ORIGINAL RESEARCH
published: 22 March 2019
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00617
Coach-Created Motivational Climate
and Athletes’ Adaptation to
Psychological Stress: Temporal
Motivation-Emotion Interplay
Montse C. Ruiz 1 , Claudio Robazza 2* , Asko Tolvanen 3 , Saara Haapanen 1 and
Joan L. Duda 4
1
Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland, 2 BIND-Behavioral Imaging and Neural
Dynamics Center, Department of Medicine and Aging Sciences, Università degli Studi G. d’Annunzio Chieti e Pescara,
Chieti, Italy, 3 Faculty of Education and Psychology, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland, 4 School of Sport, Exercise
and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
Edited by:
Sylvain Laborde,
German Sport University Cologne,
Germany
Reviewed by:
Diogo Monteiro,
Instituto Politécnico de Santarém,
Portugal
John L. Perry,
Mary Immaculate College, Ireland
*Correspondence:
Claudio Robazza
c.robazza@unich.it
Specialty section:
This article was submitted to
Movement Science and Sport
Psychology,
a section of the journal
Frontiers in Psychology
Received: 28 November 2018
Accepted: 06 March 2019
Published: 22 March 2019
Citation:
Ruiz MC, Robazza C, Tolvanen A,
Haapanen S and Duda JL (2019)
Coach-Created Motivational Climate
and Athletes’ Adaptation
to Psychological Stress: Temporal
Motivation-Emotion Interplay.
Front. Psychol. 10:617.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00617
This two-wave study investigated the temporal interplay between motivation and
the intensity and reported impact of athletes’ emotions in training settings. In total,
217 athletes completed self-report measures of motivational climate, motivation
regulations, emotional states (i.e., pleasant states, anger, and anxiety) experienced
before practice at two time points during a 3-month period. Latent change score
modeling revealed significantly negative paths from task-involving climate at time 1 to
the latent change in the intensity of dysfunctional anxiety and anger, and significantly
positive paths from ego-involving climate at time 1 to the latent change in dysfunctional
anger (i.e., intensity and reported impact). The paths from controlled motivation at time
1 to the latent change in the intensity of dysfunctional anxiety and vice versa were
significantly positive. The path from controlled motivation at time 1 to the latent change in
the intensity of functional anger was significantly positive, but not vice versa. In addition,
the paths from dysfunctional anger (i.e., intensity and reported impact) at time 1 to
the latent change in motivation regulations were significant, but not vice versa. Overall,
evidence provided suggested that the temporal interplay of motivation and emotions
is contingent on the specific emotions. The findings highlight the role of coach-created
motivational climate and the importance of identifying high levels of controlled motivation
to help athletes better adapt to psychological stress.
Keywords: feelings, psychobiosocial states, IZOF model, achievement goal theory, self-determination theory,
structural equation modeling
INTRODUCTION
The focus of existing sport emotion literature has been on the prediction of performance (Beedie
et al., 2000; Woodman et al., 2009) or the strategies athletes use to regulate their emotions in
order to enhance performance (Lane et al., 2012; Wagstaff, 2014). The antecedents of performance
related emotions in sport, however, have received less research attention. The purpose of this
study was to examine the social environmental antecedents of and the interplay between emotions
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motivational pattern, intrinsic motivation, and achievement
striving in sport, while the opposite has been found for an egoinvolving climate (for review, see Harwood et al., 2015). Overall,
research has generally revealed that a task-involving climate is
related to athletes’ intrinsic motivation and need satisfaction
(Reinboth and Duda, 2006; Vazou et al., 2006; Álvarez et al.,
2012; for an overview see Duda and Balaguer, 2007). A taskinvolving climate has also been found to be a positive predictor of
more self-determined styles of motivation (Standage et al., 2003;
Kipp and Amorose, 2008). In contrast, an ego-involving climate
has been related to feelings of pressure, antisocial behavior, the
belief of ability as determinant of success, and dropping out in
sport (Sarrazin et al., 2002; Bortoli et al., 2012). This maladaptive
motivational pattern reflects a lack of adaptation to psychological
stress. An ego-involving climate was also found to positively
predict extrinsic motivation and amotivation (Bortoli et al., 2015;
Jaakkola et al., 2017).
Regarding the relationships between the social environment
created by coaches and athletes’ emotional responses, research
has shown that perceptions of a task-involving motivational
climate significantly predicted pleasant states in soccer players
(Bortoli et al., 2012) and enjoyment in young hockey players
(Jaakkola et al., 2016). In contrast, perceptions of an egoinvolving climate were predictors of unpleasant states, anxiety,
worry, and decreased enjoyment (Vazou et al., 2006; Cumming
et al., 2007; Bortoli et al., 2012). A systematic review of 39 studies
(Harwood et al., 2015) indicates a moderate positive correlation
between perceived task-involving motivational climate and
pleasant affect, while an overall small, negative correlation
was found between an ego-involving motivational climate and
pleasant states.
The vast majority of research exploring the relationships
between motivational climate, motivation, and emotions is crosssectional in nature. Thus, the direction of causality in these
relationships remains unexamined. Previous research in this area
has examined the consequences of the social motivational context
investigating two possible sequences. The first sequence considers
that motivational climate dimensions serve as antecedents of
variability in motivation regulations, which in turn, trigger
different emotions. The second sequence assumes that emotion is
a mediator in the relationship, and thus, motivation is positioned
at the end of the sequence. AGT and SDT postulate that
the social environment and achievement goals have emotional,
cognitive, and behavioral consequences (Deci and Ryan, 1985;
Nicholls, 1989; Ames, 1992; Duda and Balaguer, 2007; Ryan
and Deci, 2017). Motivational climate and motivation (especially
a task-involving climate, and autonomous motivation) are
assumed to influence performance with emotion mediating this
relationship. Also in line with the first sequence (motivational
climate > motivation > emotion), Lazarus (2000) placed
importance on causal cognitive, motivational, and relational
aspects in the initiation and maintenance of emotions. He
stated that individuals’ emotions result from appraisals about
the personal significance of the interaction with others and the
environment, and options for coping with situational demands.
