained by the model increased to 25%. In addition to gender and age, parental instrumental support contributed to explain the observed variability. As for intrinsic motivation, the percentage of explained variance was 27%. Besides gender, perceived provision of maternal and paternal instrumental support were contributors to the observed variability. In conclusion, children’s perception of the provision of material and financial resources was associated with a motivational orientation that emphasizes the benefits, enjoyment and satisfaction of performing physical activity