Emotions would, thus, be placed at the end of the sequence. The
second sequence (motivational climate > emotion > motivation)
and motivation. Understanding these antecedents can provide
useful information to coaches and practitioners to help athletes
enhance their adaptation to psychological stress related to their
performance in high achievement settings.
Theorists and research evidence suggest that the social
environment and individual variables influence the way people
think, feel, and behave (Nicholls, 1989; Deci and Ryan, 2000;
Lazarus, 2000). Two prominent theoretical frameworks used in
the study of motivation are achievement goal theory (AGT;
Nicholls, 1989), and self-determination theory (SDT; Deci and
Ryan, 1985, 2000; Ryan and Deci, 2017). These theories have been
applied to examine the intrapersonal motivational and emotional
consequences of the social environment in the sporting context.
According to AGT, a task-involving climate is defined by
situations where the coach focuses on skill improvement,
individual progress, and encourages cooperation with others,
and in which every individual has an important role in the
team. In contrast, an ego-involving climate involves the use of
normative-based evaluation, emphasis on competition, and social
comparison between participants. In line with SDT, individuals’
motivation varies in their degree of self-determination. For
example athletes experience autonomous motivation when their
reasons for engagement in sport are volitional or intrinsic,
while controlled motivation is experienced when the reasons for
engagement are pressured either internally or externally. These
reasons for engagement lie on a continuum from intrinsic to
extrinsic motivation. The most autonomous form of motivation
is intrinsic motivation, which occurs when athletes derive a
sense of enjoyment and satisfaction from participating in sport.
In contrast, extrinsic motivation involves participation that is
contingent upon specific reward or outcomes. For instance,
integrated regulation, which is the most autonomous form of
extrinsic motivation, occurs when athletes view participation in
sport as personally important and assimilated with their own
self. Identified regulation occurs when the outcome of a sport
is personally valued. Introjected regulation is reflected when
athletes engage in a sport to reduce feelings of shame or guilt.
The most controlled form of motivation is external regulation,
which is manifested when athletes engage in an activity for purely
instrumental reasons, such as obtaining reward or satisfying an
external demand, while a lack in motivation has been referred to
as amotivation (Deci and Ryan, 1985; Ryan and Deci, 2000, 2017).
Researchers have typically examined autonomous motivation as
comprised by intrinsic motivation, integrated regulation, and
identified regulation, while introjected regulation and external
regulation were indicators of controlled motivation (Lonsdale
et al., 2008; Langan et al., 2016).
The vast majority of research in this area has placed
motivational climate as the antecedent of intrapersonal variables.
However, the examination of the temporal sequence of
intrapersonal variables, such as athletes’ motivation and emotions
as predictors or determinants, remains unexplored. According
to both AGT and SDT, much of the variance in individuals’
motivation and quality of involvement derives from the
interaction with significant others, such as the coaches within
sport contexts. Research evidence indicates that perceptions of a
task-involving climate are related to a more functional/adaptive
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The time-lagged design of the present study allows addressing
this gap in the literature, which has been for the most part
relying on cross-sectional designs. The purpose of the current
investigation was to examine the change over time in the
interplay between perceptions of the motivational climate,
motivation regulations, and emotional states in competitive
athletes. Specifically, we used a 3-month, two-wave repeated
measures design to examine the relationship between athletes’
perceptions of the task- and ego-involving features of the
motivational climate, autonomous and controlled motivations,
and functional/dysfunctional and pleasant/unpleasant emotional
states. A second aim of the study was to determine the temporal
ordering of athletes’ emotions on motivation regulations. We
tested the following four hypotheses: (a) H0 : athletes’ motivation
regulations do not predict changes in emotions, and emotions do
not predict changes in motivation regulations; (b) H1 : emotions
predict changes in motivation regulations—pleasant emotions
positively predict autonomous motivation and negatively predict
controlled motivation, whereas unpleasant emotions positively
predict controlled motivation and negatively predict autonomous
motivation; (c) H2 : motivation regulations predict changes in
emotions—autonomous motivation positively predicts pleasant
emotions and negatively predicts unpleasant emotions, whereas
controlled motivation positively predicts unpleasant emotions
and negatively predicts pleasant emotions; and (d) H3 : emotions
and motivation regulations have a reciprocal relationship—
motivation regulation predicts changes in emotions, and
emotions predict changes in motivation regulations.
has been mainly tested within physical education settings
and youth sport (Bortoli et al., 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014).
The main focus in such contexts is typically on the creation
of an environment that would enhance pleasant states (e.g.,
enjoyment), which are believed to increase the motivation to be
involved in the activity.
Both sequences, however, have been examined separately.
Moreover, most previous studies have involved school or college
participants, with a few studies recruiting high-performing
athletes, young athletes in particular. In addition, the vast
majority of studies have been limited to the examination
of one dimension of emotions, intensity. Another important
dimension in the sporting context is the functional impact on
performance. A very few studies have considered this dimension,
which has been for the most part only assumed by researchers.
For example, Bortoli et al. (2014) implied pleasant states as
functional states and unpleasant states as dysfunctional; however,
athletes’ perceptions of the functional impact on performance
were not assessed.
Traditionally, athletes’ emotions have been studied using
either a global affect approach, which emphasizes dimensions
such as hedonic tone and activation (Watson and Tellegen, 1985),
or a discrete emotion approach, which considers emotion as
distinct entities (e.g., anxiety, anger) triggered by the person’s
appraisal of their interaction with the environment (Lazarus,
2000). One sport-specific theoretical framework concerned with
the study of emotions is the individual zones of optimal
functioning (IZOF) model (Hanin, 2000, 2007). The IZOF
model, which combines global affect and discrete emotion
perspectives, conceptualizes emotions within the framework of
two interrelated factors, hedonic tone (i.e., pleasure–displeasure),
and performance functionality (i.e., functional-dysfunctional
effects). This categorization results in a range of pleasant and
unpleasant, functional and dysfunctional emotional experiences.
Extensive empirical evidence supports this conceptualization
(for reviews, see Ruiz et al., 2017b; Robazza and Ruiz, 2018).
Most IZOF-based research, however, has focused on the
emotion-performance relationship disregarding the study of the
antecedents of emotional states.
A study examining the interplay between motivational
climate, motivation, and the intensity and functional impact
of athletes’ emotions revealed that task-involving climate
was a positive predictor of autonomous motivation and
perceived functional anger, and a negative predictor of the
intensity of anxiety and dysfunctional anger (Ruiz et al.,
2017a). An ego-involving climate was a positive predictor of
controlled motivation, the intensity and perceived impact of
functional anger, and the intensity of dysfunctional anger.
Such study involved data assessed at one moment in time,
which did not allow for the examination of the mediating role
of motivation versus emotions in the motivational climate–
outcome relationship.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Participants
The participants were 217 Finnish athletes (126 men, 91 women,
M age = 21.24 year, SD = 4.53). One hundred and sixty-one
competed in team sports (e.g., ice hockey, soccer, floorball,
and volleyball), and 56 in individual sports (e.g., swimming,
karate, and track and field). One hundred and twenty-five
were national level competitors and 92 were international level
athletes having achieved good results in European or World
Championships. The participants’ mean sport experience was
10.53 years (SD = 3.84), and they had trained an average
of 14.15 h per week (SD = 5.05). Approximately two-thirds
(60.45%, n = 359) of time 1 participants also responded to the
questionnaire at time 2.
Measures
Motivational Climate
A Finnish version of the Perceived Motivational Climate in
Sport Questionnaire-2 (PMCSQ-2; Newton et al., 2000) was used
to measure athletes’ perceptions of their motivational climate
in terms of task- and ego-involving. Task-involving climate
items (e.g., “the focus is to improve each game/practice”) reflect
perceptions that the athlete has an important role on the
team, and that co-operative learning and effort/improvement
are encouraged. Ego-involving items (e.g., “players/athletes are
afraid to make mistakes”) reflect feelings of intra-team rivalry
Current Study and Hypotheses
To our knowledge, no study has yet examined the relationship
between pleasant and stress-related (i.e., anxiety and anger)
emotions and motivation over time prior to practice.
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had experience and awareness of the motivational aspects of
the coach-created environment, data collection took place a few
weeks after the beginning of the season, 30 min prior to a practice
session. Participants responded to the questionnaires at time 1
(T1) and 3 months later (T2). Questionnaire administration took
approximately 30 min.
among players/athletes on the team, perceptions that mistakes
are punished, and that coach recognition is reserved for the
most talented athletes. Each item was rated on a 5-point
Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly
agree). The Finnish version of the PMCSQ-2 revealed acceptable
internal consistency as administered to 494 athletes (283 men,
211 women) with α = 0.87 for both task-involving and egoinvolving climates (Ruiz et al., 2017a).
Data Analysis
Prior to conducting the main analysis, data were screened
for inputting errors, distribution, and multivariate outliers
(Tabachnick and Fidell, 2013). Twelve participants were
identified as outliers (Mahalanobis distance larger than
χ2 [18] = 51.179) and were removed from further analyses.
Intra-class correlations (ICC) were calculated to examine the
need to conduct multilevel analysis. Statistically significant
ICC were only found for task-involving climate, thus, single
level analyses were conducted. Descriptive statistics, variable
intercorrelations and Cronbach’s α coefficients were calculated.
Structural equation modeling was conducted with Mplus 8.2
(Muthén and Muthén, 2017) using the missing-data function
and adjusting for non-normality with the robust full information
maximum likelihood estimator. Confirmatory factor analysis
was conducted for the full measurement model at both T1
and T2. As the main analysis, latent change score modeling was
used to examine the relationship between perceptions of the
motivational climate, motivation relations, and athlete’s emotions
(intensity and functional impact). Latent change score modeling,
also called latent difference score modeling, is conducted within
the framework of structural equation modeling that combines
features from cross-lagged regression modeling and latent
growth curves (Ferrer and McArdle, 2003; McArdle and Prindle,
2008; McArdle, 2009). In latent change score model the focus is
on describing a variable Y at a time t defining 1Yt as the change
in Y from t – 1 to t (McArdle, 2009). The coefficients relating
Yt and Yt−1 are constrained to 1 and there is no error terms
in the equation for Yt , thus Yt is directly the sum of Yt −1 and
1Yt , where1Yt can be used as a latent variable. Latent difference
scores were calculated separately for task-involving climate,
autonomous motivation regulations, and reported intensity and
impact of each of the following emotions: functional pleasant
states, anxiety, functional and dysfunctional anger. On the other
hand, latent difference scores were calculated for ego-involving
climate, controlled motivation regulations, and the intensity and
reported impact of anxiety, functional anger, and dysfunctional
anger (see Figure 1).
The fit of the path models was evaluated considering the
comparative fit index (CFI), the Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI),
the standardized root mean square residual (SRMR), and
the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA). As
recommended by Hu and Bentler (1999), a good model fit is
inferred when values of CFI and TLI are close to 0.95, the SRMR is
close to 0.08, and the RMSEA is close to 0.06. The null hypothesis
(H0 ) would be supported if the regression coefficients β10 or
β11 (see Figure 1) were non-significantly different from zero.
If coefficient β10 , but not coefficient β11 , was significant, H1
(motivational regulations predict changes in emotions) would
be supported. If coefficient β11 , but not coefficient β10 , was
Motivation Regulations
A Finnish version of the Behavior Regulation in Sport
Questionnaire (BRSQ; Lonsdale et al., 2008) was used to assess
athletes’ motivation regulations. The BRSQ comprises six 4-item
subscales that measure intrinsic motivation (e.g., “because I
enjoy it”), integrated regulation (e.g., “because it’s a part of who
I am”), identified regulation (e.g., “because the benefits of sport
are important to me”), introjected regulation (e.g., “because I
would feel ashamed if I quit”), external regulation (e.g., “because
people push me to play”) and amotivation (e.g., “but I question
why I continue”). Each item was assessed on a 7-point Likert type
scale ranging from 1 (not at all true) to 7 (very true). In this study,
mean scores were calculated for autonomous and controlled
styles of motivation. Adequate internal reliability of the BRSQ
has been reported with α = 0.87 for autonomous motivation,
α = 0.90 for controlled motivation, and α = 0.78 for amotivation
(Ruiz et al., 2017a).
Emotional Experiences
Eight emotional modality items from psychobiosocial states
scales (Robazza et al., 2016; Ruiz et al., 2016, 2018) were used
to assess athletes’ emotional experiences. Each item includes 3–4
descriptors per row and is categorized as functionally helpful or
harmful for performance with two items assessing: (a) functional
pleasant states (“enthusiastic, confident, carefree, joyful”), and
(b) functional anger (“fighting spirit, fierce, aggressive”); and
two items measuring: (c) dysfunctional anxiety (“worried,
apprehensive, concerned, troubled”); and (d) dysfunctional anger
(“furious, resentful, irritated, annoyed”). First, athletes were
asked to select one word answering the question “how do you feel
right now in relation to your forthcoming performance?” Second,
they rated the intensity on a scale ranging from 0 (nothing at all)
to 4 (very much). Third, athletes rated the anticipated or perceived
functional impact on performance on a scale ranging from +3
(very helpful) to −3 (very harmful).
Procedure
Following approval from the local university ethics committee,
data collection occurred at two time points during a 3-month
period. The participants were recruited via training centers,
sport schools, and clubs in five cities in Northern, Central, and
Southern parts of Finland. Written consent was obtained from all
participants after having explained them the purpose of the study,
emphasized voluntary participation, and assured confidentiality
of the results. Athletes under 18 gave their assent and a guardian
provided written consent. The questionnaires were administered
either individually or in small groups, in a quiet place, close to
the participants training facilities. To ensure that participants
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FIGURE 1 | Hypothesized latent change score model of motivational climate, motivation regulations, and emotions. 1 represents latent change score.
impact of dysfunctional anger. Weak or no correlations were
found between the intensity and the perceived impact of
athletes’ emotions.
significant, then H2 (emotions predict changes in motivational
regulations) would be supported. Finally, if both coefficients β10
and β11 were significant, then H3 (reciprocal effects) would be
supported. Effect sizes were interpreted following Cohen’s (1988)
guidelines, whereby values of 0.2 are considered small, 0.5 are
moderate, and 0.8 are large.
Confirmatory Factor Analysis
Following recommendations by Little et al. (2002)
improve the ratio of variable to sample size, we
construct-specific parcels. Specifically, six parcels were
following the theoretical structure of motivational
RESULTS
and to
created
created
climate
Descriptive Statistics and Correlations
The athletes reported moderate to high values for perceptions
of a task-involving climate, autonomous motivation, intensity
and perceived impact of functional pleasant states, and low
values for ego-involving climate, controlled motivation, intensity
and perceived impact of dysfunctional anger, and dysfunctional
anxiety at both time points (Table 1). Cronbach’s α coefficients
and ω values for the scales were acceptable (all α > 0.868, and
ω > 0.882) deeming the scales reliable (McNeish, 2018).
As shown in Table 2, and following Zhu (2012) criteria,
positive low correlations were observed between perceptions
of a task-involving climate and autonomous motivation, and
between perceptions of an ego-involving climate and controlled
motivation at both times. Positive low correlations were also
observed between task-involving climate and the perceived
impact of functional anger, while an ego-involving climate
was positively correlated with the intensity and perceived
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TABLE 1 | Descriptive statistics and Cronbach’s alphas (α) and composite
reliability (ω) of study variables.
T1
T2
SD
α/ω
SD
α/ω
(1) Task climate (1–5)
4.01
0.50
0.889 /0.892
3.93
0.57
0.925 /0.925
(2) Ego climate (1–5)
2.58
0.61
0.880 /0.884
2.70
0.63
0.892 /0.899
(3) Autonomous motivation (1–7)
5.55
0.76
0.868 /0.882
5.55
0.80
0.888 /0.896
(4) Controlled motivation (1–7)
2.07
0.99
0.883 /0.885
2.20
1.03
0.883 /0.884
(5) Pleasant+ intensity (0–4)
2.55
0.69
∗
2.51
0.86
∗
(6) Anxiety− intensity (0–4)
1.03
0.98
∗
1.10
1.12
∗
(7) Anger+ intensity (0–4)
1.74
1.09
∗
1.78
1.07
∗
(8) Anger− intensity (0–4)
0.86
1.02
∗
1.04
1.10
∗
(9) Pleasant+ impact (−3/+3)
1.70
1.29
∗
1.72
1.37
∗
(10) Anxiety− impact (−3/+3)
−1.36
1.17
∗
−1.51
1.19
∗
(11) Anger+ impact (−3/+3)
2.03
1.21
∗
1.98
1.23
∗
(12) Anger− impact (−3/+3)
−0.83
1.29
∗
−0.90
1.40
∗
Variable (range)
M
M
N = 205. T1 = Time 1; T2 = Time 2 (three months later). ∗ Individual items.
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TABLE 2 | Bivariate correlations of the study variables in Time 1 and Time 2.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
Time 1
(1) TC
(2) EC
(3) AM
(4) CM
(5) P+ intensity
−0.37
0.36 −0.12
−0.07
0.23
0.08 −0.08
0.03
0.19 −0.03
(6) Ax− −intensity −0.21
0.19 −0.01
(7) Ag+ intensity
0.12
0.07
(8) Ag− −intensity −0.22
(9) P+ impact
(10) Ax− −impact −0.06
(11) Ag+ impact
(12) Ag− impact
0.21 −0.09
0.11 −0.08
0.19
0.18
0.17 −0.14
0.46
0.14
0.01
0.23 −0.07
0.23 −0.12
0.08 −0.17 −0.11
0.28 −0.07
−0.14
0.17 −0.15
0.18 −0.12
0.20 −0.07
0.14 −0.08 −0.02
0.11
0.01 −0.01
0.07 −0.05 −0.07
0.06 −0.03
0.24 −0.05
0.02 −0.09 −0.13
0.41 −0.10
0.00 −0.05
0.34 −0.09
Time 2
(13) TC
(14) EC
(15) AM
(16) CM
(17) P+ intensity
(18) Ax− intensity
0.68 −0.29
−0.30
0.26 −0.03
0.69 −0.09
0.11 −0.05
0.18
0.10
0.00
0.14 −0.01
0.39 −0.14
0.75
0.03
0.26
0.05
0.76 −0.06
0.06 −0.08
0.04
0.13
−0.18
0.07 −0.14
0.18 −0.02
0.13
0.26 −0.11
0.23 −0.04
0.16 −0.07
0.25 −0.07
0.30 −0.16
0.13 −0.19
0.15 −0.18
0.22 −0.03 −0.06 −0.11
0.03
0.04
0.15 −0.11
0.07 −0.44
0.20 −0.12
0.34 −0.13
0.12 −0.16
0.14 −0.08
0.29 −0.05
0.10 −0.08
0.21
0.12
0.12 −0.01
0.21 −0.02
0.27 −0.02
0.18
0.06 −0.14 −0.08
0.08 −0.19
0.20 −0.02
0.29 −0.17
(19) Ag+ intensity −0.02
0.03
0.01
0.11
0.16
0.09
0.30
0.15
0.13 −0.02
0.06
0.07 −0.10
0.17
0.02
0.14
0.31
0.04
(20) Ag− intensity −0.17
0.22
0.03
0.09
0.00
0.25
0.06
0.29 −0.04
0.04 −0.12
0.07 −0.19
0.32
0.00
0.24 −0.12
0.45
0.11 −0.20
0.16
0.04
0.01
0.06 −0.03 −0.01
0.15 −0.16
0.08
0.08
0.18 −0.18
(21) P+ impact
(22) Ax− impact
(23) Ag+ impact
(24) Ag− impact
−0.19
0.21 −0.16
0.08
0.01 −0.02 −0.11
0.08 −0.18
0.14 −0.07
0.12
0.05
0.05
0.01
0.06
0.24
0.03
0.10
0.00
0.02 −0.04
−0.17
−0.16
0.10
0.39 −0.22
0.28 −0.16
0.05 −0.03
0.16 −0.13
0.26
0.26 −0.09
0.35 −0.05
0.02
0.12 −0.22
0.12 −0.05
0.50 −0.18
0.12 −0.12
0.16 −0.04
0.14 −0.10
0.34 −0.11
0.02 −0.11
0.17 −0.08
0.18 −0.17
0.10
0.21 −0.09
0.09 −0.10
0.32 −0.13
0.01 −0.08
0.25 −0.21
0.05 −0.15
0.22 −0.06
Bivariate correlations of 0.13 and above are significant at p < 0.05; bivariate correlations of 0.18 and above are significant at p < 0.01; TC, task-involving climate; EC,
ego-involving climate; AM, autonomous motivation; CM, controlled motivation; P, pleasant states; Ag, anger; Ax, anxiety; +, functional; −, dysfunctional.
anger separately (Models 1–4). Three other models included
paths relating ego-involving climate and controlled motivation
with the intensity of dysfunctional anxiety, functional anger,
and dysfunctional anger (Models 5–7). Similarly, seven models
were tested to examine the relationships with impact ratings of
emotions (Models 8–14). All models were saturated. In regards to
emotion intensity, one additional path was included in the model
from dysfunctional anger intensity to the latent difference score
of ego-involving climate (M7). We also added a path going from
functional anger impact ratings to the latent difference score of
ego-involving climate (M13).
Overall, a task-involving climate was a positive predictor
of autonomous motivation at T1 (see Table 3, M1–M4 and
M8–M11, β1 ) and of the latent change in autonomous motivation
at T2 (M1–M4 and M8–M11, β8 ). A task-involving climate was a
negative predictor of the intensity of anxiety and dysfunctional
anger at T1 (M2-β2 and M4-β2 ), and the latent change in
these emotions at T2 (M2-β9 and M4-β9 ), while it positively
predicted the reported impact of functional anger at T1 (M10-β2 ),
but not the change in this emotion at T2 (M10-β9 ). An egoinvolving climate positively predicted controlled motivation at
T1 (M5–M7 and M12–M14, β1 ) and the latent difference in
controlled motivation at T2, but only for the path including the
intensity of functional anger (M6-β8 ). Ego-involving climate was
a positive predictor of the intensity of anxiety at T1 (M5-β2 ),
the intensity and reported impact of dysfunctional anger at
T1 (M7-β2 and M14-β2 , respectively), and latent change in
the intensity and reported impact of dysfunctional anger at T2
(M7-β9 and M14-β9 , respectively). Effect sizes for these reported
significant paths were low.
(Newton et al., 2000). Three parcels were defined for taskinvolving climate by calculating the sums of the items
representing the second-order dimensions of cooperative
learning, important role, and effort/improvement. The
remaining items representing punishment for mistakes,
unequal recognition, and intra-team member rivalry were
assigned to the three parcels defined for ego-involving climate.
In line with SDT (Deci and Ryan, 1985) conceptualization
and Ryan and Connell’s (1989) suggestion, four parcels were
defined for autonomous motivation by calculating the sums of
items representing intrinsic motivation, integrated regulation,
and identified regulation. The remaining items representing
introjected regulation and external regulation were allocated to
four parcels for controlled motivation. Amotivation was excluded
from the analysis because we were interested in the quality of
motivation rather than the quantity of motivation. Overall,
acceptable model fit was obtained for the full measurement
model representing perceived motivational climate, motivation
regulations, functional emotions, and dysfunctional emotions at
T1, χ2 /df = 8.436, RMSEA = 0.057, CFI = 0.924, TLI = 0.909,
SRMR = 0.065, and at T2, χ2 /df = 8.7653, RMSEA = 0.043,
CFI = 0.958, TLI = 0.950, SRMR = 0.068.
Structural Equation Modeling
A total of 14 structural models were tested to examine the
temporal ordering of motivation regulations and the intensity
and perceived impact of emotions. Specifically, four models were
estimated including paths relating task-involving climate and
autonomous motivation with the intensity of functional pleasant
states, dysfunctional anxiety, functional anger, and dysfunctional
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TABLE 3 | Standardized path coefficients for relationships between motivational climate (MC), motivation regulations (M), and emotions (E).
Model
MC1 -M1
MC1 -E1
MC1 -1MC
M1 -1MC
E1 -1MC
M1 -1M
E1 -1E
MC1 -1M
MC1 -1E
M1 -1E
E1 -1M
(β1 )
(β2 )
(β3 )
(β4 )
(β5 )
(β6 )
(β7 )
(β8 )
(β9 )
(β10 )
(β11 )
−0.02
−0.03
M1 TC
AM
P+int
0.36∗∗∗
0.08
−0.27∗∗∗
0.02
0.07
−0.35∗∗∗
−0.51∗∗∗
0.21∗∗
0.05
M2 TC
AM
Ax−int
0.36∗∗∗
−0.21∗∗
−0.24∗∗∗
0.02
0.13
−0.35∗∗∗
−0.56∗∗∗
0.22∗∗
−0.13∗
M3 TC
AM
Ag+int
0.36∗∗∗
0.07
−0.27∗∗∗
0.03
0.03
−0.35∗∗∗
−0.59∗∗∗
0.21∗∗
−0.02
M4 TC
AM
Ag−int
0.36∗∗∗
−0.22∗∗
−0.27∗∗∗
0.03
0.02
−0.35∗∗∗
−0.57∗∗∗
0.23∗∗
−0.13∗
0.10
0.13∗
CM
Ax−int
0.23∗∗∗
0.19∗∗
−0.37∗∗∗
0.06
−0.34∗∗∗
−0.56∗∗∗
0.10
0.03
0.14∗
0.18∗
M6 EC
CM
Ag+int
0.23∗∗∗
0.12
−0.37∗∗∗
0.03
0.03
−0.33∗∗∗
−0.59∗∗∗
0.14∗
−0.04
0.13∗
M7 EC
CM
Ag−int
0.23∗∗∗
0.21∗∗
−0.39∗∗∗
0.00
0.14
−0.33∗∗∗
−0.58∗∗∗
0.11
0.14∗
0.01
0.12
M8 TC
AM
P+pi
0.36∗∗∗
0.11
−0.27∗∗∗
0.01
0.11
−0.34∗∗∗
−0.63∗∗∗
0.21∗∗
0.05
0.08
−0.06
M9 TC
AM
Ax−pi
0.36∗∗∗
−0.06
−0.27∗∗∗
0.02
0.04
−0.36∗∗∗
−0.55∗∗∗
0.21∗∗
−0.12
−0.07
−0.08
M10 TC
AM
Ag+pi
0.36∗∗∗
−0.58∗∗∗
0.20∗∗
0.03
0.03
0.04
M11 TC
AM
Ag−pi
0.36∗∗∗
−0.14
0.12
−0.07
M12 EC
CM
Ax−pi
M13 EC
CM
Ag+pi
M14 EC
CM
Ag−pi
0.23∗∗∗
M5 EC
0.28∗∗∗
0.02
0.04
0.05
−0.03
0.00
−0.05
−0.31∗∗∗
0.01
0.16
−0.36∗∗∗
−0.14
−0.28∗∗∗
0.03
−0.09
−0.35∗∗∗
−0.45∗∗∗
0.20∗∗
0.23∗∗∗
0.08
−0.37∗∗∗
0.04
0.09
−0.32∗∗∗
−0.54∗∗∗
0.13
0.12
0.08
0.02
0.23∗∗∗
−0.07
−0.37∗∗∗
0.01
0.18
−0.32∗∗∗
−0.56∗∗∗
0.13
−0.06
0.08
−0.08
−0.36∗∗∗
0.02
−0.03
−0.31∗∗∗
−0.46∗∗∗
0.10
0.14∗
0.16∗∗
0.08
0.20∗∗
1, latent change score between Time 1 and Time 2 (three months later). TC, task-involving climate; EC, ego-involving climate; AM, autonomous motivation; CM, controlled
motivation; P, pleasant states; Ag, anger; Ax, anxiety; +, functional; −, dysfunctional; int, intensity; pi, perceived impact. ∗ p < 0.05; ∗∗ p < 0.01; ∗∗∗ p < 0.001.
athletes’ emotions and motivation regulations by investigating
two different sequences. The first sequence examined the
mediating role of motivation regulations in the motivational
climate and emotion relationships, while the second sequence
placed emotions as mediators of the motivational climate and
motivation regulations relationship.
The results indicated moderately high positive correlations in
the reported scores of perceived motivational climate across time.
These findings concur with empirical evidence from a previous
longitudinal study examining the perceptions of football players
about their motivational climate at the beginning and at the
end of the season (Sage and Kavussanu, 2008). A slightly lower
stability was found in the Sage and Kavussanu’s study. However,
their study included other variables (i.e., goal orientations and
moral behaviors), which may have suppressed the magnitude
of the values. In addition, the timeframe in their study was
relatively longer including data from the beginning to the end
of the season, which may also have allowed for other aspects
(e.g., performance outcome) to influence the perceptions of the
motivational climate. Moderately high positive correlations were
also found in the participants’ reported motivation regulations.
This finding is in line with the Lonsdale and Hodge’s (2011)
study results on elite level athletes assessed over a 4-month
period. However, in regards to athletes’ emotional states, low
positive correlations were found for the emotion intensity.
These results concur with Hanin’s (2000) assumption about
intra-individual variability of emotion intensity as well as with
Lazarus (2000) conceptualization of emotions as individuals’
responses to a transaction with the environment that unfolds
over time. Empirical support for variability in emotional intensity
has derived from studies assessing the intensity of anxiety 1 h
prior to four meets (Turner and Raglin, 1996) or a range of
feeling states 15 min prior a fight in 10 competitions across the
entire season (Robazza et al., 2004). In regards to the functional
impact, positive low correlations were reported in the case
As can be observed in Table 3, the path from the reported
intensity of dysfunctional anger at T1 to the latent change in
autonomous motivation at T2 (M4-β11 ) was significant and
positive, but the coefficient from autonomous motivation at
T1 to the latent change in dysfunctional anger at T2 (M4-β10 )
was non-significant. Also, the path from the reported impact
of dysfunctional anger at T1 to the latent change in controlled
motivation (M14-β11 ) was significant and positive, but β10
was non-significant. These findings regarding the intensity and
perceived impact of dysfunctional anger would support H1
(emotion predicts changes in motivational regulations). The path
from controlled motivation at T1 to the latent change in the
intensity of functional anger at T2 (M6-β10 ) was significant, but
not β11 , supporting H2 (motivational regulations predict changes
in emotions). Finally, the path from controlled motivation at
T1 to the latent change in reported intensity of anxiety at T2
(M5-β10 ) and the path from the intensity of anxiety at T1
to the latent change in controlled motivation at T2 (M5-β11 )
were significant and positive, thus providing support for H3
(reciprocal effects). Effect sizes for these reported significant
paths were also low.
DISCUSSION
The current study examined the relationship between athletes’
perceptions of their motivational climate, motivation regulations,
intensity, and reported functional impact of pleasant and stressrelated emotions over time. We expected that perceptions
of task-involving climate would positively predict athletes’
autonomous motivation and functional emotions, and that
this relationship would hold over time. In contrast, an egoinvolving climate was expected to be a positive predictor of
controlled motivation and dysfunctional emotions. A main
aim of this study involved testing the temporal ordering of
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Athlete’s Motivation and Emotions
to AGT (Nicholls, 1989) and SDT (Deci and Ryan, 2000;
Ryan and Deci, 2017), in the contextual motivation sequence
proposed within the hierarchical model (Vallerand, 1997) it
is assumed that motivation determines behavior, emotions,
and thoughts. Also Lazarus (2000) cognitive-motivationalrelational theory of emotion conceptualizes emotion as an
organized psychophysiological reaction reflecting personenvironment relationships. Emotions are the results of an
individual’s appraisal of a situation in terms of goal relevance
and congruence. According to Lazarus, the function of emotions
is to facilitate adaptation. Similarly, the IZOF model (Hanin,
2000, 2007) assumes that emotions are triggered by person’s
appraisals of the probability of achieving relevant goals, and
the interaction of both functional and dysfunctional emotions
influences performance.
Previous research, with young participants in particular, has
also examined emotions as both antecedents and consequences
of motivation. For instance, Blanchard et al. (2009) found
that self-determined motivation predicted higher intensity levels
of positive emotions in young basketball players. In addition,
intervention studies have provided evidence for the influence
of motivation in the individuals’ pleasant emotional experiences
such as enjoyment (Smith et al., 2007; MacPhail et al., 2008).
In contrast, in the Bortoli et al. (2014) study, pleasant and
unpleasant states were included as mediators in the relationship
between motivational climate and motivation regulations.
Our results indicate that only in the instance of controlled
motivation and the intensity of anxiety there were significant
paths indicating a reciprocal relationship. This may support the
notion that emotions and motivation are complex phenomena.
Lazarus (1999) suggested using a systems theory approach
whereby each subsystem would be comprised of several variables,
and thus, it would be possible to assume that sometimes one
may act as an independent variable and at other times as an
outcome variable. According to a systems theory approach, in the
IZOF model emotions are conceptualized as core components
of a psychobiosocial state, which can be manifested in several
interrelated modalities including emotional and motivational
aspects (for descriptions, see Hanin, 2010; Ruiz et al., 2016). Based
on our results, significant emotion-motivation relationships
emerged on the reported data on anxiety and anger, but not on
pleasant experiences.
of stress-related emotions, with the exception of dysfunctional
anger where a moderate correlation was found across times
(r = 0.50). These results indicate that meta-experiences reflecting
athletes’ awareness of the impact, preferences, or attitudes toward
emotions (Hanin, 2004) are more stable than emotional states.
As expected, significant positive paths were found from the
perceptions of a task-involving climate to the changes in athletes’
autonomous motivation (Table 3), although effect size was low.
However, partial support was obtained for the hypothesized link
between ego-involving climate and the change in controlled
motivation, as only one significant positive path was found
with the intensity of functional anger included in the model,
but not in the case of other emotions. Negative significant
paths were found between task-involving climate and the change
in intensity of dysfunctional anxiety and dysfunctional anger.
In contrast, significant positive paths were found for egoinvolving climate and the change in intensity and reported impact
of dysfunctional anger. Notably, small effect sizes of significant
paths were observed. These findings indicate that the perceptions
of a motivational climate have a carryover effect on athletes’
emotional experiences, especially on anger and anxiety. The
results are in line with AGT (Nicholls, 1989) and SDT (Deci and
Ryan, 1985, 2000; Ryan and Deci, 2017) assumptions that a taskinvolving climate is associated with a more adaptive achievement
pattern while an ego-involving climate is associated with a
more maladaptive pattern. Taken together, these results confirm
our hypothesis regarding the stability of the interplay between
motivational climate, motivation, and emotions supporting the
notion that the social situation created by significant others
influences goal involvement and how participants interpret
their experiences.
Our findings showed that the relationship between athletes’
quality of motivation and emotions varied depending on the
type of motivation and emotions assessed. Specifically, the first
hypothesis (emotions predict changes in motivation regulations)
was supported by the significant links found between the intensity
of dysfunctional anger and the change score in autonomous
motivation, and between dysfunctional perceptions of anger
and the change score for controlled motivation. The links
in the opposite directions were non-significant. The second
hypothesis (motivation regulations predict changes in emotions)
was partially supported by a significant path from controlled
motivation to the change score in intensity of functional anger,
while a non-significant link was found in the opposite direction.
The third hypothesis (reciprocal relationship between emotions
and motivation regulations) was supported by significant paths
between controlled motivation and the change score of the
intensity of anxiety in both directions. Taken together, the results
suggest that the interplay between motivation and emotions
is contingent of the specific emotions. Different findings were
observed regarding the intensity and functional impact of
emotions. Thus, the findings also provide support for the
assessment of both intensity and functional impact of emotions.
However, effect sizes were low, thus, overall findings should be
interpreted with caution.
The notion that motivation determines emotions is
supported by several theorists. For instance, in addition
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Strengths, Limitations, and Future
Research Directions
This study was one of the first to explore the sequential interplay
between the quality of motivation and performance related
emotions in sport. The repeated measures design allowed the
examination of two alternative sequences in which motivational
climate would serve as antecedents of: (1) the variability in
motivation regulations, which would result in different emotions;
or (2) different emotions, which would be antecedents of the
quality of motivation. Overall, results indicate that emotions and
motivation are intertwined: specific emotions predicted different
types of motivation and, at the same time, motivation regulations
predicted specific emotions.
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Athlete’s Motivation and Emotions
effects by triggering controlled motivation and dysfunctional
stress-related emotions. Sport psychology practitioners should
help athletes become aware of the personal reasons to participate
in sport, their emotional experiences, and the interplay between
motivation and emotions. Sport psychology interventions could
focus on an early identification of athletes presenting high levels
of controlled motivation or dysfunctional anxiety, in order to
prevent maladaptive responses to psychological stress and their
negative long-term effects.
The study has some limitations that should to be addressed
in the future. First, because of the relatively small sample
size, we estimated the models for each emotion separately.
Previous studies have used a composite index for motivation
(Lonsdale and Hodge, 2011). However, because emotions reflect
different meanings we opted for separate analysis on the
relationship between autonomous/controlled motivation and
different emotions. Future research should attempt to replicate
the present findings with a larger sample to allow for the
estimation of a model including all study variables. Effect sizes
obtained in the study were relatively small, thus, larger sample
studies are warranted in the replication of these findings. Second,
we used repeated measures at two time points across 3 months.
This allowed us to examine inter-individual variability in intraindividual patterns of change over time. However, future research
could include a larger number of measurement points, which
would provide a more reliable assessment and information about
individual trajectories, thereby shedding more light into the
understanding of the interplay of motivational and emotional
variables across time. A final limitation of the study is the use
of a correlational design. Thus, future experimental research
where some of the studied variables are manipulated would
allow for a direct test of the proposed models, providing
a better understanding of the nature of the motivation and
emotion relationship. Another important avenue for future
research would be the examination of the role of athletes’
basic psychological needs satisfaction as potential mediators in
this relationship.
DATA AVAILABILITY
The datasets generated for this study are available on request to
the corresponding author.
ETHICS STATEMENT
This study was carried out in accordance with ‘the ethical
principles of research in the humanities and social and behavioral
sciences and proposals for ethical review’ drafted by the National
Advisory Board on Research Ethics in Finland (TENK). The
University of Jyväskylä Ethical Committee approved the research
protocol. In accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, all
participants gave written informed consent, after anonymity and
confidentiality was assured.
AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS
Practical Implications
The study has important practical implications. Findings
support the notion that coaches need to promote a taskinvolving motivational climate to attain long lasting positive
effects on autonomous motivation. They also need to decrease
dysfunctional anxiety and anger to enhance the athletes’
adaptation to psychological stress associated with performance
in high achievement contexts. Coaches should also be mindful
that an ego-involving climate could have negative long-term
All authors listed have made a substantial, direct and intellectual
contribution to the work, and approved it for publication.
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